Yahama Music Sirens

Yahama Music Sirens
Company	Yamaha Corporation
Produced	1950-1998
Type	Omnidirectional Electromechanical
Horsepower	25-50 hp
Voltage	240 V AC

The Yamaha Music Sirens were a product created in 1950 by Yamaha Corporation. While technically not a siren itself, it is made up of several siren units driven by a single motor. The Music Siren was created by Yamaha's then-president, Genichi Kawakami, who wanted to harness the sheer power and sound output of outdoor warning sirens to produce music. By 1950, these sirens were constructed and began to be installed across Japan.

History

In 1945, after the conclusion of World War II, the mass firebombing from Allied air raids and later the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were fresh on everyone's mind in Japan, and they wanted to forget about how horrific the experiences were. Many found sirens eerie and felt unease about them, even after they were no longer used for air raids, and were instead used for civil purposes such as factory alarms and noon whistles.

The Yamaha Corporation, which had already established itself as a major producer of musical instruments and equipment, took notice of the fears of air raid sirens shared by the general populace of Japan. Yamaha's president (and later chairman) at the time, Genichi Kawakami who got fed up to the sound of sirens used as time signalling, realized that the sirens could be used for a more peaceful purpose, the creation and output of music. He ordered his researchers to create a siren unit which could harness the power of sirens to create music for the public using different port ratios. The result was the first generation of the Music Siren, which was completed by 1950. Various organizations in Japan became interested in the development, especially companies who inquired about the potential PR boost these sirens could create. The vast majority of siren units were installed on top of department stores, city halls, schools, and other places where the public tended to gather.

A few hundred of these sirens would be built, beginning in 1950. Late into the siren's production, the siren would be redesigned significantly into a second generation, which was far more compact and modern than the older first generation. Unfortunately, with the Bosai Musen loudspeakers becoming a popular option, and the music sirens being quite expensive to produce and maintain, Yamaha would cease production of the Music Sirens in 1998, although support lasted for them until 2011 when spare parts ran out. Sadly, most of these sirens have been decommissioned, due to the lack of available spare parts and their high-maintenance design. Most have either been replaced with simple electronic speakers, or with nothing at all. However, only 3 continue to operate in service today. Those are located in the Tokiwa Main Store, Oita (1st Gen), Yawatahama, Ehime (2nd Gen) & Iga City Hall in Iga, Mie (1st Gen).

Design

First Generation

The first generation of the Music Siren is about 5 meters long, and 1 meter wide, and came in a 4/6/8/10/12/14 configuration. This was the best selling generation, with 200 units being sold during the first few months of the siren's introduction, as documented in a chart. They were driven by a 25 or 50 hp motor, and some were equipped with a belt drive to power them. The first Music Siren to be sold was a four-tone version delivered to the National University of Miyazaki in Miyazaki Prefecture in 1951 (Showa 26). The type developed in 1950 (Showa 25) is generally called the "first gen". The sound of the music siren is made by the first generation, which has two sets of two wings (4 scales) to six sets (12 scales), and the second generation, which has two sets of four wings (8 scales). There are 6 groups (24 musical scales), and the choppers are rotated at high speed by a motor, compressing the air with centrifugal force, and the moment the port in the damper, which is the sounding mechanism, opens, the compressed air is released from the port. Sound is generated by the air coming out of the dampers.

The performance system of the first generation machines used a device called a ``musical cam,'' which resembled a music box in shape, and a ``keyboard-type switch.'' The operation of the "music cam" is similar to that of a music box, and when a comb-shaped metal plate is lowered into a recess attached to the drum, the electric magnetic shutter of the siren connected to the metal plate is opened. The opening and closing of the damper is controlled by the movement of metal plates that are divided into musical scales, and the music is played. In addition to this automatic performance, it also supports live performance using keyboard-type switches that produce sounds by pressing the keys connected to each shutter. Naturally, no sound will be produced if you press a key other than the one on the keyboard.

