Winner Copley Science Medal, Inventor, Author, Community Builder, (schools,post office, fire department) Ambassador, figured out the wave current of seas, and and made america father of our country..so much more
“Oh, he’s a natural! He knows his stuff; he’s a sensitive guy!” 🥰 The armonica musician here (armonicist?) is such a patient teacher and you can see he gets such enjoyment out of sharing his work with others. Also it’s nice to hear “sensitive” from a guy to another guy as a compliment. It’s not that hard… you might have to practice and it gets easier if you hear it more! Sending hugs to the sensitive guys out there ♥️ (which is all of you)
This is why a teacher is important. This guy probably learned everything he knew himself, and it must've taken years. Having a teacher made it possible to learn the basics, in a day.
@@Barakon The relationship here looks to me more like (individual) teacher-student. Mentorship relationships are much, much closer and built over a long time. This is just a drop-in lesson on the instrument, its history and the artist/ teacher's history of learning to play it.
I’m guessing the guy already plays piano, and at least guitar(he mentioned it), so he already knows chords and other music theory. Those skills would transfer pretty quickly. He’d simply have to learn the basic physical parts of playing, instead of learning from the ground up.
There’s nothing worse than a teacher who is insecure when their pupil understands something very well. This man was a perfect example of the opposite of that person. He was so willing and ready to commend his efforts and praise his successes. What a wonderful example of a teacher
True that. I remember I apologized to my higher-up about asking too many questions but he then laughed loud and told me he was really glad that I did because it showed him how much passion I had. Some people enjoy teaching, just wish all teachers were like this.
@@sirderp4925 it all comes down to perception I’ll give you an example. I had a Math tutor from 10-15. Purely because, at the time, I loved Math THAT much. I loved learning and still do My teacher told me about this story where when he was being taught. Because he would pick up things way faster than his teacher did, instead of being proud of him, the teacher felt jealousy. Realizing a kid would essentially know all he did It in turn brings with it this nasty envious feeling. And then you hate the student you’re teaching. You want the student to learn how you did. Same learning speed and all Some are just THAT insecure about themselves. They have ONE area they excel in. And once someone way younger can do JUST THAT. While making it better and simpler? It’s like you took away their only redeeming points Thankfully my tutor was never like that. But I have encountered teachers like that. When you start to question beyond what they know and/or know all they do and expect more when they have nothing left? Yeah those types should never be teachers Cuz much like parents, they must realize their job is to simply pass on knowledge to the next generation. Not care about why this gen gets it far easier than you did
@@JohanKylander because the fact is, many aren’t lol It’s also because some teachers don’t have the skill to BE a teacher An aspect people always brush over about teachers is that they should REVEL in you learning more and more and faster and faster Most people who become teachers? Are know it alls sadly to say People who are indeed SMART but lack that aspect I mentioned to properly TEACH
I think the glass harmonica was also used by Italian composers in the early-1800s. The opera, Lucia di Lammermoor, has a big part during the soprano’s mad scene, since it sounds hauntingly crazy. It was recorded in the 1970s in a performance with Beverly Sills.
Funny enough, the glass armonica was a sound sample on the electric keyboard I grew up with. So I actually knew the name and the sound, but not what it looked like. I am so glad this came up for me. This is phenomenal
I think that must be how I know the names of many of these instruments, but don't have any idea even what CATEGORY they are (wood wind, string, etc) let alone how they work. I just vaguely know the timbre from synth presets.
The sound this instrument makes is both a terrifying and a enchanting sound. It's like being sucked into something terrifying, but your not sure if you want to hear more or want to run for your life. I love it.
People were dying of heart attacks in the audience because this thing makes sounds that no human should ever hear. I have a smart watch on and my heart rate is like 20 bpm above what it usually is.
This post is the reason why I go down so many YT rabbit holes. I want to search and end up on a content like this one. Three intriguing factors are present: 1) a musical instrument of such delicate build. Fascinating, mystical physics with glass, speed and technique. 2) a master that plays his heart and lifelong experience out every time he touches the glass 3) a scholar that is curious and talented, able to understand within a few tries the profound capability for sound that instrument is delivering. A collateral beauty!
Rob really is a natural talent. In every one of these new instrument videos, the guest is always as happy as this guy was to share and watch as Rob starts to figure out how each instrument works. Robs a real humble guy but I'm always blown away with how quickly he picks things up and is ready to make music.
