how can i make a musical instrument?

Question

its for science class.

the requirements are: 7 notes, amplify sound, and made from house hold objects

it can't be a tissue box guitar

Answer 1

How about a xylophone made out of pieces of electrical conduit or copper tubing?

You just need to be accurate with the length of each piece to get the notes right. Measure twice, then cut the pieces with a tubing cutter. Your local hardware store will have all the necessary component.

- 10' pieces of conduit
- Tubing cutter
- String
- Small drill bit for string holes


If you do it right, you can impress your science teacher with your knowledge of wave length to get the proper notes.

Hanging the tubes from string (like a wind chime) is probably easier and more forgiving (musically) than trying to mount them horizontally on a board. If you mount the tubes on a board, you will need to properly space the supports.

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Another option would be a "glass harp" made from partially filled glasses. Just get seven (or more) glasses and fill them to the proper level to get the right notes. See some video examples at the links below.

Answer 2

Maybe make mini steel drums out of tin cans?
You wd have to do a lot of cutting to get them in the diatonic scale, though. To amplify, use a mike, I suppose, or a hollow space with bad acoustics.
Bottlenecks cut to various lengths to produce the pitches needed? Bind them into panpipes.

Answer 3

I like guitar and piano. Yes, the music :-) It will take atleast a year to learn the basics. But, actally it depends on the interest of the person over music and days doesn't matter..