FMP

It's finally here...

2009-08-10T15:31:00.000-07:00

benmcqueen.com If you still read this blog and want to see more check it out.

The end is nigh...

2009-06-02T02:27:00.000-07:00

Here is where it all stands, been up all night rendering but I've finally got the two edits I was looking for of the workshop and graham playing the quadraphonium in the concert hall. The quadraphonium is complete, the workshop was a major success and 7 out of the 9 pupils have decided to take up brass lessons. My book is complete and printed and I have printed off some more posters that went in to school. The last thing I am doing before hand in today is polishing the quadraphonium to give it a little sparkle. That's all I hope...

The quadraphonium has landed.

2009-05-27T16:07:00.000-07:00

Haven't had time to put a photo up until now but the quadraphonium made it to college in one piece thankfully last Friday. On another note I heard back from my father that 7 out of the 9 kids that took part in the workshop have now taken up brass lessons. Really happy about that as it proves my project was actually valid and works.

Book layout at the moment

2009-05-27T15:57:00.000-07:00

Working on the final book, some of the spreads still need a bit of work but this is how they are looking at the moment.

All packed and ready to go

2009-05-21T04:22:00.000-07:00

The trumphonium is packed up and padded to the max with foam and bubble wrap, so fingers crossed it will make it to college in one piece by noon Friday. I think my parents have finally had enough of me using their garage as a workshop and eating all the food. I'm heading back to London this afternoon but I have everything I needed to do here done and dusted. All that's left now is the editing of the video footage I've gathered. Finish off the manual and print everything out. Also presentation wise I'm looking into proper hard foam packaging for the interior of the flight case but this will all be done in London over the next few days.

And here's a little photograph of everything packed up in the box and me sitting on top very tired and relieved that's going to London.

Showing Off

2009-05-20T14:13:00.000-07:00

Got access to my local town hall which has a beautiful concert hall. My father Brass tutor dressed in a Tux and played a couple of tunes on the trumphonium. Im surprised at how well it looks in the concert hall and the sound actually was better than expected. Some photographs of the set up and filming of Graham playing the trumphonium.

Finally removed all the lacquer

2009-05-19T10:44:00.000-07:00

I have spent the past 5 days removing all the lacquer from the trumphonium, possibly the most soul destroying job of the whole project, but its looking pretty hot even before a coat of polish.

Bell section before paint and lacquer thinner was applied

Valves with paint thinner applied.

After hours of intense scrubbing finally looks good

Days of scrubbing, finally all pieces have lacquer removed

The Trumphonium properly cleaned and lacquer free. I will take time out to polish it tomorrow so that it has an extra shine.

Thinking about packaging

2009-05-18T12:32:00.000-07:00

Drove down to Ballygawley today which is about a hour 30mins drive south to see a guy who makes custom made flight cases for dj equipment and musical instruments. Rather funny reaction to the instrument when he first saw it but he thought there was no problem in making a case to fit it. Had a look at materials and finishes and should hopefully look pretty hot by the time its finished on wed morning. Here is the link to the Andrew's website, the photograph of the cases does not do him justice at all as I was rather skeptical before going down but I was very impressed with the finish of some of the cases he has already made.

Clean up

2009-05-18T02:18:00.000-07:00

A few photos of the cleaning process, which is rather long and monotonous. Somehow when I polish the brass I come out of the garage looking like a have been working in a coal mine.

Silverplating & finishing

2009-05-16T03:41:00.000-07:00

I was in contact with a number of silverplaters for a top end finish but the estimates were varied between £500 to £1500. Also the other problem is that the process would take at least 3 weeks to achieve. This process involves them taking apart what i have made and individually plating each part and then rebuilding the instrument. Due to timescale and money I have had to look at other options. Peter Arthurs who repaired my dents in the trumphonium suggested removing the lacquer and just polishing the bare brass. It would still achieve the high shine finish I'm looking for to present at the show. Also to verify his suggestion of removing the lacquer and polishing the trumphonium I received an email from the brass specialists Mcqueens who also recommended removing the lacquer and polishing.

