Before “How It’s Made,” there were Sesame Street’s video factory tours: the peanut butter factory dubbed with bluegrass, the postage factory printing dog stamps, the chewing gum factory narrated by excitable children, the 70s-ass cheese artisans, the boisterous hamburger bun factory. The smell of Crayola still makes me think of the clicky-clacky marimba soundtrack from the crayon factory. Each video helps you understand the basic process behind a manufactured item, but it also helps you appreciate the workers who handle the process, and just how skilled their work can be. And the soundtracks and narration leave a specific visceral impression that the bare footage couldn’t convey alone.


This saxophone factory video above (via Digg) shows how saxes are built from sheets of brass and shaped with mallets, metal presses, and lathes. The result is a surprising combination of artisanal creativity and factory precision. But the highlight of this video is its goofy soundtrack: a lone jazz sax making cartoonish sound effects for every step of the process.



The sax soundtrack mimics hammer-hits, lathe spins, and wobbling metal with Looney-Tunes-like squeaks and honks. Growing up, several redditors thought that the machines actually made these noises. The effect is as fun as Bad Lip Reading, Music Videos Without Music, or that sweeping cover of the Jurassic Park theme. And, yes, the saxophone noises sound a little like farts. Don’t tell the kids.

