[Rumori] Playing with Their Food

Ed Special edspecial at digitalrealm.net
Tue May 25 23:44:37 PDT 2004






Tuesday, May 25, 2004
Playing with Their Food
    HAMBURG, Germany (Reuters) - The sound of 40 kg (90 pounds)
of finely tuned cucumbers, leeks, potatoes, radishes, peppers,
aubergines and marrows entertained a German audience at a
weekend concert by the Viennese Vegetable Orchestra.
The nine-piece orchestra plays a range of original
compositions on instruments constructed from vegetables --
including a flute made from a carrot, a saxophone carved out of
a cucumber and a pumpkin converted into a double bass.
"I would never have thought you could get sound out of a
cucumber," a young woman at the concert said. Others commented
on the raw vegetable aroma accompanying the melodies.
The Austrian ensemble, three women and six men, said their
instruments are freshly sliced and put together only an hour
before each performance to enhance the sound. Size, texture and
water content are vital to achieving the correct sound.
"Ordinary vegetables work better together than organic
vegetables," said Matthias Meinharter, who plays a violin
fashioned from leeks.
The musicians must also work against the clock. To protect
their instruments from drying out during the performance, they
place damp cloths around the vegetables when they're not in
use.
At the end of the performance, the instruments were turned
into vegetable soup.


Ed






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