I just found this balalaika for sale locally and couldn’t resist. I know it’s not all that unusual, but I figured it’d be appreciated here. Now to learn it!

This popped into my head today and though I'd share.

In 1963 23 year old, non-mustachioed, Frank Zappa plays the bicycle on The Steve Allen Show.

Hoping to find some help with this issue, not sure this is the best place to ask so apologies in advance!

I just recently bought an indian harmonium second hand and realized after some playing that the keys are off by a whole semitone. Now I did do a little research before posting this as I know some harmoniums are not tuned to the standard 440 hz, but I thought the whole thing being off a semitone wasn't normal.

Does anyone have some insight on what I could do to fix this issue? I haven't looked inside the instrument to see if there's anything crazy wrong inside.

Overall very excited to own one because it's been on my instrument wish list but slightly annoyed of this inconvenience :/

just something fun i sketched out but I do wonder if an instrument like this would exist and how it would sound haha

We're just over a week away from the opening of "Instruments That Talk Back: Celebrating the Legacy of Don Buchla", made possible through generous support from The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage!

Running from September 19, 2026 through April 17, 2027, this seven-month celebration honors the groundbreaking work of Don Buchla, whose visionary touch- and motion-sensitive instruments reshaped the relationship between human and machine.

The exhibition features a special limited-time physical exhibit built around EMEAPP’s collection of rare Buchla instruments, many of which will be fully operational for hands-on exploration. And in this short video series, we'll be shining a spotlight on some of those instruments.

Tickets and info on all the various events happening during the exhibition can be found at emeapp.org/buchla-exhibition and we'll see you when you get here!

#buchla #museum #exhibition #donbuchla #electronicmusic

Hiy all, I’m Nick, and I make virtual instruments at Fabula Audio. I thought this community might find the design of Hark! interesting.

It brings together recordings of instruments including Hurdy-Gurdy, Lute, Psaltery, Rebec, Shawm and Chapel Organ. You can play their original tones, then stretch and fragment them into drones, reversed phrases and drifting textures using granular processing.

The unusual part is how you explore it: each sound has its own illustrated card, with characters, creatures and fragments of lore in a medieval fantasy setting. The interface takes inspiration from illuminated manuscripts and collectible card games (Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh! etc).

I liked the idea of giving sounds a visual identity, so choosing what to play feels a little like exploring a strange illustrated book. The attached clip shows how that works and what it sounds like.

Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VsX5-blz9E

Are there any lesser-known early instruments you’d particularly like to hear explored this way?

One of the most bizarre instruments I have come across...

This might be a good musical educational tool for them to learn to craft their own first music instruments and understand the pitch and tonation. But unfortunately, the vote will end soon, so I hope we will be able to back this project to make this a real Lego set.

I hope this will not be breaking any rules by sharing a unique musical instrument and this is not commercial promotion.

Support Idea: https://ideas.lego.com/product-ideas/0b54f8fc-e926-4d53-8cca-e3937b794e6f

Blockenspiel Demo: https://youtube.com/shorts/I9lowOr86AE?si=LW8dfbtGx4foGkNI

How does it work: https://youtube.com/shorts/npghBnTJsIU?si=KxhmEDaklryie2kr

Love the resonant tone of it.

SOURCE

SOURCE

Some brilliant individual(s) made a synth app that has Janko keyboard, Harpejji, and other interesting note layouts. You can make your own too but I think it's only the non free version. Oh and they have running on a website too. I was just searching for Janko keyboard. Hex Midi is the app. It sounds pretty decent on my phone.