Homemade musical instruments can be fun and easy for children to construct. They can make them with their friends and organise a little rainy-day band. Who knows? It may be their ticket to fame and fortune.
Use your old yoghurt pots to make a shaker, a rhythm instrument used in Latin American music. You will need two cartons, 4oz/225g coffee beans or dried peas and some modelling cement (such as found in model kits) for each one. Place the beans in one carton, and then apply modelling cement around the rim of both. Then put the two together and hold them in place until the glue is dried. Decorate your finished shaker with strips of coloured tape, hiding the central join.
For a simple rubber-band zither, use four 1in/25mm nails, a 6in/150mm length of 6 x 1in/150 x 25mm wood with a hole cut in the centre, and a metal pie dish. Drive one of the nails into the centre of one side of the wood, about 1in/25mm from the edge, and then hammer the remaining three nails along the other side. String three rubber bands of different thicknesses from each of the three nails to the single nail: Then put the instrument on top of the inverted pie dish to give it a resonating chamber and pluck at the bands with your fingertips.
Make a double bass - the kind you see in jazz bands - from an old metal wash tub, a broom handle and some sturdy string or fishing line. Turn the tub upside-down and punch a hole in the centre of its base. Push a small bolt through the hole and secure it on the inside with a nut, using washers at both the top and bottom. Tie one end of the string to the top of the bolt.
Make a notch at one end of the broomstick and a groove at the other about 1in/25mm from the end. Fit the notched end over the edge of the tub, then tie the free end of the string around the groove. As you hold the broom handle upright, the string should be fairly taut. Now put one foot on the edge of the tub and pluck away, varying the tone by moving the broom handle to change the tension on the twine. As you get better at producing a sound, experiment with changing the pitch by pulling the string taut at various places along the broomstick.
Line up eight wine glasses, each containing different amounts of water. Use a teaspoon to tap the rims of the glasses, and adjust the water levels until you are happy with the notes you have got.
Play the jug. A large earthenware one looks best and gives the most resonant tone, but you can also use a large glass soda bottle or even a sauce bottle. Hold the jug straight up and pucker your lips against the rim; arch your upper lip slightly over the rim. Then blow gently across the top of the jug, adjusting your lips until you get a sound. One note is all you can play- the jug is a rhythm instrument. To change the note, add or remove water.
Even the youngest children can join in. Just hand them a couple of spoons and let them drum along on a table top or metal biscuit tin. It will help them develop a sense of rhythm.
With practice, your group will be able to play real tunes, but you're probably better off letting a keyboard or electric guitar carry the melody and using these instruments as accompaniment.
Check out Reverb musical instrument shop for a great selection of instruments and equipment