Bro this guy was so awesome. Loved that he let you just figure it out yourself and would immediately point out and got excited with our quick you were. This instrument sounds beautiful
I'd honestly want to sample some of his little ramblings for my own pieces if he'd let me. Especially from this video. Maybe he should do remix contests for his tries at all these instruments :)
@@rdean150 annoyed and proud at the same time. It’s always a crisis when a brilliant old timer sees a young buck come up and play their licks that took decades to come out of their life experiences, but at the same time, you can see the joy and promise you felt too. It’s just like having children but music is really like a family of quite literally spirit. You don’t even have to speak the same language, but music and expression is within everyone.
Grinning ear to ear the whole time he was helping dude play. Great teacher and talented student. You can just feel how excited the teacher is to share his joy to his student
Total gem! I would have loved to be there when tsa said "you didn't build this....no way." 🤣 I hope they appreciated what they got to see! ❤️ Amazing creation
It's adorable how passionate the man is about his instrument. It really doesn't matter that much about what as soon as I see someone talk with passion and excitement, I could just listen for ever.
It’s so beautiful how music and instruments can bring people together. It’s almost childlike the expression on robs face while figuring out to play the armonica. It’s beautiful.
If you made it shatterproof, wouldn't you ruin the resonances that make it sound like that in the first place??? You need a very specific type of glass to do this, I think.
It’s insane how this goes back and forth between sounding like a violin and a flute and a piano…not to mention the engineering and technical ridiculousness in the creation and the upkeep. Amazing!
It moves from a nearly perfect sine wave (flute-like) at the lightest touch to having more of a sawtooth edge (violin-like) as you increase the grip/grab force, getting more friction on the glass, losing water faster, etc.
No doubt one of most impressive things I ever saw the instrument and the skills of the man that BUILT AND PLAYS it. It's wonderful. The sound personally must be unique. And what authentic admirable man! I wish one day I'll be like him.
"Blood works, until it starts to dry.." I would say "that's so metal," but ... it's glass. Also, I love that Rob has played so many unique instruments, and most of the experts tell him "You're a natural!"
Once you know your way around a couple of instruments, every new one takes just a bit less effort to learn the basics of. Still he does pick things up surprisingly quickly.
@@bowel_movement yeah I've noticed that, some of it translates suprisingly well for some reason, like going from guitar to drums for example (in my experience)
Picking harmonics on a guitar cleanly and clearly has a lot of the same precise control of touch and feel technique that this instrument does, so Rob already has years of that exact kind of muscle memory built up.
@@athmaid I don't play either but I feel if I started drums I'd pick up really quickly , I tap all the time and even for the longest would drum the exact drum pattern to songs I jammed, and well I can tap great but if I get on the kit 🤣. Long story short , I feel guitar translating easy to drums is because of all them 01s 🤣 chugging usually is very similar to base drum patterns
Did any of these replies even watch the video?? It is very clearly not "just like a piano" every note required a very specific combination of rotation speed and pressure. Being able to play "a simple triad" would be incredibly difficult on an instrument such as this. So frustrating to see people with such little skill diminish an incredibly skilled musician.
I once had the opportunity to hear this instrument live at a concert, but the musician became ill. Finally, thanks to you, I was able to see this instrument up close, Thanks.
Robs got the coolest, most sincere way of showing interest and understanding, it always shows through the guests reactions. You can tell that moment early on when they're like 'oh damn, he gets it and/or oh damn, he actually cares about what I'm saying and respects what I do.' Idk I just really love that. It's such a sincere show of respect which is exceedingly rare. Respect.
Yes! I notice that Rob _never_ interrupts the guests, and his way of listening is so earnest and rapt. He really respects each guest, and he never makes it about himself or his show. The guest gets the spotlight every time, and it is SO refreshing when compared to the overwhelming majority of the internet - loud and obnoxious.
The fact that this guy found records of this in history, made one from scratch, and then became fantastic at playing it is insane. This guy's a genius Edit: People are arguing in the replies for some reason, dont go in there
@@noahleach7690 Can you elaborate, or would you prefer just coming off as someone who wrote the stupidest thing I've read this year? Is it the comment about "not many musicians these days?"
