Mélophon
Pressure wind instrument, 60 tones
unisonoric
(Collection Oriwohl, Nr. B-106)
Manufacture: Co. Busson, 1850. Patent from Leclerc
Chromatic range: H - e4, (5,25kg)
The length of the mélophone, including the bellows slide, is 84cm. This very own musical instrument was introduced around 1840 and attracted solo and in ensemble playing, though only for a relatively short time.
Apart from the certainly sensitive wire draw mechanism, the astronomically high manufacturing price contributed to the fact, that it only went down in music history as an exotic instrument.
On the neck of the mélophone are 84 keys arranged in 7 rows. 159 wires are used to control the air valves.
In the body there is a change bellows. One half is pressed together, the other is mounted. For better view, the latter is detached on the right side and shows a wind shaft for suction, as well as one for blowing out air (red).
The changeover bellows is operated with the pusher.
In each direction of movement, one half expels wind through the visible openings, while the other half is filled simultaneously with air from the side.
The windchest including the mechanism is mounted on the soundbox
Inside them, there are 60 brass reeds. At the bottom of the case, on the left and right, there are 2 openings covered by a valve (gray lobes), which are located on the exhaust shafts of the change of the bellows.
If the windchest with the reeds is folded down and closed with the wing nuts visible at the edge, one half of the bellows can be used to blow a blast of air into the windchest and tones can be produced.
The reedplates of the lower and middle notes are screwed onto individual wooden box comb, those of the higher tones directly onto the floor.
The wind supply of the comb is controlled by round cover moved by wires. A sight reminiscent of earlier railroad signal boxes, when switches and signals were operated by wire hoists.
All 7 rows of keys of 12 keys each (in the picture only 4) are chromatic. Every second row is a repeating row in fifth intervals.
A mélophone in playing disposition
A mélophone player presumably in Turkey
The photo was discovered and acquired in 2013 in Istanbul by an acquaintance of Mr Oriwohl and kindly made available.
