Mini-stick keyboard?

begallo

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I think back in the 70s there was a mini-craze for a mini musical keyboard which operated with a stick that ran over the keyboard, quickly moved to make a song e.g. The Spanish Flea.

Does anybody remember that, and if so what the name of the keyboard was please?
 

Ar-Pharazon

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I think back in the 70s there was a mini-craze for a mini musical keyboard which operated with a stick that ran over the keyboard, quickly moved to make a song e.g. The Spanish Flea.

Does anybody remember that, and if so what the name of the keyboard was please?

The Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass song? The only keyboard I can hear in that song is a standard piano. Otherwise trumpets and maybe some other brass.
 

begallo

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No, I'm afraid not.

It's like a mini electric keyboard, of which the keys cannot be pressed as they rely on contact with a metal stick to connect the circuit, then playing the tone, of which the stick never leaves the keys and is swiftly swapped up and down the keyboard to pay the music.

Does that make sense?
 

Ar-Pharazon

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No, I'm afraid not.

It's like a mini electric keyboard, of which the keys cannot be pressed as they rely on contact with a metal stick to connect the circuit, then playing the tone, of which the stick never leaves the keys and is swiftly swapped up and down the keyboard to pay the music.

Does that make sense?

Oh, it makes total sense, I just don't think Spanish Flea (the original at least) has anything like it. Trumpets, drums, other percussion and maybe a piano.

I've seen all manner of strange keyboards on youtube. The Mellotron is one of my favorite oddballs. I like a challenge, but can't find any keyboards played with sticks on Google or youtube so far.
 

Lynch

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I'm with Ar-Phar, I was going to comment on this with the exact same thoughts the other day (but i got distracted by something shiny).


I don't hear any keyboard in Spanish Flea (also, didn't that come out back in the 1960's?)


The only small keyboards from the 70's that I can remember are the wonky and cheap little Casio keyboards, and then maybe one of those Mellotrons

 

Ar-Pharazon

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It sounds like what @begallo is describing is like a xylophone with an electronic nature.

I like this Mellotron video. She really gets into the way the thing works, and it works really strangely. Sort of a poor (wo)man's synth.

 

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