@@tempestive1 It's pretty unquestionable that there aren't a lot of present-day musicians that are researching historically forgotten instruments, building them from scratch out of discouragingly fragile materials and learning to play them at a high level of proficiency. That's a level of passion for the instrument and the music that it's safe to say is extremely rare no matter WHAT time period we're talking about. You and Noah just come off as argumentative for no reason. Go build a glass instrument from hundreds of years ago and learn to play it. Then you can come back and tell us how common it is.
Rob I love how you're able to find these folks who just have such a passion for the instruments, the music, the history ... all of it, and your own curiosity and enthusiasm helps bring out the best in them.
you can tell this man loves the music he playes only truly passionate people could go on for hours on the little intricate details of how an instrument works
11:07 imagine going to see a cocnert of this guy, then he cranks it up, cuts his finger and the whole instrument goes red, and the madman just keeps playing with his blood. Metalheads have nothing on this guy.
Definitely! My first thought was, oh, so Ben Franklin invented some instrument with his kitchen bowls… but if Mozart, all the way in Vienna, made music for it, it was a serious thing!
@@sammarks9146 it's a beautiful "instrument" that gives off a lovely noise. He had to have heard it and immediately became inspired to write a song. And man was it a pretty song.
Very interesting. Part of the reason why glass armonica musicians died young was of course led poisoning but mostly from breathing it in. The axles used to be lubricated with led graphite which vaporized when it became warm. I learned this from Dean Shostak who is a glass armonica virtuoso in Williamsburg, Virginia. He also plays a glass flute and a glass violin. I've also seen one of these glass armonicas on display in J.S. Bach's house in Eisenach, Germany.
@@SixJayy 🤣😂 "not trying to be an asshole" buddy ive learned it doesnt matter really. The english language is a sham. Its ever changing. Who has time for that? We got their point.
@@SixJayy im calm im saying English doesn't matter. The language does not matter truly. Its not even the proper way the language was meant to be spoken and like. In the end? We understood what they meant
@@stevie3372 yeah okay whatever. I really don't understand why you want to have this argument, again, just trying to help. Please just leave it at that
My first thought was to have it stand vertically with water continuously cascading down it, but I skipped through the assembly part of the video and assume there is something obvious in the assembly that makes that impossible.
Rob really seems like some kind of super high functioning savant of instruments... So many different instruments that require years of dedication and study he just picks up in a session and always ends up playing something that makes it seem like he's played with the instrument for years.
Given the same opportunity I would go home having not gotten a single sound out of that instrument... just saying Rob is on some kind of other level...
@@urbanumbra6170 or you have the open-mindedness to realise that each unusual instrument has very different quirks and there is no universal knowledge (other than basic musicality which anyone who can only play one very common instrument very well has)
I'm sure it's relaxing enough after you've gotten used to it. I'm sure the story with the glass breaking while playing thing is real, but probably really uncommon and played up a bit for effect and because it is so uncommon
@@blarghblargh speaking as someone who's severed their flexor tendon before, this is something I'd never try no matter how rare. Sure sounds nice though!
Thank you very much to Mr. James for preserving and exhibiting this totally fascinating piece of (reproduced) history. Always warms your heart to see passionate people preserve things that could be easily lost
Fun Fact: Camille Saint-Saëns' composition "The Carnival of the Animals - Aquarium" requires a Glass Armonica. At one performance in the UK the stage manager misunderstood and ordered a "Harmonica Accompanist" instead... What followed was one of the strangest performances of the piece.
This is hands down, THE coolest, random thing to have ever popped up on my recommendations. I'm so stunned, speechless. Beautiful. And this man is pure passion and I love that.
If you want to see a very recent (2023 recent) use of this instrument in a song, look up: “Fontaine combat music” from Genshin Impact. The game is pretty good, but the soundtrack is phenomenal. Edit: The actual song name is: “Rondeau des fleurs et des rapieres”
Mr. Denis is so charismatic... It's lovely to see him excited about sharing his instrument with someone really interested. At 19:12 its looks like a proud dad on his son's graduation. Such a nice guy!
My husband is a music guy and he gets excited when someone "speaks his language". This guy probably doesn't come across many that can pick up this instrument so quickly.
I am a scientific glassblower of 48 years and I have made various glass bowl instruments that relies on the "damp touch", that is called stridulation, always facinating to see and hear that piece of recreated history
@@thomasfolan5401 This is a question I get asked a lot. There are two ways to enter into the profession, one way is to be an apprentice in industry and the other is to be trained in a glassblowing workshop at a university. In Europe ther are several schools that train glassblowing, the main one is in Paris. There are some in the USA, Salem college is a good starting point.
