Musical instrument support stand

A stand comprising:

• a bifurcated base having a pair of spaced-apart legs and a bight portion;
• an upstanding tubular member having a lower end affixed to said bight portion, said tubular member also having an upper end and a major axis, said major axis extending from said lower end to said upper end;
• an upright standard having a lower end rotatably coupled to said tubular member, said upright standard also having an upper end and a major axis, said major axis of said upright standard lying in a substantially vertical plane coinciding with the plane in which said major axis of said tubular member lies;
• a parallelogram mechanism including an upper bar and a lower bar, each of said bars having a first end, a second end and a major axis, the major axis of each of said bars extending from its first end to its second end, said parallelogram mechanism also including first means pivotally connecting said first end of said upper bar to said upright standard adjacent its upper end for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis, second means pivotally connecting said first end of said lower bar to said upright standard in the same vertical plane as, and a first predetermined distance below, said first end of said upper bar for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis and an upright bar having an upper end pivotally connected to said second end of said upper bar and a lower end pivotally connected to said second end of said lower bar, said upright bar having a major axis extending from its upper end to its lower end and being of a second predetermined length substantially equaling said first predetermined length, whereby said upright bar will remain substantially parallel to said upright standard during pivoting movements of said first ends of said upper and lower bars;
• a shaft having a major axis;
• means rotatably coupling said shaft to said upright bar in a manner such that said major axis lies in a horizontal plane, said shaft being rotatable about said major axis;
• means coacting with said shaft for limiting rotation thereof to a small, predetermined arc;
• means affixed to said shaft for supporting a predetermined load;
• means connected to said parallelogram mechanism for at least partially counterbalancing said predetermined load;
• and
• means coacting with said upright standard for limiting the rotation thereof in a manner such that the position of said load with respect to the position of each of said legs on said base remains such that said load will not upset said base regardless of the rotated position of said standard.