Last night I found out something interesting that I've never heard before. That classical orchestral sound of the Moody Blues was created by a Mellotron! Mellotron, never heard of it before.
Mike Pinder describes how the mellotron worksAnd a wiki
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MellotronIt seems Mike Pinder actually worked at the manufacturing facility before playing with the Moody Blues. Kind of explains how he was so proficient with it. Amazing machine and I'm a sucker for early electromechanical devices.
I have a piano (I can't play) I would trade for one. I bet a version based on vhs technology instead of reel to reel (still using tape of course) would make an interesting project. Much more data can be read at the same rate.
Yeah of course modern electronic synths rule the world. But there is still something to be said for old school tubes and technology.