Help with xylophones

Poststructural Pub
1

My daughter has to make a musical instument for physics class. The teacher ruled out glasses of water. We discussed a homemade whistle, but she doesn’t want to have to learn how to play it. So, we’re down to a xylophone as being something she could play.

Anyone have any suggestion as to how to make one? I’m a percussionist so I know roughly how they’re built. But if anyone has some tips I’d appreciate it, especially regarding the size of the keys in relation to each other.

Are keys an octave apart simply a factor of 2? Are there 8 even half steps between octaves?

This could be fun.

2

I did a Google and below are some of the sites:

http://www.motherearthnews.com/library/1981_November_December/The_Pipe_Xylophone

http://www.tidewater.net/~xylojim/xylocons.html

http://library.thinkquest.org/04apr/00275/xylo.htm

Hope this helps!

MarkB

3

here’s a site with instructions for a conduit pipe hammered dulcimer:
http://www.ehhs.cmich.edu/~dhavlena/dulcimer.htm

and if you back up a bit - there’s all kinds of instructions for home-made instruments here:
http://www.ehhs.cmich.edu/~dhavlena/


Missy

4

More than you ever wanted to know about the physics of marimbas:

http://www.lafavre.us/tuning-marimba.htm

5

Thanks everyone.

6

I wonder if the first marimba makers were so saavy on physics.

7

Of course not.

8

A whole book on designing and making your own musical instruments, and very accessable: “Musical Instrument Design” by Bart Hopkin, ISBN 1-884365-08-6.

djm

9

You want to hold the bars at 22.5% from the ends to get maximum vibration.

You might might want to build a tubulodium - it is a Xylophone made from copper plumbing pipe. Use 3/4" or 1/2" Type M copper or thinner.
See if you can find the book “Sound Design” (out of print) at the library. It has a lot of what you need. Bart Hopkins book (mentioned in the previous posting) is definitely recommended. You can get that book directly from the authors website at http://www.windworld.com. Also, he has a lot of additional links on instrument building. Additionally, you can check out Music Instrument Makers Forum http://www.mimf.com