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The Seasonal Sounds Of The Singing Saw
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It's an instrument that sounds like Halloween — a ghostly whine from another dimension. But it doesn't take long to hear the familiar melodies of Christmas: "The First Noel," "Silent Night," even "Frosty the Snowman."
The music comes from an album called The Singing Saw at Christmastime by Julian Koster, who normally plays stringed instruments in a band called The Music Tapes. Koster coaxes strange sounds out of his singing saw by bending it and sliding a bow against its smooth edge. Extracting a melody isn't as easy as it may seem.
The songs celebrate a holiday season full of good cheer. But the saws that play them capture just a bit of bone-chilling terror — just right for these uncertain times.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. 9(MDA1OTI3MjQ5MDEyODUwMTE2MzM1YzNmZA004))
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