Blaster Beam
A blaster beam is an electric stringed instrument that was invented by the artist John Lazelle in the 1970s. Four or more piano strings are stretched in parallel over an approximately 6 meter (18 foot ) long aluminum body, which is made to vibrate by striking it directly or in some other way. A polished cartridge can also be used here.
The sound is picked up and amplified electrically. This creates a metallic, rasping sound; the pitch can be changed continuously. The musical instrument became known to a wider audience through its use in Jerry Goldsmith's score for Star Trek: The Film from 1979 and its use by John Barry in the score for The Black Hole .
The musical instrument is also used as a replica by the Japanese musician Kitarō (under the name Beam ).
Individual evidence
- ↑ On Goldsmith's music, brief description of how it works , accessed on May 1, 2009
- ↑ Beam and Kitaro on gigapolis.com , accessed 1 May 2009