Curiosity is at the heart of any musical endeavor. Composers, players, and instrument makers are always searching for a new sound, and sometimes the results are unusual, to say the least. Read on to learn about five uncommon musical instruments.

Vibraslap

The vibraslap is a relatively recent creation. First manufactured by Latin Percussion in 1967, the vibraslap is a replacement for the jawbone, which is literally that: the jaw of a donkey, horse, or mule, which is struck against the palm of the hand or a stick, so that the loose teeth rattle together. Natural jawbones are brittle and difficult to repair, so Latin Percussion created the vibraslap as a sustainable substitute. It is an easy sound to pick out, and has been featured in many mainstream hits, from Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” to “Billionaire” by Travie McCoy.

Theremin

The theremin is unique even among the instruments on this list for one reason: it is played entirely without touching the instrument itself. Equipped with two antennas which act as capacitors, the theremin detects its player’s movements and translates them into sound. One antenna controls the instrument’s volume while the other controls pitch. The tone is rather eerie, and is typically used to invoke “alien” or “paranormal” situations. It has also had a surprisingly robust role in popular music, including on the Beach Boys’ hit “Good Vibrations.”

Subcontrabass Saxophone

This massive horn was designed by the inventor of the saxophone family, Adolph Sax, but never constructed during his lifetime. It is similar in most ways to more conventional saxophones, but at 7 feet tall is capable of producing much lower pitches. This sax is so huge that it must be mounted on a stand to be played. Though a handful of predecessors were produced in the 20th century, the first true subcontrabass saxophone wasn’t produced until 2012.

Stylophone

Invented in 1967, the same year as the vibraslap, the stylophone is a uniquely “futuristic” instrument. The built-in stylus is pressed against its metal keys, completing a circuit and causing the instrument to sound a note. Its tone quality is rather tinny and nasal, but charming and distinctive in its own way. Notable stylophone players include John Lennon and David Bowie.

Chapman Stick

Among the whole range of unusual guitar variants, the Chapman stick is in a league of its own. Equipped the 8, 10, or 12 strings, the Chapman stick is not intended for strumming around the campfire – instead, players place both hands around the neck and tap on the fretboard, without need for picking or plucking the strings. A massive pickup at the bottom of the body detects string vibrations and send them out to an amplifier as with an electric guitar. This allows guitarists to play the stick more like a piano, with each hand managing separate parts.

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Being a staple of modern music education, the recorder is one of the few instruments that nearly everyone has played. But did you know that they were once one of the most popular instruments for professionals and amateurs? In fact, the recorder and its ancestors are among the oldest instruments still in use today.

The recorder is a type of fipple flute, which originated in the neolithic period. Evidence of fipple flutes exist in nearly every culture, owing to their simple construction and relative durability. A fipple is a type of mouthpiece that splits the column of air blown into it, which creates the oscillations necessary for note production. After traveling through over the block (A) and through the duct (B), air strikes the edge (C) and diverges alternately out of and in to the body of the flute. This enables easy note production compared to a single reed instrument like the clarinet, or the especially tricky double reeds as with the oboe.

Now, not all fipple flutes are recorders, which are distinguished by their seven keys on the front, and a single key on the rear which enables players to shift notes up an octave. The earliest instruments that would qualify as a “recorder” date to medieval Europe, though notated music has not been found prior to the 16th century. During the Renaissance, the recorder became quite popular among both professional and amateur musicians. Many compositions were written for solo recorder, mixed ensembles, and recorder-only groups. King Henry VIII of England is known to have been an avid player, and an inventory after his death uncovered 49 recorders in his collection.

The prominence of the recorder waned in the 18th an 19th centuries, due to a lack of professional interest. Musical technology had improved to the point that instruments with greater range, volume, and tone quality had become standard. In the mid-20th century, German composer and educator Carl Orff created his revolutionary method for teaching music, the Orff Schulwerk. If you’ve attended a public school in the United States since the 1950s, you’ve probably played some of Orff’s music. His method emphasizes the use of instruments that are approachable and easy to play, which is a perfect match with the recorder. Additionally, due to the invention of plastics, recorders became more durable and less expensive to produce. Recorders are a great way for students to learn the basics of wind instruments, and provide an opportunity to work with them before enrolling in a school band program.

Beyond education, the recorder has seen a resurgence in popularity due to the growth of historically informed performance, which attempts to recreate music precisely as it would have been heard in the past. They remain accessible for all sorts of players, and can create a broad spectrum of music in the absence of more complex instruments.

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The conductor’s baton is among the most iconic pieces of musical equipment that isn’t an actual instrument. Batons are critical to the proper functioning of an orchestra. With a baton, conductors can influence the speed, volume, and pacing of the musicians, enabling a profound level of coordination. Though many conductors opt to work with hand gestures alone, especially with choirs, batons can add expression and clarity to their movements. Read on to learn more about the origins of this simple but effective implement.