The phrase on the front of the first generation Music Siren pamphlet created in 1975 (Showa 50) says, ``The siren becomes music - cherry blossoms, red dragonflies, wild roses... There are many melodies. Yamaha "Music Siren". The introductory text for Music Siren says, "Music Siren is the product of Yamaha's engineering team who wished to turn the siren into music, and after extensive research, created it. Music Siren plays at the beginning and end of the workday, or during lunch breaks.' The melody creates a soothing atmosphere. The music siren not only eliminates the cold feeling that is often associated with conventional sirens, but also plays a major role in improving a company's image. The operation is completely the same as that of conventional sirens. With a single switch, you can play a fixed song or play your favorite song using the included keyboard. If necessary, you can immediately use it as an emergency siren, just like conventional sirens. You can choose your favorite siren melody from many songs. You can also change the melody automatically according to the time, such as early spring in the morning, spring stream in the afternoon, and firefly light in the evening.”

The models sold are mainly 7 types: 4 notes, 8 notes, 10 notes A, 10 notes B, 10 notes C, 12 notes A, and 12 notes C, although a 14 note version was made by YAMAHA themselves and was installed on top of their headquarters. The songs played also changed in tune and sound depending on what version a customer ordered. There were also some custom production units where the musical scale to be played were decided upon by request of the client (ex. Maruhika Department Store, etc.). The songs that are currently known to have been played on the first gen include "Linden Tree," "Home! Sweet Home!" "Brahms' Lullaby (Wiegenlied)," "Blowing Spring Breeze," "Wild Rose of Summer," "Spring Brook," "Ieji (Home Road)," "Song of the Volga Boatmen", "Auld Lang Syne (Glow of the Fireflies)'', "Long, Long Ago'', "The Song of Early Spring'', "Tea Picking'', "Bungawan Solo'', "Annie Laurie'', "Old Black Joe'', "Swanee River'', "Kimigayo (Japan's National Anthem)'', "Sakura'', "Traveling Sorrow'', "The Moon over the Ruined Castle (Kojo no Tsuki)'', and "Scolded''. A total of 184 units were produced and sold between the start of sales in 1951 and the end of production of the first generation variant in 1982.

Second Generation

The second generation of the Music Siren greatly differs from the first generation models. The second gen Music Siren came in a 8/12/14/16 configuration, with 7 and 24 being available as well. To make the siren more compact, the siren was split into two vertically stacked rows, which would be driven together by a single motor through a belt. The siren was placed inside of a large rectangular housing with downward sloped louvres, which protected the siren from the elements and helped to project its music. The 2nd generation Music Siren is around to be about 2 meters tall. Unlike the 1st generation, which uses electromagnets to operate the dampers, the 2nd generation Music Siren’s dampers are operated by pneumatics and solenoid valves. Just before the motor is powered, the siren will actuate every solenoid valve several times as a functionality test, and to prepare them for operation. This ensures that the solenoids will not stick when the siren begins playing its song.

Yamaha would sell around 12 units of the 2nd generation Music Sirens. A 24 note model that could play 3 octaves instead of 2 octaves like other second generation models was also available for a short time. Only a handful of these units are known to exist, with the most notable one being installed on the roof of Yamaha's headquarters until it was removed in the September of 2018 and was stored somewhere unknown. 2 other units are located at Tenri Pool and Takeda Pharmaceuticals, albeit both are inactive. The sole active unit is located at Mt. Atagoyama in Yawatahama, Ehime and has 12 note.

Controls

The siren can be played manually using a piano-styled electronic keyboard or it can be programmed using its built in timing system which functions like a music box. A rotating camshaft with raised bumps corresponding to a note makes contact with various contacts that complete circuits connected to each note on the siren, allowing the siren to play pre-programmed songs.

Trivia

• It is believed that the Ueno Chamber of Commerce music siren only played the Westminster Chimes (The hourly chimes played by London's Big Ben) due to it having only 4 notes. But it actually plays Dvorak's Largo "Home Road".
• Besides playing music, it was theoretically rumored to have the ability to play military bugle calls as YouTuber Broken Solar Panel demonstrated a 10 note Music Siren playing the end of day bugle call known as Taps in a video called "decatone music siren songs".