Dean Drummond (1949-2013) was a composer and musician known for his use of microtonality and peculiar approach to instrumentation in his compositions. This resulted in music that was often atmospheric, humorous, and colorful. Like his friend and colleague Harry Partch, Drummond achieved a unique sound by building his own instruments. Most notably was the zoomoozophone, which has 129 aluminum tubes and is played with either mallets or a cello bow by one or more percussionists. Instead of dividing an octave into 12 notes, this microtonal instrument allowed Drummond to compose for a scale of 31 sounds.
Drummond was born in Los Angeles and attended the University of Southern California and the California Institute of the Arts, where he studied trumpet and composition. When he was a student, he met composer and instrument builder Harry Partch, with whom he worked for more than a decade. In 1976, Drummond and his wife founded Newband, a band devoted to microtonality and the use of instruments such as the zoomoozophone. At the time of his death, Drummond served as the director of the Harry Partch Institute at Montclair State University.
