DIY Instruments: An Experiment in Creativity

Music is vital to any culture. Music helps us to express our desires. To regale our adventures. To lament the mistakes of our past. Music helps us to educate and impart as much as explore and discover. But how did music come to be? After all, cro-magnon man didn't simply walk into a local GuitarCave and buy a Fishbone Bass.

 

caveman music was fucking sweet.

At some point, Unk the cave-guy must have heard the sound of wind whistling through a dry reed and decided he loved it. He cut off a stalk of it and drilled some holes in the side. The flute was born. And the creation bug never died. DIY music is still a common phenomenon, and people are making instruments in crazy creative ways. Like the 2-string paddle bass. Or the tootophone. I've already posted about the homemade handpan, and there's an interesting history behind the kankara sanshin. Not into the whole "starving artist" thing? Check out musical vegetables.

musically delicious.

 That's heita3, a Japanese man who is pushing the boundary on playing with your food. I salute you, sir! You as well, ragtagbag. There are literally thousands of examples of people making music out of junk on the Internet. Or musicians who heavily modify current instruments. Why? Because they can. There's no limits, beyond what space-time and your own ingenuity will allow. Ask the dude who made the jellyfish theremin. Or the maker of the mini-koto. How about the guy who plays the Legend of Zelda theme with goddamned lightning bolts? Even if your not great at craftsmanship, there are a plethora of options available. Glass bottle panflute, anyone? Now you can get drunk and stumble through Don't Stop Believing without even leaving the house! Wanna try your hand at strumming and singing? Cardboard ukulele! Like playing Guitar Hero? Why don't you learn how to actually play that thing?

Our next song is called,
"Red, red, yellow. Red, red, blue.
I like boobies. What's for lunch?"

"This is all very cool and stimulating", I hear you saying, "But I know nothing of musical theory or engineering. Surely I can't become the next Jon Gomm". Sure you can. As usual, there are tons of websites ready to help you make something tonally awesome. Instructables is full of hundreds of DIY tutorials, many of which are music related. You can also check the Music Instrument Makers Forum for information on the different aspects of building. Still not finding what you need to make your dream banjo? Just Google search it and somebody's shown you how! Want to try augmenting that old guitar from high school? Take a page from The Presidents of the United States of America and turn it into a GuitBass. Or a Basitar. There's a cool website that teaches you how to make a theremin out of a Wii-mote. Or this one that shows you how to make a harmonica out of a comb and some paper.

For blues smoother than Dom Perignon

 Whatever sound you're looking for, there's a way to make it in your own home. There's a resource online to show you how. There's a video out there waiting to demonstrate it for you, whether it requires years of woodworking skill or is so simple you can help your six-year-old make one.

or your six-year-old-at-heart

 We live in a world of unlimited technology and information, and Do-It-Yourself projects have never been more accessible. As the Internet grows and our means to connect to it become easier, music will continue to evolve and adapt. It's a very exciting time to be creative.

So what do a cardboard box, a wooden paddle, and a vegetable all have in common (besides all having grown out of the ground at one point)? They can all be used to make kickass music. Now you know.

Exactly.

Instrument of the Month: Penny Whistle

It's August and you know what that means. it's time again for Instrument of the Month! This time around we will be looking at :

The Irish Penny Whistle

Also called the tin whistle, or feadog, the Irish penny whistle is an instrument of Irish (obviously) decent that has been around for thousands of years. It is an end-blown, six-holed fipple flute. It's most closely associated with Celtic or Irish music, and is a great tool for learning basic reels. It's also fantastic for beginning musical education.

The modern penny whistle as we know it was born in England in the mid-1800s, but the flute as a whole is part of a much larger family of fipple-flutes dating back as far as 50,000 years ago. These days they are typically made of aluminum or wood, they can be tapered or straight, and some come with a detachable head while others are one solid piece. The tin whistle is a diatonic instrument. That means if a whistler wants to play in different keys, they'll need numerous whistles in various keys, so many feadogs come with detachable heads that can be placed on different scale bodies. Know what else is awesome? The Low D Feadog.

Arguably the most famous song utilizing the tin whistle is "My Heart Will Go On" by Celine Dion, but it's long history in Celtic music has given it a robust set of songs, like Cooley's Reel above, or:

The Butterfly



Swallowtail
 


Concerning Hobbits
 


The pennywhistle is no stranger to contemporary music either, like the before-mentioned  Lord of the Rings' "Concerning Hobbits". There are many great online resources for learning to play the tin whistle, and so many new performers are learning to pick it up. Some great modern uses of the tin whistle include:

The Corrs: Little Wing
 


Akeboshi: Wind
 


The Unicorns: Sea Ghost
 


Flogging Molly: Devil's Dance Floor



and my personal favorite:

Jimi Hendrix Tin Whistle: What Might Have Been?
 

 
If you're interested in purchasing a penny whistle, some great online shops are here, here, here.
For more information and TABs of whistle music, check here or Google search for more.

For instruments similar to the penny whistle, check out the fife and the Irish flute. You Zelda fans might also be interested in the ocarina.

Well that's it for this month's special instrument. See you guys in September!