Hello everyone,
GILD has inspired me to ask this question.
There seem to be quite a few musically inclined people who ride unicycles.
What musical instruments do you play?
Can you play any of them while riding the unicycle?
I play the cow bell 
and yes
Piano/keyboards, penny whistle, flute, clarinet, chalumeau, guitar, uke, banjo, mandolin, concertina (anglo), piano accordion, harmonica and anything else I can lay my hands on.
I’d say “it keeps me off the streets”, but it doesn’t. I play the streets for a living.
I’ll try to play anything, but don’t claim to be very good at all of them. Currently I have in my toy room:
Clarinets (normal wooden one and a metal one)
Alto saxophone
Guitars (hollow-bodied electric, 12-string acoustic, electric bass)
Ukelele
Banjolin
Various recorders
Electronic wind instrument thingy
Keyboard
Various electronic modules
Musical saw
Nose flute
Other things in the house that aren’t mine:
Flute
More recorders
Other things I’ve had in the past:
Theremin (sold to buy a 36" wheel! - didn’t use it enough to justify the space)
Chromatic mouth organ
More electronic stuff (including a few that would have been worth a bit had I kept them - grrrrr)
Piano (left to me by my grandmother but not suited to my small house)
I’m officially a wind instrument player, but seem to be playing mostly guitar at the moment.
I’ve not tried to play anything while unicycling.
BTW, you’ll probably get flamed soon for daring to start a new thread without searching (it’s been done a couple of times before)
Rob
Nice collection!
I have a musical saw myself, but I never got around to mastering it.
Can you make it sing?
Oh. …
… I thought I was being original.
It takes a while to learn the ropes around here.
Bass guitar (2 6-string electrics, and an upright)
Guitar (Alverez Classical… But can play electric, I just don’t own one)
Ukulele
I CAN play the baritone and trumpet, I don’t like to though. Too many years of playing in crappy middle/high school band have ruined it or me.
Never dared to try playing any of them on the uni, though I think the uke would be manageable, and I keep joking with my teacher than I’m gonna learn to play the upright while on the uni by riding around in circles and just spinning the bass with me. Would probably make for big bucks if I ever got my busking license xD
Still pretty hopeless at it I’m afraid. My uncle gave it to me last Christmas and I haven’t put that much time into it yet - I managed to get to the stage of being able to play a semi-recognisable tune but not at all consistently. I’m finding it very hard to keep the tuning right - seems very reliant on the exact curvature and amount of s-bend put into it by the left hand. Occasionally I’ll get it right and it sounds superb - not unlike a theremin, and surprisingly loud. Hopefully sometime I’ll be able to get it right on demand…
Rob
Drums! Bang bang
Have you ever tried playing the saw with a xylophone mallet?
No. Haven’t thought of that.
GILD (?!) Don’t tell me you play the saw TOO?
Nah, I just remember hearing about people playing the saw when I was a kid and messing around with the old saw my dad had lying around in the garage.
Didn’t have a bow, so I thought I’d try it with the mallet.
I thought it sounded pretty kewl when you got it right but never pursued it.
The tutorial I’ve been using suggested starting out by hitting it with a bit of wood, then progressing to bow. Presumably they think bowing technique is difficult but I find it much easier that way than by hitting it (and I’ve never played a bowed string instrument). The spot you have to bow moves along the length of the saw as the pitch changes, which takes a bit of getting used to (but so does the spot you have to hit it if you’re using a mallet). The biggest pain with using the bow is the rosin powder all over your trousers - I’ve started putting a cloth over my legs to catch it.
One thing that’s slowing me down is my 5-year-old hates it. She says it “sounds like a ghost” and scares her, so I can only play it when she’s asleep…
Rob
I have a theremin and have to say that I don’t play it that much either. I used to play with a band about four years ago but they kicked me out due to its overly unique sound!
I also have a uke (with pickup), autoharp, banjo, maracas, jew’s harp and berimbau (for capoeira).
A friend of mine is organising a collaborative music festival in Hainault, north east London in July, check it out!
Stag, what kind of Theremin is it? I’ve been wanting to experiment with one for a while.
Looking to sell? ;DD
Had never heard a Musical Saw before. Much like a Theremin in sound xD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kmft674XPC0
Beautiful
Thanks for your interest in the theremin King of Suede. My one is a UK non-production line built model called an Elysian Theremin. The volume control isn’t as responsive as the Moog Etherwave. You can still get those on Ebay.
The musical saw really does sound like a theremin!
stag
That musical saw is one of the most beautiful sounds i’ve heard…Haunting one might say.
I’ve still got goosebumps and tingles up the back of my kneck!
I can play the Electric guitar, Ukulele and my friends tell me i play a mean electric triangle 
Indeed, I love the fact that he doesn’t overdo the trembling-knee vibrato like I’ve seen so many other players do.