Star Trek Musical Instruments

[Sarcophagus Galacticus]

Hello all,
I am a life long Star Trek fan and an amateur musician who plays the alto saxophone and the bassoon. I am fascinated by the idea of future wind instruments. In the Star Trek universe we see very few new musical instruments. The exception being the Vulcan harp and the bicycle wheel the hippie chick plucked in "The Way To Eden". Harry Kim played a clarinet with a ridged mouthpiece to make it look a little futuristic, but it was a superficial useless change. Riker plays a trombone that for all intents and purposes should be in a museum. Data plays a violin with no advancement in the past 500 years. You would think an advanced culture such as the United Federation of Planets would be more culturally developed in their musical orchestra. I know for example Antoine-Joseph Adolphe Sax the inventor of the saxophone died in complete poverty in 1894. His instrument was rejected by society and to this day is only seldom used in classical music. Most classical musicians consider it "too New" even though it was introduced in 1840. Perhaps the Federation of the future has this same cultural bias and will only play old proven instruments. What are your thoughts? Would you have liked to have seen more unusual musical instruments in the Star Trek universe?

 

[Tosk]

How much have instruments changed in the last two hundred years, not counting going electric?

 

[Six of Twelve]

Modern violins look no different than those of the 18th century.

But Riker's trombone could have at least been one of those with two rotary valves. We had those in my high school band in the 70s. But Jonathan Frakes actually plays the trombone and Garrett Wang actually plays clarinet and saxophone, so maybe they were using their own personal instruments

To Tosk, most wind instruments gained their modern forms in the later 19th century, with the improvements being the addition of valves, both piston and rotary, for brass instruments and the gradual development and improvement of key systems on woodwind instruments.

 

[Bad Thoughts]

Don't forget that Varani played an oboe like instrument which, for some reason, sounded like synthesized strings.

 

[sbk1234]

As for not using newer instruments, if they are playing an old classical piece such as something by Mozart or Btthoven, perhaps they only use the instruments more contemporary to that particular music so as to preserve the sound.

 

[Bad Thoughts]

As for not using newer instruments, if they are playing an old classical piece such as something by Mozart or Btthoven, perhaps they only use the instruments more contemporary to that particular music so as to preserve the sound.

You'd have to exclude Harry Kim's performances, as clarinets had more holes than keys.

ETA: Also, the piano evolved significantly over the 19th century. They'd have to use a different model for almost every performance, not the current piano.

 

[sbk1234]

You'd have to exclude Harry Kim's performances, as clarinets had more holes than keys.

ETA: Also, the piano evolved significantly over the 19th century. They'd have to use a different model for almost every performance, not the current piano.

Maybe. I know nothing about music, except how to listen to what I like.

 

[Doom Shepherd]

Adam's guitar-thingy?
Nella Daren's piano fruit roll-up?

 

[Tenacity]

Trip's harmonic.

 

[Kor]

What they need is the famous Holophonor.

Kor

 

[1001001]

What they need is the famous Holophonor.

Kor

But you need the Robot Devil's hands to play it worth a damn.

 

[Sgt_G]

Remember Picard's flute? Some guy bought it at auction, paid a stupid amount of money for it. He said he was taking lessons so he'd be able to play it at conventions. They asked Patrick Stewart about it. He said, "Ah, yes, that damn flute. You know, it doesn't actually play." Seems it's solid, no air-tube inside of it. Which makes the amount of money the guy paid about ten-times more stupid.

 

[Six of Twelve]

Remember Picard's flute? Some guy bought it at auction, paid a stupid amount of money for it. He said he was taking lessons so he'd be able to play it at conventions. They asked Patrick Stewart about it. He said, "Ah, yes, that damn flute. You know, it doesn't actually play." Seems it's solid, no air-tube inside of it. Which makes the amount of money the guy paid about ten-times more stupid.

It looked exactly like what is known as tin whistle or a penny whistle, which date from the early 19th century and they sound like it did on the show.

 

[Sgt_G]

Yeah, I know it sounded right, but my guess is that gave Stewart a fake one so he couldn't mess up the audio, and then they dubbed in real music by someone who knows how to play it very well. {shrug}

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Unnamed_musical_instruments

 

[Kor]

Portable roll-up keyboards actually exist, but I don't know if they're as good as the one Nella Daren had.

Kor

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I always thought it was pretty funny that one of the hippies in "The Way to Eden" plays...a bicycle wheel. Does THAT thing even make a sound?

And what about the Vulcan harp thingy? Do those actually make music too?

 

[Bad Thoughts]

I always thought it was pretty funny that one of the hippies in "The Way to Eden" plays...a bicycle wheel. Does THAT thing even make a sound?

Did you see Triplets of Belleville?

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ No.

 

[Samuel]

Anyone remember the "Edoan Elisiar" from "The Cryer in Emptiness"- the Star Trek record player book and story?