Hi Ben

To silver plate this instrument you would be looking at about £500!

If I was you....i would strip all the old and burnt lacquer (with nitromors-paint stripper) and clean up the bare brass.

Kind regards

Rick.

With all that said it looks like I will be sitting in my garage for the next week stripping the brass and polishing.

Ding Ding

2009-05-15T09:57:00.000-07:00

Just back from seeing a brass repair guy outside Belfast who managed fix all the massive dents in the trumphonium and he managed to straighten out some of the bells. Great job well done. All that's left to do to the trumphonium is clean up some of the joints and polish the bad boy.

Photos of yesterdays madness

2009-05-15T06:44:00.001-07:00

A little bit burnt, but still have all limbs intact

2009-05-14T11:02:00.000-07:00

Today went so much better than I thought it would. The kids were a blessing and all managed to make their own bugles, some even went as far to make simple trumpets with valves. Really productive day, photos and video footage to come as soon as my hands have recovered from the 13 year olds blowtorching them.

Almost finished...

2009-05-12T10:44:00.000-07:00

The final instrument, just needs some braces and a clean up and that should be it finished. And yes a tuned can be played on it... success!

Trumphonium??

2009-05-12T06:46:00.001-07:00

Mouthpipe is fixed, braces applied so it doesn't fall apart and a trumpet bell instead of a trombone bell. Not sure how it sounds at the min but everything seems to be working.

2nd bell

2009-05-12T02:17:00.000-07:00

Not sure about this one, I've added a removable trombone bell but it looks pretty ugly at the min. Maybe need a rethink of what bells to add.

The making of a musical monster

2009-05-11T10:50:00.001-07:00

Started building my first attempt at a new musical instrument that involves a number of bells and valves.Here's a few photos of how the instrument is shaping up.

This was the first way I had set up the 6 valves but then i realized that you can't physically twist your hand around to play the bottom 3 valves.

Fixed the problem of the valves by switching the position of them so its much easier to hold and work all the valves at the same time.

This is how the instrument is looking at the moment, its basically a 6 valve euphonium and the first 3 valves actually work and play. I'm trying to fit 3 more bell sections onto the other valve section and then hopefully it will be complete. The instrument is remaining nameless at present but contact me if you can think up of a clever name for it.

Deconstruction meltdown

2009-05-09T03:16:00.000-07:00

The deconstruction line I do believe is at an end. Pretty much broken apart ever instrument I think I need to. I was slightly losing my mind but I forced my dog to keep my company out in the garage. I don't think she particularly like it. Anyway, prep is going well for Thursday, and I will start to build my own instrument in the next few days all being well.

I feel like I'm working a factory line...

2009-05-07T10:39:00.000-07:00

I've deconstructed about 5 Cornets and 6 Trumpets this afternoon, its taking forever and feels a bit repetitive. Still have the tubas and euphoniums to prep for Thursday.

The final one

2009-05-06T08:20:00.000-07:00

Some slight adjustments made before the poster went to print. The first set of posters will be placed around school tomorrow morning.

Final poster design maybe

2009-05-05T17:26:00.001-07:00

As I mentioned before the poster will be split up into 4 sub posters with the mouthpiece poster at the beginning and then adding the valve section the following day and then the other valve section the next day and finally the bell section. There is always potential to change each section as well allowing for multiple designs up until the date of the workshop. Excuse some of the parts that are badly cut out, its 1.30am and I need to sleep. I'll smooth out the design tomorrow morning with hope to print asap and post around school to spread the word.

some film photos...

2009-05-05T09:08:00.000-07:00

To avoid confusion these photos are not from a moving image. They are photos taken on a film slr camera and not digital for once by a good friend of mine who will be hopefully giving me a hand documenting the workshop next week.

Thunderbirds are go!

2009-05-05T05:21:00.000-07:00

Headmaster has passed everything and I have signed child protection forms etc so 14th & 15th May we will be building a playing some custom made instruments.

