Banned Instruments Through Time

By: Deeba Mehr

Glass Harmonica

The glass harmonica is a set of graduated glass bowls nestled inside one another. The machine was invented by Benjamin Franklin after he was inspired by the glass harp, which consisted of wine glasses containing various amounts of water. The bowls rotate and the player touches the glass with a dampened finger, using the friction to create a hollow, ringing tone. The glass harmonica is not linked to the more common harmonica, also known as a mouth organ, which was invented sixty years later.

The instrument was very popular in the 18th century, particularly in Europe where composers including Mozart, Beethoven, and Donizetti wrote pieces featuring it. However, by the early 1800s, many listeners and players fell ill with symptoms such as nausea, muscle cramps, spasms, and nervousness. The German musicologist Johann Friedrich Rochlitz claimed that the glass harmonica “excessively stimulate[d] nerves” and caused the player to fall into a “nagging depression” and “dark and melancholy mood.” He therefore recommended that the instrument should not be played excessively and that those with nervous disorders should completely avoid it.

The glass harmonica was banned in some German towns after a child died during a concert. There are different theories as to the instrument’s danger; some at the time believed that the hollow, eerie sound summoned demons and drove the listener mad while others believed that the players fell ill due to the lead in the glass. Ultimately, there is no evidence to any of these claims and the perceived dangers are more likely to be through correlation, not causation. The glass harmonica enjoyed a resurgence in the late 20th century, with composers once again featuring it in many different settings, from orchestra to opera to popular music.

Drums

Drums have historically been an important part of African culture. The rhythms are tightly tied to spiritual beliefs and mean a lot to the people. During the slave trade, slaves were allowed to use their drums on their passage from Africa to America to keep their morale high, but were then banned from drumming once they reached their destination. This was partially due to the slave owners’ fear that the slaves were communicating over long distances with the drums; the drums themselves could be used to mimic spoken tones and pitches, creating the ability to send messages (albeit sometimes rife with miscommunications).

Not only were drums banned from fear of communication, but they were also part of an effort to strip the slaves of their African heritage and traditions. Alongside banning their languages and religions, their cultural instruments were forbidden after riots and revolts across the region. That being said, many still played their rhythms with whatever was available like spoons or hands. Drums and rhythms still play a large part in African-American-derived music such as rhythm and blues, jazz, and hip-hop.

Vuvuzela

Vuvuzelas are plastic horns around 65 centimetres (2 feet) long that emit a monotone sound. The instrument gained infamy in connection with the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, where fans of national football (soccer) teams would use them to show support. The instrument is reminiscent of a large kazoo, both in sound and in how it annoys people.

The vuvuzela can potentially lead to noise-induced permanent hearing damage. On average, it produces 113 decibels of sound pressure at 2 metres away from the opening. Experts for hearing loss at the U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health recommend that exposure to 113 decibels should be limited to 45 seconds per day. Considering that there may be numerous vuvuzelas sounding together in close proximity at a match, members of the crowd are especially at risk for permanent damage.

With regard to the potential damage caused by these instruments, they are banned from many sporting organisations and venues worldwide, such as Wembley Stadium, Yankee Stadium, and all future FIFA World Cups. They are also banned in shopping centres across South Africa and commonly included in noisemaking limitations.

Bagpipes

Bagpipes have been banned or restricted multiple times throughout history. They are the only instrument to have been labelled as a tool of warfare, as they have been played martially since at least the 16th century. In 1745, there was a rebellion in the Scottish Highlands against the English efforts to weaken Scottish power. After this rebellion, Highland culture (bagpipes included) went underground, although they weren’t explicitly forbidden by law. However, the following year, a piper fell into trouble with the authorities and bagpipes were declared an item of war as “no highland regiment ever marched without a piper”. The piper was executed soon after.

While bagpipes are often synonymous with the Scottish Highlands, they are also culturally significant in Galicia, the north-western region of Spain, though they are called gaita in Galician. Throughout the Francoist regime of the 20th century, efforts were taken to remove regional traditions in different areas of Spain. Regional languages, dances, and folk music were all outlawed, including the gaita in Galicia. Since the end of the dictatorship in 1975, the gaita has had a revival and is a part of traditional festivals once again.

As recently as 2015, the bagpipes have again fallen on the wrong side of the law after busking regulations were released in London, UK. The regulations restrict instruments and music with “loud, repetitive sounds”. This was a controversial move as, while many agree that the bagpipes’ sound is “annoying”, some are concerned that this is a step towards eventually banning the instrument outright.

Saxophone

Since its conception in 1842, the saxophone has been a controversial instrument. Some were horrified that the reed, typical of woodwind instruments, had been put on a brass body. Some loved it; some hated it. Despite being invented by Adolphe Sax, a Belgian, the saxophone has become very well-known in genres such as jazz and blues.

The Vatican banned the saxophone in 1914, before other churches began doing the same. This was likely due to the suggestive dance moves associated with the instrument, so the Church authorities banned it from being played within holy grounds.

By the time that Hitler came to power in Germany in 1933, the saxophone had established its role in jazz, which is rooted in African-American culture. With the white-supremacist ideologies of the Nazi regime, the saxophone and its associations with African-Americans fell under the umbrella of "Entartete Kunst," or "degenerate art," and was banned from Nazi society. It became dangerous to play the saxophone, with reports saying that players had had the instruments knocked out of their mouths by SS officers.

At the same time in the 1930s, Stalin’s Soviet Union also banned the saxophone. While Nazi Germany took issue with the Black association, the Soviets had a problem with the American aspect. Jazz was seen as an embodiment of the imperialist, bourgeois toxicity of American capitalist society and was banned due to the conflict of ideology. Jazz and saxophone players had their instruments taken away from them and were persecuted.

Nowadays, the saxophone is a widely-loved instrument and has enjoyed a surge of popularity since the late 20th century with what has been called the ‘Lisa Simpson effect’. Since the Simpsons premiered on TV, the saxophone had a wave of people starting to learn it, particularly young women.

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