I can say with certainty that this video shattered my expectations, the blood story really cracked me up, and I think it’s pretty clear to see that this is beautiful instrument
I appreciate that you guys really take the time to even include the setup and not just a demonstration of the instrument. That gives such a broader context and story to the video. Bravo!
That sound back in the day would have been other worldly. It’s even kinda surreal now with all the synthesized music we have I can’t imagine the first time people heard it.
I heard (don't know if it's true) the first time Franklin's wife heard it, she was awakened in the middle of the night and was scared out of her mind...she thought she had actually died.
Honestly seeing how happy this guy is, even away from the camera in the mirrior being smiling, and just enjoying watching someone else play is heart warming. And I kinda have a feeling he doesn't see others play it that often just because of the uniqueness and specialist type instrument.
I've had the good fortune to be treated to a private glass armonica concert from Dennis in his home (he didn't invite me to play it and I didn't ask) and can confirm that he is generally this happy and amicable, at least when I've been around him. He's a really interesting guy with an interesting home full of all kinds of instruments.
just from watching this vid, dennis seems like such a lovely guy. its hilarious he got stopped in europe for trying to smuggle out an "antique" instrument heheh
I remember hearing about the Armonica when I was a child and there was that urban legend that hearing it would make you insane. I've always been fascinated by the strange, ethereal instrument and being able to hear it finally is amazing!
A few years ago, I contacted the last company that makes these instruments. They are in the US and they developed a special glass to use in it. They sent me a great DVD that showed all about it and even had a slow motion segment of the glass flexing as it was played. Beautiful. Ben Franklin was a genius in so much. This was his gift to the arts.
that man is an actual genius, the amount of disciplines you need to understand in order to operate that instrument is crazy and he knows it all like the back of his hand
16:49 He’s a good teacher for leaving him to his own after showing him the ropes. Look how invested and experimental he is when left to his own. No pressure but pure learning
A glass blower must make the bowls one by one, blowing round globes and cutting them in half, with a bottle neck that fits a cork which goes on the shaft. Then each bowl must be tuned to the right note by grinding away the rim. But once the instrument is tuned and built it keeps its tune forever.
Ever since I was a child, I've enjoyed writing scenes and stories. Several times a day, every single day, I will see something or hear a sound or a phrase that immediately launches my mind into a fantasy land. An instant tale starts to weave itself in my head, sprung forth by whatever small, insignificant moment I've just experienced. The phrase, "Blood still works until it's dry," sent me spiraling. As fast as you can click the shutter button on your camera, a picture formed behind my eyes. A dark, mysterious mansion, filled to bursting with strange and outdated artifacts long forgotten by time and modernity. The handsome, charismatic, and eccentric man who resides in this place sits behind an impressively ornate but unfamiliar object which, he explains to his lovely female guest, is a musical instrument. He calls for his servant before launching into a long winded explanation of the history behind this piece and the great men associated with its execution. As he speaks, his servant dutifully prepares it for play, tenderly swiping the rolling glass dishes with alcohol-soaked cotton and filling various dishes with what appears to be water. When this glass harmonica, as he called it, is fully primed, The man begins to play. Gently, he lays his fingers along the edges of the glass and a beautiful, almost ethereal sound fills the room. Soft, quiet tones barely above a whisper dance between her ears as she listens intently to this incredibly new, and yet somewhat familiar, sound. The enjoyment and wonder she's experiencing is plain as the nose on her face, and the man cannot resist the sadistic urge to muddy those waters rising up within him. He continues his educational lecture on the instrument as he plays, explaining the many intricacies of producing specific notes, continuously highlighting how crucial delicate touch is to the process in an almost sensual manner. He wordlessly signals for his servant to approach who, for the first time since her arrival here, seems to briefly hesitate before complying to his masters command. A second, sterner glance from the man shakes the servant from his wariness. He swiftly approaches and offers his bare hand, palm facing down, to his master. The man takes the offering, dipping the servants hand into the small dish of water affixed to a corner of the surface, then guides that hand over the same glass rims that he, himself, just fingered. The servants stoic mask slips for the briefest of moments, almost imperceptibly, and in that split second he appears fearful. The woman's heart rate increases, and her face twitches with tiny micro spasms of anxiousness