Some poster designs

2009-05-04T17:20:00.000-07:00

A couple of poster designs to go in school. The idea is to start off with the mouthpiece poster and then add the valves poster and then a bell section poster the following days to attract more attention each day. I was quite liking the word "trumpet" broken up into 2 lines to allow for bigger lettering but I've discussed with a number of people and it annoys them so I've put it back on the same line and made the text smaller. At the moment I'm undecided which one to go for. Probably be the non broken "trumpet" although I'm willing to hear what other people think. Also the last of the instruments to be gathered up should arrive in my garage by tomorrow evening. I've been on the phone to my old technology teacher and he is still enthusiastic about the project. The suggested date at the min is 14th - 15th May. I am sending a letter to the Headmaster of the school tomorrow to clarify whats happening, fingers crossed he won't have a problem with it.

back in the sticks

2009-05-03T12:11:00.000-07:00

Just returned home to create some more instruments and plan out the sessions in school.
I have managed to collect instruments from all over Northern Ireland and my garage is now starting to look like a brass graveyard. In total I have 8 trumpets, 2 french horns, 4 trombones, 5 euphoniums and 3 tubas. Still have a couple more van loads to come but I think it should be enough to teach a class and build my own.

Little bit of an update.

2009-04-27T16:25:00.000-07:00

There hasn't been much activity on my blog this week as I'm not at home. It's does not mean I have been sitting around watching daytime tv all day twiddling my thumbs. I have been reading through this instruction manual john gave to me, which has roughly about 100pgs and I am trying to condense that into a more user friendly teaching handbook for school. Its a rather slow and laborious process but I should have some images up soon of the spreads.

As far as the instrument building goes I have been trying to source more instruments from around the country so that I have enough to go into school and create roughly about 10 instruments with the children. I have discussed in college about building my own instrument that shows off all the various parts of each instrument as a showpiece for the final exhibit. Since it is going to be a showpiece I have discussed finishing off the instrument to a much higher level than that would be achieved in school. Therefore I have been pricing silver plating and lacquering for a proper professional finish. So far the price has varied from £300-£1500, I had thought about trying to silver plate and lacquer myself but I do not have the equipment needed to do such a thing so I may have to fork out the money in the long run.

Downgrade your phone.

2009-04-20T06:39:00.000-07:00

Fran found this and said it reminded her of my work. This guy makes stickers for the backs of iphones to make them look like old mobiles. He wanted to add design to the blank space on the back of today's iphones and in doing so he thought these stickers might even deter thieves. Here is the link to the article on creative review.

Few more photos

2009-04-20T05:51:00.000-07:00

Just uploaded a few photos of the 3 main instruments I plan to build with pupils in school. I've had quite a lot of discussion with a number of people and I feel it is best to keep the instruments as simple as possible so that they are easy to build and play. Removing the valves and turning them into simple bugles is the simplest way to do it.

I have a few close up shots of the actually joints that have been soldered etc so you can make out the fine detail on each instrument.

The French Horn:

The trumpet:

The tuba:

It is ridiculously hard to solder the parts together subtly without big lumps solder collecting at the bottom of the joints but I think I can safely say my soldering has improved since I began. Hear are a few photos of the first french horn I soldered a few weeks ago. I had difficulty melting the solder at the right heat and it so it melted in big clumps thus really messy joints but after a talk with John he showed me how to fix this problem.

Remember the manual I mentioned John had put together over the years? Well here are a few photos of it. There is a lot of useful information in this book it just needs to be broken down and designed into something more efficient and eye catching.

A little something I can work on while I'm in London, I am also starting to consider promotion ideas to get children to sign up to this class in the first place. Posters around the school are going to be a heavy influence in capturing the pupils attention and also the school website is heavily used by the pupils and their parents so I need to consider some graphics for the web.

Building a tuba bugle and testing the horn and trumpet

2009-04-18T09:11:00.000-07:00

Good days work in the shed...

2009-04-17T10:02:00.000-07:00

I had a very productive morning. Traveled up to John's workshop this morning with my father and we rummaged through his graveyard of old instruments. I decided to take my trumpet creation up to John to see if we could finish the piece off to a higher standard. I'm actually quite impressed at how well the polisher finishes off the brass after all the welding and sawing etc. Finally got my SLR back from London so I can actually take some decent shots. Here are a few from today's work:

Some shots of finishing the trumpet off with stronger braces and a bit of polish.

