Archive of the former Yahoo!Groups mailing list: Mellotronists

Don't use cutlery Mike. For The Bells of St. Mary's I suggest:
1) Get yourself twenty-three Norwegian white mice.
2) Train the mice to squeak at a selected pitch.
3) Arrange the mice on a rack in the correct order.
4) Use two mallets and strike the mice on the head.
5) Strike the mice in the proper sequence and they will squeak 'The
Bells of St Mary's'.

Playing the Mouse Organ requires some special mallet technique.
A squashing sound may indicate that you are striking the heads with
too much velocity. If no sound is produced on subsequent strikes, the
mouse may have expired. Adjust the head azimuth and try again. You
may have stunned the mouse by hitting him on the head repeatedly.
Norwegian white mice "stun" easily. (Or he might be tired and shagged
out following a prolonged squeak).