Volume Control

Oh the things I was allowed to play with as a child.

Did you ever wonder where the term "pump up the volume" came from?  Maybe it came from using one of these - a melodeon.

They aren't made anymore.  Piano teachers will refuse to give you lessons if this is all you have for practicing, because it is not a percussion instrument.  It does however fuel the curiosity of the young mind who wonders, "How does it work?"  It is a reed and pipe instrument and operates by pumping the pedals at the bottom.  Unlike an organ, it operates by bellows producing suction rather than pressure.  The knee pedals are for expanding the sound by playing octaves, left knee for below middle c, right knee for above middle c.  It is a bit of a sight to see someone pumping away on the thing while holding knees apart, somewhat like a bow legged cowboy riding a bicycle.  The sound produced resembles a large, anemic clarinet or a chorus of cats howling.  To make it louder pump it faster, or cheat and hook it up to a more modern convenience - a vacuum cleaner (central-vac preferred to limit extraneous noise).  If melodeons were still used, pianists would be a lot thinner.


Enter the "modern" age of recorded sound.  These devices have fallen by the wayside with all the other obsolete technology, and have the misfortune of being much heavier than a walkman or ipod.

They featured a variety of "pop" music from back in the day including classical, marching bands, waltzes, and fox trots.  Then moving on to early jazz of the roaring 20's like the Charleston and the Varsity Drag.  They also featured vaudeville sketches, "Uncle Josh buys an Automobile" and "Uncle Josh Plays Golf" (pronounced gul-uf) will still leave an impression as you roll on the floor laughing.  Volume control was very - well - mechanical.  On the Edison a big puff was attached to a bicycle cable.  For muted tones, the puff was pushed into the sound cone, and for full volume it was pulled out.  The Victrola had three settings involving the doors on the front.  Low was both closed, medium was one open, high was both open.  Volume control has come a long way since then, and music is much more portable.  Here's to enjoying your tunes without the danger of a hernia.