The destruction and reconstruction of the french horn:

The french horn before demolition

Blowtorching the joints.

Removing the valve section

The horn without the valve section.

Figuring out a way to join the bell and mouthpipe together.

Soldering more piping to the mouthpiece.

The final bugle style french horn soldered together.

Trying to iron out a few kinks.

I'm going to finish off cleaning up and polishing the french horn now so that it is more presentable. I'm also thinking of doing similar bugle style to one of the tubas I picked up. I will try and film these to show the process of the work and when someone else is around who can actually blow the instruments I'll get footage of it.

Some more building an research

2009-04-12T11:34:00.000-07:00

Having realized that there was no method to my destruction i had a bit of a rethink about how to construct these instruments. The tuba with the slide and trumpet looks intriguing but it actually sounds awful and is not exactly a useful teaching tool. With this in mind I began to take apart the french horn and reassemble it without the valves and stretched out.

The new design of the horn creates one basic note but it works and sounds much better than the tuba did. Few problems have arisen from building this specific horn, I destroyed the original mouthpipe so it is missing about a foot of tubing and although played with a trumpet mouthpiece it could have sounded a lot better with the original mouthpipe and french horn mouthpiece. I did a little more reconstructing to make the horn a little more user friendly as in its currents state at bout 2m's long isn't exactly compact.

All the components have been reshuffled and welded to make the overall instrument smaller. The sound of the horn has not changed because all the same parts have been used. I discovered that as long as the length of tubing is kept the same you can bend and twist the pipe as much as you like as it will not effect the sound.

Moving on from this I decided to have a look at the trumpet. The one I obtained had damaged valves so I decided to remove them to make a basic bugle.

I found from this that there was a crack on part of the pipe that was drastically affecting the pitch, so having covered that and placed the correct trumpet mouthpiece managed to produce a rather effective sound.

The next will be creating more simple bugles out of the tuba and trombone and a possibly a french horn if I can obtain another one. From a teaching point of view and ease of use. Creating simple instruments like a bugle is probably the best option with a class of students. It quick and rather easy to assemble and simple to play.

Having discussed this with my father, he was quite excited as he thought the idea of constructing bugles would be perfect for learning the basic notes for brass. Keeping them compact and simple allows the children to take them home a practice as well.

I myself wondered while he couldn't just get kids to learn on standard bugles and he said that they all sound the same and for a child to build one them self, they could not resist trying to make a sound from it. Building bugles from different types of brass instruments will also create different sounds which in the end could help make an interesting piece of music.

A slightly different trumpet...

2009-04-08T10:54:00.000-07:00

Just a little trumpet I made from pulling apart a french horn and attaching the valves to a trumpet bell.

Trip to a workshop in ballymoney

2009-04-08T06:57:00.000-07:00

Met up with John today, my instrument technician and we had a rummage through his workshop for old instruments. Pretty hard considering his workshop looks like this:

Although I did pick up 3 tubas and a couple of leftover pieces of trombones and trumpets. John is not allowed to dump any musical instruments as someone else is suppose to take care of it but never actually comes round to do the job so there is plenty of battered instruments stockpiled in his stores.

I got round to constructing my first instrument today and learning how to weld and repair joints. This is the first attempt, a mix between a tuba, slide of a trombone and an extra trumpet bell.

Amazingly it does actually make a sound through both bells, but the slide is ridiculously hard to use as the tuba is already so awkward to hold. Ive taken a few instruments home with me today to have a play around and see how much more destruction i can create.

Apologies for the poor photos, my friend who is a practicing photographer was supposed to come up and help me take some decent shots but had to drop out at the last min due to some family problems. However we have rearranged to go up to John in the next few weeks to take some more photos.

John gave me a wonderful little handbook on how to repair brass that he has put together over the years he has been fixing instruments. I had already mentioned producing a handbook to help pupils when it comes round to building instruments in the class and this appears to a be a great source of information.

Odd music...

