Xylophone for the Ice Ages and the H20rchestra

One of the things that greatly excites me about musical instruments is the possibility of creating them from unexpected and ordinary materials. In this case, water. The Pagophone uses bars of ice as it’s primary source of vibration. They pagophone is similar to a xylophone in that different length bars, when tapped with a mallet or similar percussion utensil, will produce sounds with pitches proportional to their lengths.

The shorter the length of the bar, the higher the pitch. Acoustic pickups can be attached to the bars themselves or inside the mallets.

“Pago” is Greek for ice, and “phone” is Greek for “sound”, so “pagophone” means “ice sound”, in much the same way that “xylophone” means “wood sound” (“xylo” is Greek for “wood”).

Steve Mann

In contrast to wood or metallic xylophones, I immagine that a slowly melting ice pagophone might be slightly more difficult to keep in tune! One nice feature is that it automatically rinses itself clean after every performance - but, unfortunately when it’s finished, all that’s left is a puddle on the floor and an empty frame. Now that I’m thinking about it, I wonder if anybody has invented a “Pagophone Ice Tray” kit for those hot summer days when cool lemonade just isn’t quite enough!

Freezing the Ice Bars for the Pagophone

The “States Of H₂Orchestra”

The “creator” of the Pagophone, Steve Mann from Ontario Canada, is known for inventing several water-based musical instruments, including the hydraulophone (think water powered pipe organ), and writes regarding his band States of H₂Orchestra, “H₂Orchestra uses all four ‘Elements’ of H₂O. Frozen H₂O represents ‘Earth’; Liquid H₂O is Water; Gaseous (vapour) H₂O represents ‘Air’; Underwater Plasma ‘H₂O’ represents ‘Fire’.” A fifth element representing “thought” was added for a total of five states of matter corresponding “…to the five Classical Greek Elements: Earth (solid), Water (liquid), Air (gas), Fire (plasma), and Idea (informatics).” All five of these elements are pictured below:

Element: Water

Element: Air (Steam)

Element: Fire (Plasmaphone)

Element: Idea

Their Mission

On tour, the H₂Orchestra raises ecological awareness with their dramatic performances, stressing the importance of clean water, lakes, and rivers as natural resources. H₂Orchestra provides custom tailored musical events for organizations and festivals with on-site musical installations, public interaction, and installation exhibits. Their science oriented approach and do-good attitude makes them a great team for educating children (and adults alike) in fun and engaging ways. If you’re interested in bringing them to your school, be sure to read their mission.

Immersed In Water

Sources:

• http://wearcam.org/pagophone/
• http://wearcam.org/icmc2007/immersed_concerts/
• http://wearcam.org/h2orchestra.htm