Mellotronists

moodybluegia wrote:

> Hi to everyone- I am a seventeen year old female called Gia, and I am
> a fairly new mellotron fanatic- Ever since I fell in love with the
> Moody Blues about 2 years ago, I also fell hopelessly in love with
> the mellotron! I haven't got a CLUE about any of the technicalities
> and I am FAR from a mellotron buff, but i love the mellotron sound
> and i feel a deep affection for the clunky old machines!

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Hello Gia and everyone,      Another future Mellotron fan
joins our ranks !   In this group are people from several
generations ,all kindred spirits of the unique keyboard
instrument and its users,history etc.

We'll do our best to impart a wealth of information of things
Mellotronic to you,Gia. ......Much more below....

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> The thing is
> the best mellotron I have EVER heard is the atmospheric, wailing
> mellotron that the moody blues used- it sounds like a creepy, thin,
> synthetic orchestra...... can anyone tell me EXACTLY what make and
> model the moodies used, so that i can go about getting one for
> myself?...... thanks!

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The Moody Blues (my favorite band of all time),used the  classic
Mark-II Mellotron in their Classic-7 LP's .  The "Seventh Sojourn"
LP made use of a Chamberlin more than Tron, but still all in the fam.

So entranced was I  with the Moodies' sounds as a teenager ,
I straightaway decided someday to one a Mellotron.
Took a bit of time, but well worth it!

The Moodies made use of the MK-II's pitch variation,
to gain slightly longer playing times,and impart a unique sound.
The pitch-bends in "Legend Of A Mind" for one.
Imstrumental pieces like "Voyage" and "Beyond" clearly
demonstrated the Mellotron's powerful orchestral sounds,
combined with Mike Pinder's special touch at the keys.
Changes to the instruments themselves provided a softer,
more supple audio response than the std.Trons of the era.

The Model-300 was used on "Never Comes The Day"
and "Watching and Waiting." probably on more songs in the mix.

Good Luck Gia, if you're looking for the older Trons !
You better start saving your funds, as these are costly today.
In the meantime, welcome to the List  !  -- Jerry Korb

Hello Gia and welcome to the list,
It's nice to hear the Moodies are still attracting new listeners and 
the Mellotron new fans. This list is made up of a whole range of 
people, some are owners some are not but all of us love the tron. 
Many of us believe these are living breathing instruments that 
require care and nurturing and as such they become part of the 
family - a bit like owning a pet. There are loads of good websites 
out there showing pics, how they work, they music they made and 
the history of how they came to be. Trons can be obtained in 3 
ways; Streetly Electronics in the UK(the continuation of the 
orginal mellotron makers) who refurbish old machines, Mellotron 
Archives who now are producing the brand new Mellotron MkVI 
or if you are lucky they occassionally appear on e-bay or 
classifieds in music mags. Problem is as Jerry said they are mega 
money from new or refurbished (I think there are some prices on 
www.mellotron.com to give you an idea). In the meantime if you 
want THAT sound you could invest in a virtual tron like the 
Pinder CD from Mellotron Archives (for which you need a 
sampler) or MTron from Gmedia for which you just need a good 
PC and keyboard.
Good luck and welcome.
John

Hi to everyone- I am a seventeen year old female called 
Gia, and I am 
a fairly new mellotron fanatic- Ever since I fell in love with 
the 
Moody Blues about 2 years ago, I also fell hopelessly in 
love with 
the mellotron! I haven't got a CLUE about any of the 
technicalities 
and I am FAR from a mellotron buff, but i love the 
mellotron sound 
and i feel a deep affection for the clunky old machines!



The thing is 
the best mellotron I have EVER heard is the atmospheric, 
wailing 
mellotron that the moody blues used- it sounds like a 
creepy, thin, 
synthetic orchestra...... can anyone tell me EXACTLY 
what make and 
model the moodies used, so that i can go about getting one 
for 
myself?...... thanks!