Improvements in Musical Block Games.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 24th July, 1897-Accepted, 18th Sept., 1897
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Musical Block Games.
I, EVELYN ASHTON FLETCHER, of 480 Ontario Street, in the City of Toronto,
in the County of York, in the Province of Ontario, Canada, Music Teacher, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
specification:-
My invention relates to an improved Musical Block Game more particularly
adapted for the teaching of musical notation to children and the object of the
invention is to design a simple and convenient form of portable staff and musical
notes and signs applicable thereto in which notes or signs may be changed at will
into different positions on the staff when laid on the table, floor or flat surface and
it consists essentially of a staff preferably consisting of a series of black ribbons
ar tapes connected to end bars, which are preferably weighty and of peculiar form,
So that they will hold the ribbons of the staff taut on the floor to represent the
lines thereof, the notes and other signs used in music being designed to be placed
thereon under the supervision of a teacher or in competition among children
themselves.
Fig. 1, is a perspective view showing the application of my invention, the black
tapes or ribbons being placed upon the floor and held taut to represent the lines
of the staff by the end bars.
Figure 2, is a perspective view showing the tapes used for the staff and end bars
in portable shape.
In the drawings like letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in each
figure.
A A', A3, A3, and A' are tapes representing the five lines of the staff. B and B
represent the end bars. The end bar B is made in three parts viz. the longitudinal
strip and the end bearing blocks 61. Through the end bearing blocks extends
the spindle 62, which is provided with a crank handle 3. B2 are spools having
laterally projecting hubs provided with flat sides 64. When all the flat ends of the
hubs are on a plane they are held together by the pivoted catches 65 engaging
with the stop pins 66, so that all the spools rotate together.
By disengaging the pivoted catches each spool may be rotated separately.
Upon the spools are wound the several tapes A A1 A2 A3 and A' which extend
through slots in the strip 6 of the bar B. When the spools are disconnected the
tapes may be wound separately. The end spools are suitably connected to the
shaft and all the spools may be provided with any form of interior springs such
as used in spring rollers or enclosed spring tape lines, so that each tape may be
pulled out separately and wound up separately.
When the spools are all connected by the catches they will of course all auto-
matically wind up the tapes simultaneously. The free ends of the tapes are
provided with wire loops a a¹ a3 a3 and a. The end bar B' is provided with
corresponding hooks B upon which the wire loops of the tapes are designed to be
fastened as indicated the drawing.

page_text: The end bar B¹ is fastened to the surface by any suitable form of pin B6 when
it is stretched out into the position shown in Fig. 1.
It will be noticed that when the tapes are wound up on the spools and the bars
placed. together they will be quite compact in form and easily carried.
C, D and E represent some of the different signs used in musical notation. All
of these different notes and signs are in block form. As there are several signs
of course I simply exemplify them by a few of the principal ones.
The ledger
lines would be represented by separate bars upon which the notes would be placed
the same as on the tapes representing the lines of the staff:
The advantage of my invention will be apparent, as children being taught to
play from early infancy with blocks, will soon learn how to place the notes and
different signs, which I find in practice is a pleasure to them in my game instead
of irksome and tedious as is so commonly the case where they are taught music
directly from a music book in the ordinary way.
Although in this specification I describe the tapes as separate it will be under-
stood that I may use a strip of paper containing the staff lines marked thereon
from end to end, which strip may also be wound on suitable rollers. The block
letters in this case if preferable might be made of thin card board or paper and
pasted into position.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said in-
vention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:
1. A game apparatus for teaching music comprising a series of blocks represent-
ing the musical characters and a pair of bars connected by a series of flexible
strips representing a music scale, said bars being adapted to be laid upon a flat
surface a distance apart to stretch said strips upon said surface with the surface as
a background, when the device is in use, said strips being also adapted to wind
upon one or both of said bars when out of use, substantially as described.
2. In a device of the class described in combination the tapes, the end bar, the
bearing blocks secured to same, the spindle provided with a crank handle
journalled in the bearing blocks and the spools located on the spindle and upon
which the tapes are designed to be wound as and for the purpose specified.
3. In a device of the class described, in combination, the tapes, the end bar,
the bearing blocks secured to same, the spindle provided with a crank handle
journalled in the bearing blocks and the spools located on the spindle and upon
which the tapes are designed to be wound and slots in the strip of the bar through
which the tapes extend as and for the purpose specified.
the
4. In a device of the class described, in combination the tapes provided with
wire loops at the free ends, the end bar, the bearing blocks secured to same,
spindle provided with a crank handle journalled in the bearing blocks and the
spools located on the spindle and upon which the tapes are designed to be wound,
the opposite end bar provided with hooks and means for fastening it on a flat
surface to hold the tape extended over such surface as and for the purpose
specified.
5. In combination the tapes, the end bars, the bearing blocks, the spindle and
the spools located on the spindle and having a laterally projecting flat-sided hub
and the pivoted catches and stop pins for connecting the adjacent spools together
as and for the purpose specified.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.