Saw Notes
A Resource for Musical Saw Enthusiasts
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The late, great sawyer David Weiss had a regular advice column in the International Saw Association newsletter. These articles offer wonderful advice for players of all skill levels. Here’s an excerpt from an article from 2003. Many thanks to Rodney Blacklock for his permission to reprint this. “Many of us saw […]
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Charles Calvin Mourer was an evangelist during the 1920s-40s. He was an itinerant preacher who traveled and preached extensively in the Midwest, especially through Ohio and Michigan. He played the trombone, the guitar and the musical saw, which, for some reason, he sometimes called the saw-phone. The saw was a […]
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Last year we featured an interview with Julian Koster of Neutral Milk Hotel in a Christmas blog post. Well this year, we are featuring Mr. Koster playing “Frosty the Snowman” from his album entitled The Singing Saw At Christmastime. The album is a marvelous collection of twelve classic Christmas songs […]
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The musical saw has always been a popular instrument in churches because saws are inexpensive and they have a beautiful other-worldly sound. In addition, saws are easy to carry from place to place for revivals. Rural churches have often been one of the most common places to hear a saw, […]
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Erik Satie’s Gymnopedies were published in the late 1880s. I’ve always loved Satie’s compositions, and I’ve always wondered what a “gymnopedie” was. Supposedly, the term refers to young men in ancient Sparta who participated in a celebration of athletics and martial arts. These compositions don’t remind me of anything that […]
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One of the best saw players in the world is the marvelous Gladys Hulot from France. She is also a great theremin player and artist. Her videos are fun and creative, and here, you can see her play two instruments, the saw and the theremin. She is playing a lame […]
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