Inspired by the sharp, but rich percussive beat of the ancient instrument of Africa, the Calabash, and the expressive tones of the Xylophone, the Ideotone is a musical instrument which creates sound through the exploration of its form and materiality.
An ideophone, by definition, is a word that evokes an idea in sound. An idiophone is a class of musical instrument which includes the Calabash and the Xylophone. Built with two materials, wood and Rockite, the ideotone is a combination of these ideas.
The Ideotone is a framework of wooden sections cut, as though from sound waves emanating spherically outward. Voids between the framework sections hold bars of pigmented Rockite which are cast around wooden dowels. The crescent shapes of the red bars echo the wooden wave forms, and when they are tapped by a mallet they resonate clear, individual tones. A tap on the sections emit a muted crack sound.
Hand drawing - Elevation, Plan, Section