Hopkin Instrumentarium: The U

The U is a glissy steel lamellophone created by master instrument inventor Bart Hopkin. Rather than having one tine per note, this creation has 14 closely spaced tines per note. Each group of tines is tuned in octaves and fifths across a range of three or four octaves. The sound is produced by stroking with a glissing action across the array of tines for the chosen note, using a thin stick-like plectrum. There are twelve such groups forming a chromatic scale. Since each group spans several octaves, melodies can be played creatively by accenting specific tines. The tines are made of narrow stainless steel machine screws, tuned by adjusting the length using the hex nuts at the base. In addition, most of the screws are overtone-tuned by means of additional hex nuts serving as adjustable weights along the length. The final result is a fascinatingly liquid and metallic timbre, ideal for your next composition that requires a truly unique tone.

To start, we recorded The U up close in wide stereo. For our second mic position, we used a tetrahedral binaural microphone to give you a first-person experience of playing the instrument, with an intimate and enveloping sound. We've included a range of playable tuned and untuned articulations to give you complete freedom. And in classic Soundiron tradition, we've also included sound-designed textures, pads and tones that take the concept beyond its material source and into the realm of pure imagination. They can be played, layered, modulated and blended along with the natural acoustic articulations to achieve and endless array of new sonic combinations. The U offers you a broad, flexible palette of musical colors and comes equipped with easy-to-use layer mixing, performance tools and special effects to spark your creativity.