TOYCHESTRA

A LITTLE HISTORY OF THE BAND

Toychestra is an all-women musical ensemble that plays toys. Some are actual instruments like toddler sized pianos and xylophones and drums. Others just make great sounds, like the pink zoo train or the eerie smud tuner or multi-sonic Activity Center. Still others are used for percussion, like the washboard, pots and pans and the jack-in-the-box.

Each instrument is amplified individually with an intricate array of contact microphones and sound mixing techniques. This creates a sophisticated aural experience that is a far cry from a bunch of kiddies banging around.

Toychestra performs original compositions as well as a few loosely related interpretations of songs by Perez Prado, Martin Denny, Dvorak, and more. The sounds range from stark to upbeat, from percussive to melodic, to ambient, avant-garde and kitsch. The band started when Paula Alexander was asked to form a band to play at a women's creative music festival at the Hotel Utah in SF.