King-size kazoo?

Subject: King-size kazoo?
From: GUEST,scorpio
Date: 14 May 07 - 10:48 PM

First, a hello from myself as a new member. God, I love this site!
I'm trying to get a band/combo together based on jug band instrumentation. I'm looking for a 'bass kazoo' or similar. I've seen some weird old kazoos on vintage instrument sites, but does anyone still make such a beast? In any case, I'd love to hear from Mudcatters who have bought/designed/made unorthodox wind instruments of this type.
Jug and roll!

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: EBarnacle
Date: 14 May 07 - 10:53 PM

A friend once got a Sousaphone as door prize. As it had no mouthpiece, she fitted a kazoo and had a kazoosaphone.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 14 May 07 - 11:01 PM

Is a didgeridoo a king-sized kazoo?

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 14 May 07 - 11:12 PM

I have seen someone locally perform with a kazoo mouthpiece for a trumpet/cornet.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Peace
Date: 14 May 07 - 11:41 PM

You'll need one bitchin' set of lungs . . . .

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Peace
Date: 14 May 07 - 11:45 PM

About the kazoo.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Geoff the Duck
Date: 15 May 07 - 05:14 AM

Bass Kazoos are not a new idea on Mudcat. I made one a few years back from the plumbing when we replaced an old kitchen sink. Here are a couple of piccies of the original design. Since then I added the flush unit from a toilet cistern and it looks more like a white saxophone.
The membrane used to be a circle cut out of a suitable plastic bag (some are too hard and do not vibrate well, others too stretchy, so just sag) but last time out I used aluminium baking foil, which rattled nicely, althoug finally burst with the exertion.

Blicky 1

Blicky 2

Quach!
GtD.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Geoff the Duck
Date: 15 May 07 - 05:21 AM

Mudcat Blickifier seems to be having hiccups. Let's try writing the HTML longhand.
BLICKY 1
BLICKY 2

Quack!
GtD

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Scorpio
Date: 15 May 07 - 06:15 AM

Thanks for the info - keep it coming. For some reason I can't access the blickies. I get told it's a members-only feature, but the log-in page just sends me in circles.
By the way, as a newbie, what does 'lol' mean?

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: DoctorJug
Date: 15 May 07 - 06:23 AM

These people sell 'em:
www.newcastledrum.co.uk
Good luck with the jug band.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Mr Happy
Date: 15 May 07 - 06:36 AM

http://www.newcastledrum.co.uk/

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 15 May 07 - 07:02 AM

"You'll need one bitchin' set of lungs . . . . "

"It ain't necessarily so...."

sorry...

A well designed wind instrument needs only sufficient wind flow/pressure/energy to start the vibrations, which should then resonate naturally and easily in the tube. A kazoo resonates a membrane due to the player 'humming' which is very different to most other stimulated resonant wind instruments - which use some sort of vibrating reed (or lips), or sharp edge (fipple) to start the vibration.

Actually, a 'kazoo' should perhaps require even less energy than many of the other types, down at lower frequencies.

My Howard 'drainpipe' Low C requires the least wind of any whistle I have, and especially less than many of the octave higher ones. Whereas with the Shaws, sometimes I think a set of bellows would come in handy...

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 15 May 07 - 07:04 AM

Scorpio, I can't get into the pics, either, so it must be a Mudcat problem, which we get on the odd occasion!!

lol = lots of love

sandra

ps. welcome to Mudcat

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: beardedbruce
Date: 15 May 07 - 07:32 AM

LOL also is : laughing out loud
             Loads of laughs
             lets out laughter

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Roger in Baltimore
Date: 15 May 07 - 07:57 AM

Where oh where is Gutbucketeer? He makes many weird kazoos. Certainly he's made a bass one. Well, time to do a PM.

Roger in Baltimore

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Peace
Date: 15 May 07 - 10:16 AM

lol is the start of lollipop. No flies on me.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: PoppaGator
Date: 15 May 07 - 03:32 PM

Bass kazoo?

Every kazoo I've ever played simply alters the tone ~ not the pitch ~ of whatever note the "player" (actually, more like the "hummer" or even "singer") blows into it.