2009-04-07T05:10:00.000-07:00

Was skimming through this site and came across the original guy who made musical instruments from his car way back in 1991.Seems like obvious inspiration for the creators of the Ford Advert. Click here

It appears that musical instruments can be made from anything these days, I found saxophones made from bamboo. Click here

Oliver DiCicco created the Due Capi a weird arrangement of chrome fixtures that finishes off with two saxophone heads. I can't find much more on the actual purpose of it or anyone playing it. You can find DiCicco's website here

Initial Ideas

2009-04-05T08:24:00.000-07:00

I have a number of ideas about what way to go with these instruments but I think the most useful step to take is to consider changing certain parts like adding another bell or changing the valves to a slide affect the overall sound of the instrument. I will take some time over the next few days to draw up some diagrams of exactly what I plan to construct out of the old instruments I have already acquired.

I think there was a general worry that this project may resemble the current ford focus advert where they have constructed string instruments from the car. I agree there are some similarities to this advert in that I plan to construct instruments but here is how they differ: In this ford advert they have taken apart the car not to make new instruments but to make replicas of well known instruments such as the harp, flute,drums and the cello. I plan to make instruments that do not look like replicas of their originals. The instruments are new and experimental, made from redundant brass instruments and will be constructed to not look like their originals.

Some Reasearch on brass

2009-04-05T05:40:00.000-07:00

I have a meeting on Monday to discuss with John (instrument repair technician) about gathering more brass instruments from the Northern Ireland Education Board. I am also trying to arrange a session with him where he can show me the techniques used to repair and weld brass parts together so I can start making these instruments on.

Started doing some research to refresh my mind of brass and how each of the parts actually work to affect the sound of each instrument.

There are 4 main types of brass instruments played in secondary schools:

* Trumpets
* Trombones
* Tubas
* French Horns

There are of course a number of other brass instruments such as the bugle, sousaphone etc but the likely hood of stumbling across any of these in school cupboards is highly unlikely. So far i have managed to acquire a trombone, french horn and a very battered tuba.

There are two main types of design when it comes to brass:

* Cylindrical Bore

* Conical Bore

Cylindrical Bore is where the instruments piping from mouthpiece to bell are the same thickness. Trumpet and Trombone are both cylindrical bore.

Conical Bore is where the thickness of the instruments piping gradually widens from the mouthpiece to the bell. French Horn and Tuba are conical bore.

Finally there are 4 main sections to take into account on brass instruments:

* Mouthpiece

* Mouthpipe

* Body of instrument (valves/slide)

* Bell

There are 2 factors to changing the pitch of a brass instrument: changing the player's lip aperture or "embouchure", which determines the frequency of the vibration into the instrument and pressing the valves to change the length of the tubing.

Valves and Slides work on the same principle that by changing the length of piping you can change the pitch of the sound. Valves have a more defined distinction between each note being played where as a slide has a more fluid blend between notes. Valved instruments have more of an advantage when it comes to playing faster pieces of music as the slide can be slow and quite awkward jumping up and down the scales.

There are also two main types of valve designs to consider in the construction of these instruments: Rotary and Piston Valves (they both do the same job changing the flow of air through different parts of the instruments but by slight different process)

Rotary Valve

Piston Valve

Pro Forma

2009-04-03T05:04:00.000-07:00

1. Project Summary (One concise paragraph only)

To produce a piece of music, played by children on uniquely designed brass instruments they have made themselves, from irreparable trumpets, trombones etc
Inspiration for the children will be in the form of instruments I have made myself, and an instruction manual, which may be retained by the school for further projects.

2. Context (Background)

My father is head of music in a large grammar school (1200 pupils) and Chair of Examiners for A Level music in Northern Ireland. He presented me with the problem of an imbalance of fewer pupils playing brass instruments compared to woodwind, strings and percussion. The reasons for this, he says, are varied and may include factors such as expense, popularity, and the necessity for regular practice on six/seven days per week – pupils on non-brass can progress on 4 days of practice per week.

