The World’s Weird Instrument: The Badgermin
There will always be people who like to stray into the stranger corners of the musical world. David Cranmer is one of those people. Just so you know, no badgers were harmed with the sole purpose of creating this instrument.
He appeared to decide that the theremin wasn’t quite odd enough, so he removed the neck and rear of a stuffed badger and made it part of the instrument. Naturally, it’s named the Badgermin. That’s pretty weird, right? The idea to use a stuffed badger was David’s, but he was inspired by other “conversions” by other musicians. The Bonzo Dog Band built theirs from the leg of a tailor’s dummy, for example, and others have used axes, skulls, and a whole range of other items.
It’s Not Often You Seen A Man In Tails Playing A Badger!
Although there are many unusual musical instruments in existence, the theremin must count as one of the strangest. After all, there are no other instruments that can be played by the musician simply moving their hands and not touching the instrument at all.
The theremin is sometimes used in classical/concert music performances, but not in pop. There are some tracks that are widely believed to use one, such as Good Vibrations by the Beach Boys, but in fact, it uses a modified version and not an actual theremin.
Many musicians appear to enjoy the tactile relationship between them and their chosen instruments, so perhaps the fact that there is no contact explains why the theremin is so unpopular.
If you think this is a hilarious idea and are looking forward to the first “Badgermin” album, please hold your horses. David admits he’s not great at playing his creation; he was interested in the fun of creating the unique instrument, not playing it. David says one of his friends managed to play The Swan quite well on their first try.
The musician featured has chosen to remain anonymous, but his skill is undeniably impressive. Now that a maestro has played the Badgermin, what’s next for David? His creativity appears to be in full flow as he’s considering turning a taxidermy owl drum machine. Stay tuned for further updates on David’s wacky creations as we get them.