Vako Orchestron Optical Disc Playback Sampler

[wx44wx99]

I had the use of one in the early 80s. They were very cool in the studio, especially the choir and string discs, but playing it live was a disaster. There was a mechanical speed control and you never knew if you were going to be in tune when you started playing something!

[Ashley1955]

I had an Orchestron. Bought it at the NAMM show in Chicago somewhere around 1976 or so. It was pretty cool for the time. Eventually the light reader (or whatever it was actually called) went out of alignment and I never could find anyone to fix it.

[OFR]

Ah, the days. I once found 4 of them, and over the years loved and used them a lot. Eventually they all got traded away, accidentally losing my last one. Never found another. I would say it's a VERY useful keyboard, in the middle of a mix, it sits well and sounds like a record!

[MothraStrikes]

On the pipe organ, was that "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken"?

[89marsden]

@sitgesflorenci look carefully at the end of the video. You'll see the knob labelled pitch on the control panel :)

[Screenery]

I am looking to buy a Vako Orchestron. If you have one for sale or know of any that might be for sale, please contact me at Screenery[AT]gmail[DOT]com.

Thanks,

Mitch

[FUHGI]

DEAD TECHNOLOGY ¡¡¡¡

[Mikemaniax]

Ooh. I like the bit of Philip Glass's Einstein on the Beach during the Pipe organ demo.

[spoons275]

hah ive got one of them in my attic

[sitgesflorenci]

Thank you very much for this so revealing clip. I have a question: Do you remember the spectacular strings glissando in Trans Europe Express, that sounds before and at the end of the percussion solo moment in Metal on Metal and introducing the melody at the start? I don't see any wheel or some kind of similar tune for creating such effect. Can you make it with the Vako with just moving down the tune knob or in other way? Thank you very much for that nice video anyway :)

[maxheadway]

@sitgesflorenci Knowing Kraftwerk, they probably modified the instrument themselves.

[Racemore]

I was doing a search for one and found this link.We had one in our band. Used it in some Pink Floyd songs. It was cool with the vocals.Let it go on the road with Hatchet but they didn't ever used it recording. It got pawned,got it out and it vanished . I was just thinking about using it in Come Away Melinda by the Uriah Heep. It would be perfect. Going to have to find one.

[cyclissmo]

beautiful

[machinedrum]

lovely sound..

2:19 Philip Glass!!

[WakemanFan90]

This was a very interesting instrument, is there many left of it?

The pipe organ part is absolutely wonderful, what chords are you playing from 2:00 to 2:12?

thanks

[mrbibio]

I'll buy it off you for a million punds...

[melvis24]

... he likes Tschaikowsky.

[roblegit1212]

Take 5,

Kraftwerk,

Philip Glass! .. . pretty cool

[Lachlant1984]

How is information stored on the discs? Are they magnetic? Do they work like vinyl records? A very interesting device. Does the hardware that plays the discs make much noise? How durable are the Discs? Do they brak easily?

[honorarymember]

The discs are "optical", not magnetic. (Compared to optical/magnetic sound on film material.) The material the discs are made of actually ís graphical film. They are quite flexible, and they can't break. The noise is from the hardware as well as the discs.

[mets6891]

what's the song around 4:21 right after you insert the flute disk?

[peahix]

an aborted attempt at "strawberry fields," though of course the beatles used a mellotron for that...

[DubsMood]

@mets6891 hahaha!

[siliconsandro]

A little question:

The only sound output is obtainable By loudspeaker or there is a kind of output plug onboard?

My junk studio can't lack this AWESOME unit!

Thanks for posting.

;)

[chameleonday]

How many notes can be played at once?

[peahix]

all 37 of them. each key simply opens an audio gate allowing the corresponding soundtrack to be amplified. this isn't a synthesizer and there are no oscillators.

[ariesbeats]

diggin the flutes...word..

[aateveli]

I love that ending-bravure with the F-note :D

[AnarchiveMagnetik]

Wow ! thank you !

[alt1962]

nice.....

[mrstudebaker]

What's that organ riff you're playing at 2.26? It sounds familiar...

[peahix]

that's from philip glass' "einstein on the beach." no, glass didn't use an orchestron for that...

[mrstudebaker]

RIGHT- OF COURSE (smacks head - DUH!!!) It's like I've only listened to it a jillion times... thanks!

[mellotrongirl]

oh WOW!! foam...swoon...drool...! Nice machine. Funny they substituted the Optigan's flip-down faceplate disc placement approach with the program disc engage lever.

To quote the Firesign Theater: "I'll take it! I can't wait to get away from it all!"

"sorry, only two Vako Orchestrons per customer"

[Thomasooo2003]

Hey, amazing! Never have seen a real Orchestron, and this is a wonderful exploration into the sounds... The 78's version of the Mellotron :-) Sorry. What's going wrong with the F key? is it the key or the discs? To me, choir, strings and cello are great, flute a bit lame compared to the Mellotron, and Sax, organ and French horn are a bit "flat", but perhaps only because they have never been used on famous records...

[gdebruin82]

WOW, what I wouldnt give to have that in my studio with my voyager! Interesting that the cello sound was used on Ohm Sweet Ohm!

[lesingemonotone]

It was a real revelation to see that the lead in "trans europe express" not was the melotron, but the optigan/vacotron!

thanks for sharing!

[JIF882]

Patrick Moraz also used the Orchestron on the Yes album Relayer. That should've been included in this demo

[polyvoks]

many thanks for the demo of this very rare instrument , the alternative to the mellotron , I like it very much .

[v3l0C3T]

thanks that you share this great piece of hardware with us :)