Transcript for the Piece Audio version of Ben Neill: Mutantrumpet Ninja

:15
WHEN BEN NEILL STEPS ON STAGE, THERE'S USUALLY NO ONE ELSE THERE BUT HIM. YET AS SOON AS HE BLOWS INTO TRUMPET, A VIRTUAL ORCHESTRA OF SURREAL PHANTOM MUSICIANS EMERGES FILLING THE ROOM LIKE A BRASS BAND AS HEARD BY SALVADOR DALI.

MUSIC

:06
BEN NEILL IS A CLASSICALLY TRAINED TRUMPETER, BUT YOU WON'T FIND THE TRUMPET HE PLAYS AT YOUR LOCAL MUSIC STORE.

:09
BN: a lot of people have looked at my instrument and said, “Well, you know, that’s a real something out of the Star Wars bar” or something like that.

MUSIC BITE

:15
HIS INSTRUMENT IS THE MUTANTRUMPET WHICH LOOKS LIKE A TRUMPET AFTER THAT'S BEEN ASSIMILATED BY THE BORG FROM STAR TREK. PICKING IT UP, BEN DEMONSTRATES HIS HORN WHICH HAS THREE DIFFERENT BELLS: A REGULAR TRUMPET, A MUTED TRUMPET AND A PICCOLO TRUMPET

:13

BN: So, just the pure acoustics sound sounds like this –

[demo]

:19
It also has a quarter tone valve, so I can play quarter tones instead of your normal half steps.

[demo]

:04
THAT'S JUST THE ACOUSTIC SOUND. THEN HE PLUGS IT IN.

:23
BN: The notes and dynamics of the trumpet can be used to play synthesizers and, basically, do anything that a MIDI keyboard note would do.

demo]

:10
BEN NEILL'S DEMONSTRATION JUST SCRATCHES THE SURFACE OF WHAT HE CAN DO WITH HIS RUBE GOLDBERG GIZMO, ESPECIALLY WHEN HE STARTS ADDIN IN HIS ELECTRONIC GROOVES.

MUSIC

:15
WHEN YOU LISTEN TO BEN NEIL'S "NIGHT SCIENCE" YOU DON'T THINK OF CLASSICAL MUSIC, BUT HIS CLASSICAL BACKGROUND COMES THROUGH ON TRACKS LIKE "AFTERIMAGE," AND A NEW PROJECT CALLED X I X WITH FORMER HUGO LARGO SINGER MIMI GOESE [GAY-ZEE].

:09
I'm always trying to bring a more expressive and human approach to this whole electronic realm.

MUSIC

EVEN IN HIS CLASSICAL MODE, IT ISN'T LONG BEFORE BEN NEILL KICKS IN THE DUBSTEP GROOVES. HIS LATEST ALBUM IS NIGHT SCIENCE ON THIRSTY EAR RECORDS. I'M JOHN DILIBERTO AND THIS HAS BEEN AN ECHO LOCATION.