Acme siren

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The Acme siren is a musical instrument often used for comic sound effects. Originally created by Acme Whistles in 1895, it produces the stylized sound of a police siren. It is one of the few aerophones in the percussion section. [1]

The instrument is typically made of metal and is cylindrical. Inside the cylinder is a type of fan-blade which, when the performer blows through one end, spins and creates the sound. The faster the performer blows, the faster the fan-blade moves and the higher the pitch the instrument creates. Conversely, the slower the performer blows, the lower the pitch. [2]

Iannis Xenakis used it in the 1960s in his works Oresteia, Terretektorh, and Persephassa . [3] A siren was used in Bob Dylan's classic album, Highway 61 Revisited . One is also heard in Stevie Wonder's song "Sir Duke" just before the second chorus, and in Supertramp's song "The Logical Song" immediately after the final chorus.

References

  1. ↑ Strain, James Allen (2017). "Acme siren". A Dictionary for the Modern Percussionist and Drummer. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. p. 4. ISBN   978-0-8108-8693-3. OCLC   974035735.
  2. ↑ "Acme Siren". Virginia Tech Multimedia Music Dictionary. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Archived from the original on 28 August 2006. Retrieved 2006-08-27.
  3. ↑ Xenakis, Iannis; Olivier Messiaen (1985). Arts-sciences, Alloys: The Thesis Defense of Iannis Xenakis, Oliver Messiaen, Michel Ragon, Olivier Revault D'Allonnes, Michel Serres, and Bernard Teyssèdre. Pendragon Press. p. 118.
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