3 Bizarre Instruments From the Early Age of Electronic Music

Today, electronic music rarely necessitates the use of actual instruments. Any producer can make music using a digital audio workstation and a few virtual instruments, all from the comfort of their laptop. However, back in the day, such a luxury wasn’t available. Keyboards, MIDI controllers, and physical synthesizers were needed to make cool electronic tunes. And even earlier, maybe even centuries before then, there were proto-electronic instruments that made their way to the stage. Let’s take a look at just a few bizarre instruments from the early era of electronic music that you may have never heard of before!

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Telharmonium

The Telharmonium was revealed to the world in the early 1900s. This extremely heavy (as in, around 210 tons) organ-like instrument utilized electromagnetic generators, which rotated to produce pulses that would then be activated by telephone receivers. From there, a sound was created using the produced electrical signals, but not through speakers, as those hadn’t been invented yet. Instead, the sound was made with acoustic horns. The Teleharmonium is considered to be the world’s very first electromechanical instrument.

Because of its hefty size, weight, and cost, this instrument never took off. Its inventor, Thaddeus Cahil, went bankrupt, and his instruments were destroyed. We’ll never know what this bizarre instrument sounded like, sadly.

Ondes Martenot

The Ondes Martenot was first popularized way back in 1928. This entry on our list of bizarre electronic instruments, invented by one Maurice Martenot, was a type of monophonic keyboard. It’s not totally obsolete, either. Musicians like Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead have used this interesting device. It was also used in the original score for Ghostbusters.

Basically, the Ondes Martenot brings together a keyboard and a ribbon controller. The instrument can create shifts in pitch, which a traditional keyboard typically couldn’t do. The resulting sound is not dissimilar to a theremin, but the Ondes Martenot still sounds entirely unique.

Glass Harmonium

The glass harmonium was first invented in the 1700s. I know what you’re thinking. The 1700s? Our understanding of electricity was still kind of primitive back then. Why would the glass harmonium be on a list of bizarre, early electronic instruments?

Well, the glass harmonium is technically an acoustic instrument. However, this Benjamin Franklin-invented contraption was a marvel of its time, and considering Franklin would go on to conduct vital experiments involving electricity that would indirectly lead to the creation of electronic music centuries later, I’ll go ahead and include this one. Plus, it’s just cool and I want to write about it. Sue me!

The glass harmonium features a group of spinning glass bowls, each of which is responsible for a specific note when touched. Ever wet your finger and traced it along the edge of a glass to get that cool reverberation sound? Imagine that with a bigger, larger setup. This thing sounds beautiful. Sadly, the glass harmonium was oddly associated with myths and rumors that it could conjure the spirits of the dead and cause illnesses in those who played it, so it fell out of favor by the 1800s.

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