as she watches on. The air in the room suddenly becomes thick, and heavy, and the atmosphere shifts into something uncomfortable. The mans eyes twinkle with amusement as he continues his instruction on pitch and volume, explaining how firmer touch equals louder tones. The woman begins to absorb some of the nervous energy that the servant desperately tries to hide as she watches the man press the servants hand down with an increasing pressure. Louder, and louder, and louder still, her apprehension seems to crescendo along with the sound. A warning falls from the mans lips in an almost gleeful cadence as he insists that to much pressure will harm both the instrument _and_ the musician. He then applies an even firmer pressure to the servants fingers, and before the man can even finish his sentence, a new sound, that of glass cracking, echos off the walls. The jarring audio is instantly accompanied by the horrific sight of blood splashing through the air, spurting out a few feet from the instrument to splatter across the floor in a crimson pattern reminiscent of a Jackson Pollack painting. The blood cascades across the surface edges of the instruments rolling glass bowls, reinventing the scene into something from a horror film. The man unceremoniously discards his servants hand and dismisses him, presumably to care for his injury, and the woman holds her breath as she watches on with a newfound fear, taking note of the euphoric expression the man now wears. His hands are now stained red with the servants blood as he continues to finger the instrument. To her eyes, this man has never looked more joyful and content than he does in this moment with another man's blood, quite literally, on his hands. He ominously declares, with a crooked smirk, that blood still works. Until it's dry, that is. He jokes that one would need a constant source of warm, fresh blood if they truly wished to play an entire piece this way. As if demonstrating his statement, the glass harmonica begins to falter, squeaking out sounds that dwindle away into silence. To her great relief, it appears that, with this, the mans dangerous and unsettling performance has finally come to an end.
due to it being extremely expense to make (for obvious reasons) it never really became widespread the same way other instruments did. the cost to make it can be compared to a grand piano, but the cost to upkeep it and make sure all the bowls and in good condition as well and the difficulty to play it well made it pretty short lived
@@EmberDrake475 Lead was only used in "expensive" glass. If there are reports of glass breaking as easily while playing this in the 1700s as there is today, then it's safe to assume that they weren't using lead glass to make this instrument.
It's so beautiful too!!! I love absolutely everything about this instrument and this man!!! Amazing Amazing Amazing!!!!! Best thing to pop up in my feed EVER!! ❤❤❤
What a beautiful ethereal sound it makes, and I have never heard of Ben Franklin being an accomplished musician before this video. This was nice to know in addition to this strange instrument. How unique.
You can see that this guy really enjoyed this especially because rob is actually really interested in the conversation and appreciates the instrument and how it’s made and played.
I’m not even a musician but I was smiling just watching the pure joy you were getting in learning the instrument and sharing the experience with a friend. Truly a one of a kind experience with great people.
This is absolutely fantastic! I'd accidentally heard about this instrument on another channel & put this on out of curiosity. Was I ever in for a super-treat! I can't imagine the sacrifices performers made to play this. Just the idea of someone building something so incredible, doing all the required self-torture (almost) in order to play it, even dying because of the previously unknown side effects, what a fascinating world to learn about! I love these two gentlemen, so totally super-enthusiastic, feeding off each other's delight. This has been quite an experience! You really must be ultra dedicated to take on the various challenges to actually become a master of this instrument. Thank you so much for this delightful presentation!
I lived in NY for 34 yrs. If I'd known this instrument was only about an hour from my house, TRUST ME, I would've seen this thing in person somehow some way. It's incredible and the sound is immaculate. I feel like I've heard this in a piece of music before somewhere, or a replication of it at the very least. I'm AMAZED at how quickly you picked this up Rob. I'm in awe.
The Mozart he plays was a HUGE emotional trigger for me: it was the background music of a reading by Tammy Grimes of a lesser-known Maurice Sendak story that I loved as a kid ( th-cam.com/video/LDuKQKnaG2A/w-d-xo.html ). Ever since, I've associated the sound of the armonica with the feeling of wistful melancholy (anemoia? saudade?) that this reading evoked for me.
Makes me imagine an alternate universe or perhaps centuries from now a world where all the instruments we know and use today are replaced by others like this one, it is quite fascinating.
Holy crap this is the most fascinating instrument I’ve ever seen, and he’s such a master musician at playing it. That mozart piece feels like listening to lost art! Incredible!
