The glass organ is my take on a Baschet-style glass rod instrument. It is played by sliding wet fingers along the glass rods to activate the vertical metal rods for a bow-like effect. This project was laden with a mix of trial and error, zooming in on many google images, and speaking with some wonderful people from a few corners of the world who were able to offer specific pieces of advice that got me across the finish line. Since it’s completion in 2022, it has been one of my primary performance instruments.
In terms of the design, I engineered this one to be extremely portable, and to be used primarily as an amplified instrument. A lot of the materials used were recycled from various parts I has squirreled away over the years, with a few of those being remanufactured with better material my the finished version. The glass rods are stir rods commonly used in chemistry classes, and the base of the instrument is a repurposed metal shelf.
Designs are ongoing for future iterations of this instrument to extend the range and sculpt the tone a little better.
Below is a documentary produced by Deathwave TV that has a more in depth discussion of the build process:
Singing Plates
Daffodil
Left and Right Roses
Gravity Harp
Automatic Wine Glass
Purple Boy
The Stupid Thing
Glass Organ
Bleeding Heart
Funkhouser Oscillator V1