Aeolian Wind Harp

Originating in ancient Greece (circa 6 BC) and flourishing throughout the Renaissance era, Aeolian Harps are rare, beautiful instruments designed to be played by the wind; free of the touch of human hands. Wind Harps transpose the spirit of the wind into spontaneous, multi-layered music in time to nature's rhythms. Their vibrant voices sing pure harmonic tones that range from deep, pulsing bases to soaring sopranos. A variety of winds, harps, and string tunings combine on these selected recordings to produce an eclectic repertoire of definitive music.
The Amazing Pencilina

Bradford Reed fights and tames the idiosyncrasies of the pencilina, an original instrument of his own design and construction.The pencilina is an electric board zither played primarily by striking the strings with sticks; also by plucking and bowing. Bradford first created it around 1985, and has continued to refine it. (“It just keeps developing," he says.) The basic form is of two boards mounted parallel to each other on a stand, like extended guitar necks with no bodies.

Aquaggaswack

The first version of the Aquaggaswack, built in 1996, only had about 18 pot lids and was narrower (It didn't have the outer sections). This second version, revamped in 1998, has 29 pot lids representing a majority of the notes in an octave, plus some quarter-tones. The center lids have mostly "bell"-like tones and the outer sets have a more "gong"-like tone. All the lids were obtained from thrift stores and friends. At various times both versions of the Aquaggaswack also included a cymbal, jingle bells, a cowbell with clacker and a mine cylinder (that's what the tag said).
Balalaika

The Balalaika family includes, from the highest-pitched to the lowest, the prima, sekunda, alto, bass and contrabass balalaika. All have three-sided bodies, spruce or fir tops and backs made of from three to nine wooden sections, and all have three strings. The most common solo instrument is the prima, tuned E-E-A (the two lower strings being tuned to the same pitch). The piccolo, prima, and secunda balalaikas are ideally strung with gut (or, today, usually nylon) strings on the lower pegs and a wire string on the top peg.
Bamboo Saxophones

Carefully electronically tuned, Ángel Sampedro del Rio's Bamboo saxophones consist of segments of bamboo successively larger in diameter. This progression has now been demonstrated by acoustical studies as the most harmonically effective.

The joints are extremely solid and resistant over time. They have keys that cover toneholes outside the reach of the fingers. Since 1985 he has developed and built this instrument, with equal attention to acoustic design and aesthetics. Their interior is protected against changes of humidity, frequent in all wind instruments. The work with mouthpieces led him to use different bamboo types that give the instrument its own and characteristic sound.

Ukrainian Bandura

Ukrainian bandura built by lutheir Dwight Newton

Ukrainian bandura -- 36 strings, walnut/spruce, original modified bracing pattern.

The invention of an instrument combining the elements of lute and psaltery itself is currently creditable to Francesco Landini, an Italian lutenist-composer of trecento. Filippo Villani writes in "Liber de civitatis Florentiae": "...(Landini) invented a new sort of instrument, a cross between lute and psaltery, which he called the serena serenarum, an instrument that produces an exquisite sound when its strings are struck."

Bass Stick

Another "virtual instrument" from the imaginations of Animusic.

This fretless bass was inspired by the Chapman stick, a multi-string instrument that is played by slapping the strings with hands and fingers. The Animusic Bass Stick has only one string and uses self-playing round hammers to pound out funky riffs.
 
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