Robert Minden Duo

Click for Robert Minden Duo web site Lost Sound

The Robert Minden DUO came to Fremont for the 2005 Arts in Education Program. The Robert Minden Duo are from Canada and these artists travel all over North America. Robert Minden and Carla Hallett are partners in this DUO. They are story tellers and music makers. Many types of sounds are made by these performers by using "found objects". Found objects is a term they use to describe their many unusual musical instruments. The only familiar instrument they used was the French horn. One example of their found object is a household turkey baster as a type of flute.

Also, they created unique sounds using springs, tubes, a violin bow, saw, spoons, forks, bottles, and a water jug. It was amazing to see Mr. Minden play Daisy Bell on a metal carpenter saw and then listen to him tell stories. Miss Hallett was a great singer, and a good story teller too. She also played some of the instruments.

The Robert Minden DUO used an instrument called the waterphone and was made by a California artist, Richard Waters. This instrument is made up of stainless steel bowls and bronze rods and they are either struck with a soft mallet or bow. To make this instrument make the whale sound, they had to pour water inside the instrument. Richard Waters made this instrument to successfully communicate with whales.

All the students were mesmerized by their performance.

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