Addi Somekh makes and plays a bass made 100% out of latex balloons and air. The balloon bass is 3 and a half octaves and ranges from booming low frequencies all the way to twangy sitar-like sounds.

In his trio, Unpopable, Somekh is joined by two amazing musicians: Joey Maramba on electric bass and Arlynn Page on vocals.

Their sound ranges from nasty funk to cosmic lullabies, and everything in between. PS – Balloons will be twisted.

“As an ethnomusicologist, I can tell you that the ballon bass defies the usual categories of instrument classification, falling somewhere between those called chordophones (string instruments) and membranophones (basically, drums). But such technical analysis is rather beside the point. It’s what you can do musically with an instrument that matters.

Addi Somekh’s “balloon bass” is one of those perfect marriages of the silly and sublime. Combining the humblest of materials with pure human ingenuity, the balloon bass’s surprisingly adaptable “voice” and musical potential reminds us all of the reasons we play and listen to music in the first place: for the sheer joy of making sounds and playing together.”
— Jonathan Ritter, assistant professor of ethnomusicology, UC Riverside

Unpopable on Radio Venice

Radio Venice Season 11 Finale – July 28, 2019
Radio Venice S11.E10 – July 7, 2019

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