mellotron
/ˈmɛlətrɒn
/noun trademark in the US
An electronic keyboard instrument in which each key controls the playback of a single pre-recorded musical sound.You have to follow where the innovations are coming from, delving into different sounds and instrumentation, working with electronic synthesizers and mellotrons, even banjos....
- Frith piles up layers of sharp, melodic guitars, woozy mellotrons or mournfully folky violins, with results that range from the infectiously melodic to the fearsomely dense.
- While acoustically based, he beefs things up with tons of keyboards and mellotrons, giving the songs a majestic feel despite their simplicity.
Origin
1960s: from mellow + -tron, element of electronic.