3. Rationale (Why the project is relevant to you and to GDComm practice)

Coming from a musical background this project is hugely relevant to me. My whole family play various numbers of musical instruments. I myself have played a number of instruments in my childhood but admittedly not to a high level. I am more concerned about the construction of these instruments and their overall performance. In terms of relevance to GDComm practice this project offers a number of design outcomes; the instruments themselves will have to be carefully designed, instruction manuals may be involved to help children with a better understanding on how each part works and also, there is potential to document the activities on film and create an engaging piece of moving image.

4. Skills Evidence: (describe your approach to the following)

Topicality and future projection potential

By using redundant instruments to create new experimental brass instruments it is effectively keeping waste musical objects to a minimum on landfill sites. With the current economic climate and the high costs of brass instruments, allowing children to construct their own instruments encourages them to investigate more into acquiring a trumpet or trombone etc. If successful the school could potentially carry on this project as part of teaching and learning to encourage more students to take up brass instruments.

Intellectual rigour and debate

The debate is whether or not allowing pupils to construct their own musical instruments will encourage them to take up brass instruments.

Focus of research and analysis

The main focus of research I will need to undergo is how each part of a brass instrument affects the final sound of the object e.g the length and thickness of the pipes. Research will then have to be made on whether constructing new instruments actually does encourage more pupils to take up brass instruments.

Practical skills involved

• The generation of experimental brass instruments from redundant trumpets, trombones etc.
• The design and layout of a book explaining the process behind creating each instrument and why certain aspects will affect the final sound of the instrument.
• Promotional material inviting the pupils to partake in this experiment.
• A short moving image piece documenting the construction of these various instruments by the pupils and me.

Sustainability and Content of project (over as a double unit)

The plan is to work with a highly qualified musical instrument technician and learn how to reassemble the brass parts to create my own instruments. I plan to document this step in the production and construct a tutorial/manual on how to do this. I aim to have at least one working instrument completed by the end of April in order for a professional brass player to learn how to play my creation. This will then help in showing the students the potential of what can be created from old redundant parts. I would then try to aim completion of the above tasks for the beginning of June when all junior summer exams will be complete. The plan is to then have a workshop for a select number of pupils in the first week of June to produce their own musical masterpieces with the help of the Technology and Music departments of the school. The plan is to document by film the construction of these objects and then film the students attempting to play their own creations.

Projection of professional or further research ambitions

The project represents the diversity of my ability to solve problems. I particularly like the idea of working with different professions towards achievable goals, which benefit all interested parties.

Elements of risk and challenge (originality and direction against the status quo)

There is a potential health and safety risk in working children and welding skills. Therefore extreme precautions will have to be taking to ensure the safety of the pupils. Teachers will be present at all times to guide the pupils correctly and safely. This is an experimental form of teaching that needs to engage the pupil in not only musical appreciation but also a technological appreciation for this entire project to be a success.

Predicated outcomes

• A number of newly created brass instruments by the pupils and myself.
• Handbook/manual on how to create brass instruments from old instruments.
• Couple of short films documenting the production and final outcomes of the instruments.
• Possibly a professional brass player at the show demonstrating one of the instruments in use.

Manufacturing and production issues

I plan to acquire old irreparable instruments from instrument technician’s workshop and from secondary schools with the aid of the Northern Ireland Education Board. I will then work with John in learning how to construct my own instruments. Finally I will work with students and teachers in constructing their own instruments and learning how to play them within the technology and music departments of Ballymena Academy.

Opportunities for professional feedback

I will be working directly with music and technology teachers in creating these experimental instruments. There is potential if successful to present this teaching method to the Education Board of Northern Ireland in order to introduce this practice to other secondary schools.

One day project

2009-03-10T17:57:00.000-07:00

Giving the task of displacement for a day I originally tried to become a taxidermist but sadly taxidermists aren't a particularly friendly class of people. The general reply was "no, nobody sees our workshop, nobody". Luck struck short with the Natural History Museum as well, informing me that the taxidermist unit within the museum was no longer operational. They did however offer a position as a paleontologist for a day but have yet to confirm. So with all this said I went to my back up which was to knit for a day with the textile department of our college.