The first recorded use of a baton by a conductor comes from ancient Greece. According to tablets dating from 709 BC, Pherekydes of Patrae conducted a small ensemble using a golden staff to indicate tempo at the start of a performance. Metal staves were the primary means of indicating the beat for many centuries afterwords.

During the Renaissance and Classical periods, when orchestras as we know them today began to form, time was coordinated most often by the lead violinist or harpsichordist. Obviously their conducting style would be more limited than today, since they would be playing during the main body of the piece, but a violin bow or raised hand would be sufficient for providing cues to start or end a piece. Dedicated conductors would use use a large metal staff to indicate the tempo by banging it against the floor to show the beat, in addition to waving it for cues. However, this method had some notable disadvantages. In January 1687, a conductor named Jean-Baptiste Lully was injured by his conducting staff during a performance. While beating the staff on the floor, he struck one of his toes. The injury soon became gangrenous after Lully refused to amputate it, and he died a few months later.

As the orchestras grew in size and compositions became increasingly complex, better solutions became necessary. The modern baton began to see widespread use in the 1820s. This change occasionally caused some consternation among members of the orchestra, especially violinists, who would traditionally control their sections via bowing. However, the baton proved popular, and became something of a status symbol for conductors. Richard Wagner is known to have used a baton made of ebony with ivory knobs at the ends. French composer Louis-Antone Jullien was once gifted a baton inlaid with gold and diamonds.

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Image credit: Subdivision by zero, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Imagine any marching band – what are the first instruments that come to mind? Following the ranks of brass horns are the percussionists, playing snares, toms, bass drums, and of course, the cymbals. Now a staple of many genres, the cymbal has roots in military ensembles and ritual settings.

The cymbal is an ancient instrument, with the earliest examples found in art and writings dating back to 3000 B.C. Their exact origin is not known, but have been found in records of many cultures around the world. By the 14th century they were adopted by the Janissary bands, elite Turkish military units that served the Ottoman Sultans, as a way to inspire fellow soldiers and intimidate opponents. In the 17th century, cymbals had spread to the European orchestra. Until the 19th century, cymbals were typically used in pairs and crashed together, but as they were adapted for use with the orchestra, composers began to employ cymbals suspended from stands and played individually.

Modern cymbals were pioneered by Avedis Zildjian, a Turkish immigrant who moved to Boston in 1908. Zildjian worked as a candy manufacturer until the 1920s, when his uncle Aram suggested that he take over the family business, at which time he began building cymbals by hand. His timing could not have been better. Once jazz drummers heard Avedis’ creations, they began requesting specific changes to his designs, mostly for larger and thinner cymbals. In the 1940s the hi-hat was invented, which is a pair of cymbals mounted horizontally on a pole and operated mostly by the drummer’s left foot. The hi-hat was an evolution of the “clanger,” a small cymbal mounted directly on the bass drum.

Following the rise of rock and roll, cymbals quickly became even larger and louder to compete with amplified instruments. Since the drum set is an essential part of both jazz and rock music, the manufacturing of cymbals became widespread, and today they are offered in a massive variety of specifications. However, it’s worth remembering the legendary Art Blakey’s words regarding his choice of cymbals: “I just play any cymbal. Always do the best with what you have. It ain’t the cymbal, no way, it’s the person playing it. Just give me a cymbal. I don’t select them. I ain’t got time for that.”

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Nothing evokes the sound of winter more than than ringing bells. There are countless songs and carols about silver bells, church bells, hand bells, and so on. In the United States, there is no better way to draw a listener in to a winter scene than to add some chiming bells. But what exactly is a jingle bell? Read on to find out!

Crotal bells, from the Greek word “crotalon”, meaning rattle, are a type of simple percussion instrument. They have been produced through a variety of methods. The most basic crotal bells can be made from a single sheet of metal, bent into a sphere with a rattler added inside. Another common method involves casting two hemispheres, then fusing them together, or casting the sphere whole. These simple instruments have been found around the world, including many Pre-Columbian cultures dating back to the Bronze Age.

In Europe, crotal bells have been used for centuries on horse-drawn carriages and sleighs for the purpose of pedestrian safety. The sleigh, which is essentially a platform mounted on skis, is particularly quiet when drawn on snow, and could pose a danger to unaware pedestrians or other drivers. A modern comparison would be the electric car, many of which produce artificial engine sounds.

It is easy to see how simple bells have become a staple of holiday music. Imagine a small village with a single street running through the center, suddenly enlivened by the ringing of bells after the first snow of the year. As sleighs and carriages were replaced by motorized vehicles, the need for jingle bells waned, but the nostalgia for that lively ringing and the holidays that follow remained.

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