| Mellotron 400 - SN #1517 |
Description : A keyboard instrument manufatured in the 60s and 70s that
uses pre-recorded tape as it´s soundsource.
Amount : Ca 1800
Used by : Smashing Pumpkins, The Beatles, Oasis, the Moody Blues, Genesis,
King Crimson, Eels, Wilco.
Production period : 1963 - 1986 , 2003 - ?
Keys :
Weight : 55 kg
Description : The Mellotron was a very integral part
of a lot of keyboard players setups during the late 60´s and 70´s.
If you didn’t want to use a real flute player or a string section
the Mellotron was a good alternative. Well….a decent enough alternative.
Because the Mellotron doesn’t sound like a string section or a flute
player…really…The sounds are weird, like they are coming from
the other side. The sounds are often slightly out of tune and with an
eerie frightening feel to them. But that didn’t scare off the Beatles
who created musical history when they used the Flutes for their signature
intro to Strawberry Fields Forever. Since then the Mellotron has been
used by thousands of bands. Bands with either a small recording budget
or looking for a unique sound. The bands that record at Roth Händle
studio are usually both.
The problem that faced many touring bands was that the instruments were
very fragile and broke easily and weren’t that reliable even if
they got it on stage. One common problem was that if you pressed down
more than 3 keys the motor would start to drag…and the pitch would
go down. This combined with the odd bum note…created a special kind
of playing. Great piano players usually make for crummy Mellotron players.
The keys are often uneven and if you press them too hard you can get loud
pops and key clicks but it press it soft and then increase the pressure
you’ll be just fine. One of strong points of the keyboard (besides
it’s unique sound) was of course to have the ability to reproduce
orchestral textures and acoustic instruments in a live setting.
The sounds are on snippets of tape that are attached to frames. On every
frame there are three sounds. There is one snippet of tape for every key
on the keyboard. The tape frame is attached underneath the actual keyboard.
When the key is pressed the tape is pulled over the head and the sound
on the tape is replayed. Every tape is 7 seconds long. When changing sounds
on the tape frames you simply change the placement of tape heads under
the tape. You can also switch between tape frames for more sounds but
this takes about 3-4 minutes. If you want to know more about the sounds
scroll down to the end of the page for some films and more info.
A variety of sounds were manufactured for the Mellotron. The most common
ones are strings, flute, cello and choirs but also sound effects, wineglasses
and more odd sounds are available. There are approximately 70 different
sounds made for the Mellotron. Groups such as Roxy Music, Yes and Black
Sabbath even created their own sounds and had them put on Mellotron tapes.
The sounds have a ghostlike character to them. I purchased mine from the
bass player in Änglagård who was getting rid of a lot of equipment.
He needed a new car…I apparently needed a Mellotron.
The Mellotron is one of the pillars sound wise in the studio and it is
used every other day. Due to the variety in sounds it is hard to hear
where it couldn’t fit in. From Devi's punkish quirky pop to the
progressive symphonic blast from bands like Änglagård and Deadwood
Forest it seems like the Mellotron has overcome a lot of it’s limitations.
The most obvious and extreme use is of course the AK-momo album which
is all Optigan, all Orchestron and all Mellotron all the time…
There are two sources for repair, sounds and general help; Streetly Electronics
and Mellotron (Sweden/Canada). For obvious reasons I have worked closer
with Markus as he lives five minutes walk from my apartment. Markus has
developed an improved version of the Mellotron 400 called the Mark VI.
There has also been talk from Streetly electronics to start making new
Mellotrons.
.
Mellotron Sounds
This little article is based on my own experiences with the sounds and
I have also used info from both Mellotron.com and the streetly´s
web pages. Please take some time to watch the little films…the explanations
make so much more sense after hearing the sounds…or the other way
around …hopefully. I have tried to point towards certain songs that
You can download from the site…Obviously all of these sounds were
used on the AK-momo album.
| Flute
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| Cello
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| 3 violins The classic Mellotron strings. If this sound doesn’t send chills down your spine chances are you are either deaf or dead. Used by every Mellotron owner. Featured very prominently in the King Crimson song starless from the album Red. Also one of Mike Pinders from the Moody Blues favorite sounds. Harry Chamberlin recorded this sound in 1952 in his bedroom with three middle-aged women. Very hard imagining while listening to King Crimson, Yes or Genesis.
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| Mark II Brass (2) |
| German flute This is not the same as the classic flute, it is breathier and more out of tune giving it almost a Middle Eastern feel. I have used this a fair bit with AK-momo and on the Celestine track Sunflower.
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| Hammond B3 with bass pedals I have used this when I have wanted to add a different flavor to the bass register. Not wanting to use the lowest of the low (moogs, mini or Taurus) and not going for straight organ basses. This bass adds a kind of low mid movement as well thanks to the Leslie. It has been used mostly with Celestine (the track City of lights) and The grand Opening. I think this sound comes from the Mark II but I am not really really sure.
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| Viola The Viola was added to the tape library in 1975 and sounds pretty different than other Mellotron sounds. A boxy kind of sound but with a great vibrato. Someone wrote on the net that it is reminiscent of the playing style of John Cale. I have used this a lot with the 3 violins to create a more live string section feel. This sound has become very much a Two times the trauma live trademark. Tobias Ljung kvist uses this sound to great effect with the band using techniques such as stopping the flywheel and doing pitchbends to create interesting and very musical effects with this marvelous sound.
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| Clarinet
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| Oboe
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| Pipe Organ
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| Male Choir |
| String section |
| Eight voice choir
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| String section (different) |
| Wineglasses The wineglasses are without doubt one of my favorite sounds. Ethereal and ambient, very frightening in that Shining kind of way. I have used this sound on the AK-momo album (of course) but it is also used on the Celestine album (the lost sun), and on the Blanc album. Using generous amounts of analog delay and plate reverb you could swear that the overdub came from the other side. A very effective sound to pitch bend I might add.
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| Mark I Moving cellos & Violins
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| Piano On the Nanook album we used it on a couple of songs but the most impressive thing is on the verses of the track Phonecall where the whole chord structure is played on the Mellotron piano (with a splash of Chorus). It is also on the song St.George and the dragon. There is also stuff that you can do with the Mellotron piano that you can’t do that easily with a real one. Pitching full chords up and down…playing with wheel creating wobblies or just pitching the whole thing to fit your key better.
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| Vibes w. Vibrato Apparently used by Mike Pinder on the track "Floating" from "Every Good Boy Deserves Favour,". Used a fair bit on the Nanook album. Especially on the track St.George and the dragon. I also think this is one of fellow swedish proggers Anekdotens favorite sounds. Gives everything a kind of Eels flavour…When Rick Wakeman toured with two Mellotrons in the 70´s I think he had Vibes on one of the Trons.
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| Chamberlin solo female voice 
Criborne |
| Boys Choir |
| Timpani Rolls |
| Moving strings Criborne
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| Musical Box Criborne
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| Mark I Mechanic Drum Mattias |
| The
difference between male voice and 8 voice |
| Half
speed male choir |
| Churchorgan
playing The Model |
| Chamberlin Steel guitar Criborne
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| MK II Mandolin tremoles Criborne
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| MKI I Swinging flutes Criborne
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