Advanced kazoo design might be able to enhance volume and/or add "effects," but if it can extend vocal range by changing the pitch of a player's input, I'm not sure it's still a kazoo.

What kind of pitch alteration would we be talking about anyway? A drop of one full octave? If that is indeed possible, it would be pretty cool.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Geoff the Duck
Date: 15 May 07 - 05:23 PM

The standard kazoo membrane has a small diameter so it resonates within a particular range of frequencies.
What I found when I made my bass kazoo is that because it has a larger membrane it's rattle emphasizes a lower range. I expect the fact that the column of air is a greater volume will probably have an effect as well.
Quack!
GtD.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Geoff the Duck
Date: 15 May 07 - 05:28 PM

To clarify what I just said :-
If I "sing" into a standard kazoo in a low register, it does not vibrate at all. I have to raise the pitch of my voice until the kazoo starts to vibrate, and then sing my tune in that range.
My bass kazoo doesn't vibrate much in a high register, but is excellent for the spitfire dive bombing effects when singing the Dambusters Theme.
Quack!
GtD.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: GUEST,Nick
Date: 15 May 07 - 06:28 PM

Just a guess but I would think Mylar would make a perfect membrane.
Nick

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Peace
Date: 15 May 07 - 06:57 PM

First, start with a gutted submarine . . . .

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 15 May 07 - 08:15 PM

We all live in a gutted submarine ...

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Scorpio
Date: 15 May 07 - 08:24 PM

Thanks, guys -
I'm looking into the submarine idea. Someone here recently raised a WW2 U-boat for tourism purposes. Perhaps we can get it to play a tune.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 15 May 07 - 08:38 PM

"gutted" ???!!! - what about a leather one?

I'm gutted at the idea...

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Don Firth
Date: 15 May 07 - 11:56 PM

"King-size kazoo."

Is that what their calling it now-a-days?
Don Firth

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: reggie miles
Date: 16 May 07 - 12:12 AM

The most unusual kazoo I've seen, but could not pruchase or even try, wasn't a bass or king sized but it did have three actual finger holes in it, not just images of holes as decoration. It also had spring loaded buttons to depress to allow for covering the three holes. This design, like so many of the designs for these little hummers, may have been purely decorative and not functional but I've bought many since then that had the fake holes as impressions on the body without actual holes. This makes me wonder if that early design really functioned to alter the effect on the resonator. If so, then one might postulate that a similar design idea could work for a giant kazoo.

I think that the sky is probably the limit here with what one could fashion and how it might be made to work. The image of the giant kazoo on the roof top was fantastic and it looks to be made of ventilation duct pipe. That idea may not be very difficult to reproduce as a smaller finished product, if that scale of the roof top example is too big for your purposes. There are many different designs that have been created over the years to sell this simple instrument. The most popular of these is probably the torpedo design made by the Kazoo Co. It is shaped like the roof top example. One fellow, Captain Kazoo, even has an online photo gallery museum of most of the models he's managed to collect. While many were made, I'm curious as to how well they each might work.

I think a project like this will definitely mean experimentation to work properly. Let us know how it turns out.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 16 May 07 - 05:44 AM

"it did have three actual finger holes in it, not just images of holes as decoration. It also had spring loaded buttons to depress to allow for covering the three holes"

This would start to resemble a "Helmholtz Resonator" like an 'ocarina'.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Mr Happy
Date: 16 May 07 - 07:07 AM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helmholtz_resonance

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: GUEST,reggie miles
Date: 16 May 07 - 09:20 AM

I wonder if this then is how the idea of jug playing came to be or if playing jug influenced Helmholtz to explore the math.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 16 May 07 - 09:52 AM

It would depend what he drank out of the jugs, I think...

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: erosconpollo
Date: 16 May 07 - 03:53 PM

You might take a gander at the KaZobo at www.kazoos.com .

