Calliope Information Wanted
By Jody Kravitz
Until I went to the band organ rally in Flint last month, I'd only ever seen one calliope. I saw it in Issaquah Washington (near Seattle) in late summer of 1983. I was visiting a park there that had a steam locomotive on display and was attracted to the sound of the calliope playing elsewhere in the park. It was on a trailer and had been brought there by its owner as an inoffensive place for him to play it. It had a keyboard but was being played by an 8080 (or maybe an 8008) microprocessor. I believe that he said that he'd built the whole thing. I did not get to see the computer, nor did I get to see the valves or manifold, but I did get a peek at the back side. It was driven by a small, modern, propane fired, residential steam boiler.
I've been disappointed to have never another calliope until the rally, and then to find only air calliopes. The air ones were certainly fun. But there's a mystique to me (and a richer sound according to David Wasson) about steam power.
Does anyone know who's calliope I saw in Issaquah ?
Are steam calliopes still commercially produced ?
Some places have very strict pressure vessel and/or
boiler laws. What regulatory hoops does one have to
jump through to bring a steam calliope to a rally,
parade, or other public event ?
Thanks
Jody
|
(Message sent Sun 20 Aug 1995, 05:52:15 GMT, from time zone GMT-0700.) |
|
