street organ
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun: A street organ is a mechanical musical instrument that produces music through the rotation of a cylinder fitted with pins or pegs. These pins pluck a series of tuned metal teeth or reeds to play a pre-programmed melody. It is typically a portable, hand-cranked instrument historically used by street performers.
Examples
- The sound of the street organ filled the square, attracting a crowd of listeners.
- The busker turned the crank of his street organ, and a cheerful tune began to play.
- Museums sometimes display antique street organs as examples of early automated music.
Advanced Usage
- The term is often used in historical or folk music contexts to describe a specific type of mechanical music device, distinct from larger, stationary barrel organs or pipe organs.
- It can evoke imagery of 19th and early 20th-century European street life.
Variants and Related Words
- Barrel Organ: A broader term for a mechanical organ operated by a rotating barrel or cylinder; a street organ is a type of portable barrel organ.
- Hurdy-Gurdy: A different stringed musical instrument also often played by street musicians; sometimes confused with a street organ in casual reference, but they are mechanically distinct.
- Mechanical Organ: The general category of instruments that includes street organs, fairground organs, and barrel organs.
Synonyms
- Hand organ
- Grinder organ (colloquial, referring to the operator who "grinds" the crank)
Related Idioms or Phrases
- While there are no common idioms using "street organ," the instrument itself is iconic within the phrase "street organ grinder," referring to the person who operates it.
Noun
- a musical instrument that makes music by rotation of a cylinder studded with pegs