These are the strangest musical instruments in the world

Experimental musical instruments have always been of interest to the public. Engineers associated with music are working hard to expand the range of sound production and even more surprise listeners. So, in 2015 the studio MONAD presented to the whole world unique 3D tools at one of the New York conferences. The real hit of the event was a two-string piezoelectric violin. It is quite cumbersome and more like a props for a sci-fi movie. Of course, the sounds of this instrument are different from those of a regular violin.

Who is the creator of the piezoelectric violin?

This strange musical instrument was released thanks to the collaboration of architects from Miami Erik Goldemberg and Veronica Salzberg with multi-instrumentalist Scott Hall. The musician is known for his attempts to invent unusual instruments for several decades. This is what the authors themselves say: "Our desire to come up with something similar arose when we realized that architects are very similar to musicians for a number of aesthetic and technical issues. We wanted to expand the functionality of the violin and a number of other instruments. We got this model as a result of scrupulous research on design and calculation, as well as direct interaction with musicians, including violin composers. " At the exhibition were presented four more inventions of the authors, including a cello.

How does this instrument sound?

Journalists immediately rushed to ask the creators of the piezoelectric violin how it would sound. To this question Erik Goldberg gave the following answer: "Our offspring is not intended for exhibitions only. Each of our original tools retains a functional and ergonomic structure. For example, a violin. Its sound will be very similar to what you expect. If you want parallels, then remember the differences between the six-string and electric guitars. "

Fantasies of musicians and architects extend far beyond the bounds of aggressive science-fiction discoveries. Someone may think that the piezoelectric violin does not belong in the symphony concert hall. But it is part of the ancient tradition of creating unusual musical instruments. Representatives of this line always balanced on the verge of science and science fiction, music and magic. Before you are some of the most intriguing predecessors of the piezoelectric violin.

Glass harmonica

If you ever licked your finger, and then walked along the edge of the glass, you are familiar with this sound phenomenon. The Chinese used this technique to create music, starting from the 12th century. This effect was used in his experiments by Galileo, and popularized by the Irishman Richard Pokrih. In 1745, composer Christoph Willibald Gluck impressed the audience at his concert with a whole set of unusual glass instruments reproducing angelic sounds. Well, when President Benjamin Franklin attended one of the concerts in London, he was also fascinated by the sound of the glass bowl.

Official invention

The American leader demanded to invent an actual instrument. So a glass harmonic appeared, consisting of hemispheres of certain sizes. The vessel is fixed on a horizontal metal axis and partially immersed in a resonator box. The musician must rotate the mechanism with the foot pedal, while simultaneously touching the edges of the hemispheres. This is how amazing sounds are born, which can sometimes bring the listener to ecstasy. Mozart, once hearing the play of a blind musician, was inspired to write Adagio for a solo glass harmonica and quintet (flute, oboe, viola and cello). The popularity of this instrument began to decline when the concerts moved to more large-scale venues.

Oktobas

Hector Berlioz was a big fan of these massive three-stringed giant instruments. The height of the giant octobas reaches 12 meters, but the very first representative of this family was much smaller - "only" 3.5 meters. Invented it was Jean-Baptiste Wilm in the middle of the 19th century. In essence, the inventor did not make any drastic changes, taking as a basis the contrabass, increasing the ability of the register by an octave lower, making the strings thicker, and also placing a complex foot pedal on the instrument. Without this element, the Octobas simply will not sound, because the hands of mere mortals do not stretch for several meters in height. Contrabassist Nico Abondolo tells about the game on the octobas: "It was a surreal experience. Probably the same thing Alice felt when she was in Wonderland. "

Thermenvox

This tool was invented in the Soviet chemical laboratory on the basis of an experimental measuring device in 1920. The creator of the termenoks Leo Termen produced not just one invention, but this is what brought him worldwide fame. In 1928, a Soviet chemist moved to the United States of America, where he patented his offspring.

Principle of operation

At the heart of the termenoksa lie two high-frequency oscillatory circuits, each of which is tuned to the same frequency. Electric oscillations are created by an electronic tube generator. When the signal passes through the amplifier, then with the help of a loudspeaker it is transformed into a sound. This device actually opened the way to the generation of electronic synthesizers, with one only difference: there are no keys. The sound extraction is controlled by changing the position of the palm of the musician in close proximity to the antennas. In the case when the palms move around the rod, it allows you to adjust the height of the sound stream, well, manipulations around the limb of the terminvox affect the volume. When the distance between the palm and the antennas increases or decreases, the inductance of the oscillatory circuit changes, thereby changing the frequency of sound.

Famous fans

As you can see, this musical instrument is one of a kind. After all, sounds are reproduced without direct physical contact with the instrument. One of the virtuosos of possession of the termense, American Clara Rockmon, said that he can reproduce even silence. Among the admirers of this instrument are outstanding classical composers Dmitry Shostakovich and Percy Granger. For the eerie sound of themenkoks liked the creator of horror films.

Road to the big screen

These sounds are heating up the atmosphere on the screen more effectively than screaming and unexpected plot twists. Composer Miklós Rozha used termenvoks for the sound effect in Alfred Hitchcock's film "The Enchanted", as well as in Billy Wilder's film "The Lost Weekend." Both tapes came out on a wide screen in 1945. Music termenvoksa was heard by millions of people after she was included in the cutscene of the series "Purely English Murder."