Full orchestras are, as a unit, normally capable of playing many pieces. The only issue is that not all of the orchestra are used at any one time. Poor Tommy Timpani sits out 99% of the tune. If only the full band could play all of the time - then we'd be cooking with gas!
Total Football provides our solution: TF was a footballing (soccer) philosophy, first popularised by the great Netherlands national team of the 70s (it was used at Ajax way before then, but nevermind). Basically, each player was expected to be proficient at every position - so the defenders were also good attackers, attackers were decent defenders and everybody was versatile. This meant that a) any tactical system could be employed and there would always be players that could slot into any role, and b) when a player is moved out of his position (chasing or running with the ball) another player could slot into the hole in the field.
Software Defined Radio (SDR) is the idea of having a generalised piece of digital hardware that does all manner of radio-based stuff - and can be reconfigured to suit its purpose depending on the software running on it. This could enable radio sets to be optimised for different bands - or for devices with different radio elements (WiFi, Bluetooth, Cellular etc.) to use common hardware.
The "Full Piece" Reconfigurable One Man Band Orchestra is a band made up of many "One Man Bands" with proficiency in all of their instruments. Whereas the archetypal reduced form, pioneered by [DrWorm], is to create an orchestra with minimal personnel, the FPROMB can not only provide the full orchestra experience, it can do so with varying emphasis on the different instruments as a piece develops:
* Imagine the imperious 80 Brass Orchestra, with assorted woodwind and percussion... * Marvel at them change, in mid concert, or even mid-piece, from the general symphony orchestra to the Rachmaninoff special team (2 flutes, 2 oboes, etc..., piano and strings.), and then onto Mozart's symphony 31. * Behold the 99 Kazoos & 1 Timpani configuration!-- Jinbish, Apr 13 2010 One Man Band Orchestra One_20Man_20Band_20OrchestraExcellent prior art by [DrWorm]. Go and bun it. [Jinbish, Apr 13 2010] Total Football http://en.wikipedia...wiki/Total_Football [Jinbish, Apr 13 2010] Software Defined Radio (SDR) http://en.wikipedia...tware-defined_radio [Jinbish, Apr 13 2010] I'm not sure - your idea sounds like a Soccer-Opera... which could be a piece of genius.-- Jinbish, Apr 13 2010 [+] Wonderful. A worthy improvement on the original. And thanks for the compliment, too.-- DrWorm, Apr 13 2010 //I'm guessing the goalkeeper plays the timpani unless I've deliberately misunderstood the idea// Just make the keeper hold a pair of Cymbals whilst he is keeping his hands warm.-- gnomethang, Apr 13 2010 I would certainly pay to hear ... umm ... see ... err ... experience such a performance. This might be halfway feasible at a conservatory, or, better, the music department of a teachers' college. A student at such a school might be studying other instruments in addition to the 'preferred' one, and could plausibly be compelled to play them in this sort of ensemble.-- mouseposture, Apr 14 2010 Does each musician have a rack in front of them, holding one of each instrument ready for use, or are a load of all the different instruments put in a big tub in front of the conductor, for the musicians to rummage in?-- pocmloc, Apr 15 2010 Bum Tush!-- gnomethang, Apr 15 2010 Perhaps it could be combined for the opening ceremony of whatever international soccerball tournament you have handy, such that the pitch is the pit and the players rotate through the instruments, their positions alternating to mimic those adopted during great team goals of yesteryore (Cambiasso v Serbia & Montenegro 2006, frexample).-- calum, Apr 19 2010 random, halfbakery