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Geoff the Duck
Date: 16 May 07 - 04:17 PM

GUEST,scorpio - a couple of months back we bought one of these kits (BLICKY) for the children to make. As yet we haven't got round to making them, but the principle ought to transfer to a larger diameter, longer tube.
Some background on its' predecessor can be found here BLICKY
Reading the article on the end of the blicky suggests that the original African device definitely WAS a bass instrument.
Quack!
GtD.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Kaleea
Date: 16 May 07 - 04:37 PM

For Earth Day, I demonstrated & let kids make their own Kazoo out of empty toilet paper roll, waxed paper & rubber band. The fun part was pulling out the entire family of Kazoos made of paper towel rolls, wrapping paper rolls, & my Bass made from a large mailing tube, all of course finely decorated. I do like mylar instead of waxed paper for the bigger ones. Has anyone tried pvc pipe as used for making a pvc dig?

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Geoff the Duck
Date: 16 May 07 - 04:37 PM

The following was lifted from this web page BLICKY

The different disguises of the kazoo:

The looks of a kazoo can vary a lot. Depending on the size of the membrane hole
and the shape of the kazoo all sorts of musical instruments can be imitated.

The Soprano Kazoo- the size of a standard kazoo, can bring out the highest pitch, flute.

The Alto Kazoo- 15 cm, imitating the sound of a clarinet and a trumpet.

The Tenor kazoo- 30 cm, saxophon.

The Bariton Kazoo- 46cm, french horn og jagdhorn.

The Kaboom Kazoo- 90cm, a membran diameter of 12,5cm, tuba.


Sounds like the construction details you need.
Quack!
GtD.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Geoff the Duck
Date: 16 May 07 - 04:50 PM

Mylar membrane?

Quack!
GtD.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Gurney
Date: 16 May 07 - 05:05 PM

Many years ago I saw, on English TV, an entertainer called Roy Castle set a Guinness record for the number of instruments played in a given time. The most memorable, for several reasons, was a mouthpiece set in the outlet pipe of a toilet pan!
It's always come to mind when I think of jug bands. Sounded a bit like a tuba. You wouldn't have to have a mouthpiece, just a device to reduce the size of the hole, and make "Bruppp Bruppp" noises.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Jack Campin
Date: 16 May 07 - 06:18 PM

More at

http://extentech.sheetster.com/knowledgebase/wiki_search.jsp?search=kazoo

From which it seems the Western kazoo has directly African ancestry, and Africa is probably the place to look for design experience in making big ones.

I somewhere remember an elaboration on that page's mention of ritual use - the idea was that it would disguise people's voices to make them sound like gods and the spirits of the dead.

One truly odd idea is the Chinese flute that has a built-in kazoo-like membrane. It sounds exactly like a flute played through a kazoo.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Scorpio
Date: 17 May 07 - 06:35 AM

Thanks Geoff the Duck - you have opened the the gates to kazoo heaven!

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Stringsinger
Date: 17 May 07 - 05:23 PM

i think it was Johann Sebastion Batch who wrote the concerto for kazoo and orchestra.

It was based on the famous poem, "My kazoo is bigger than yours".

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Scorpio
Date: 17 May 07 - 09:00 PM

No-one's ever complained about the size of my Kazoo, Stringsinger. I just want to go deeper.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 17 May 07 - 11:21 PM

oooooo....

dig a hole then...

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Donuel
Date: 18 May 07 - 11:13 PM

I stuck a bassoon reed on a trombone and got a bassbone.
or a tromboon, I'm not sure which.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Geoff the Duck
Date: 19 May 07 - 07:19 AM

Tromsoon?
QUack!
GtD.

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 19 May 07 - 07:52 AM

A bassom?

No not the Bazooms!

Subject: RE: King-size kazoo?
From: Uncle_DaveO
Date: 19 May 07 - 09:33 PM

Scorpio, I don't know where you are. If you're in the United States, you could do much worse than to check with Elderly Instruments, in Lansing, Michigan. I believe the URL is www.elderly.com

You'll be amazed at the breadth of musical stuff they carry, and I know I've seen kazoos at that store--which I traveled 300 miles one way to visit for a few hours.

They have, as I say, an amazing line of instruments and other musical stuff, and give great customer service. Ican think of no-one better suited to advise and/or supply you.

Standard disclaimers.

Dave Oesterreich