The way Rob can quickly and naturally assess how these crazy acoustic instruments work and how to get good sound from them is just so inspiring and amazing.
I think the part that doesn't mean mentioned that's very important is that this is not simply glass, this is high grade crystal with an amazingly high lead content. It's the equivalent of playing a Waterford glass Symphony
We need a recital with this glass armonica and a Theremin! What a natural talent to be able to functionally play this so quickly. And the death stories at the end - wow!
OMG this guy is such a great teacher! He's giving Rob some basic direction and idea for what he would be feeling for, and then just letting him fine it on his own! I love this guy and seeing how excited he is to talk about his weird instrument. And he's so clearly excited to have someone like Rob who is just as intrigued by it and excited to play. Also, side note: this guy totally looks like Terry Jones.
The intrigue Rob has, combined with what is a genuine innate talent for music, I'm not surprised he did as well as he did when playing the Glass Armonica. Of the instruments I've seen him play on the channel, this one is without-a-doubt one of the more (if not most) technical just for even getting it to make a sound. The Church Organ was just insane to watch.
Please, I know I speak for many of us, have this man BACK. I want to see his whole collection documented by you guys if you all had the inclination and patience. Absolutely hours even unedited. Wonderful content. I’m only sorry I hadn’t found you before this video but you absolutely have a new sub.
I’m always impressed on how quickly Rob learns to play a wide range of instruments. He’s very musical and a pleasure to watch. I love how he’s introducing a variety of unheard instruments to us.
@@Bzorlan i wouldn't say so, sure the keys is maybe roughly in the same place, but the way to play it and the sound it produce depending on how you play it can create something that piano couldn't
"Blood still works until it starts to dry!"
This dude made this heavenly sounding instrument metal.
Sounds like a thrash metal line, holy hell
We need glass armonica metal
@@ippotsk more like black metal
Glass metal 🍷 🎸
@@Shadowarfare117 talk about a brutal breakdown
When he goes “nope nope, I got it” I can feel the “don’t you fucking touch it” rattling in his brain.
And then he kept mentioning about how nervous he is and unsettled about glass shattering. Lol that's not helping the situation
@@blitheringrando1410 better to have someone there than nobody
OCD
@@blitheringrando1410 The creator being Ben Franklin🤔😂
100% how I took it as well lmao!
When you're a historian, a musician, an engineer... impressive.
Winner Copley Science Medal, Inventor, Author, Community Builder, (schools,post office, fire department) Ambassador, figured out the wave current of seas, and and made america father of our country..so much more
@@lindadechiazza2924 are you talking about Ben Franklin or the guy in the video? I think the post was about this guy...
And charismatic lol. Love this guy and his personality
tapping hot chicks for a living isnt bad either
I bet he’s a super fun guy.
“Oh, he’s a natural! He knows his stuff; he’s a sensitive guy!” 🥰
The armonica musician here (armonicist?) is such a patient teacher and you can see he gets such enjoyment out of sharing his work with others.
Also it’s nice to hear “sensitive” from a guy to another guy as a compliment. It’s not that hard… you might have to practice and it gets easier if you hear it more! Sending hugs to the sensitive guys out there ♥️ (which is all of you)
Repeat after me HHHH.... harmonica. Just like herbivore, hotel, historic.
@@lambertovitali3152 harmonica is a mouth organ, very small. Armonica is this
the person being rude in the first reply made me laugh bc they didnt even know what video they were on or what planet
Clearly he's playing the glass giant harmonica
@@lambertovitali3152you are a dunce
he feels like that rumored "mad scientist" who's actually really nice and gets really excited and giddy to show off his creations and i love that
I was thinking something similar, it’s super awesome to see when someone has a unique skill that they’re super excited to share with others
Funny you say that, I think he looks a lot like Harold Ramis
like doc brown?
@@overpricedhealthcare Or Egon Spengler
😁
"Blood works... Until it starts to dry" a sensitive instrument that temporarily accepts blood sacrifices
if Twitter were an instrument, it would be this.
@@Stimkie hell no ! Twitter would be a fart orchestra
Fresh blood or it stops lol.
@@gramgramchabadou2524 The sensitivity? the fragility? THE BLOOD SACRIFICE?!
@@Stimkie except that this instrument makes art but twitter..?? Yeah I don't think so
This is why a teacher is important. This guy probably learned everything he knew himself, and it must've taken years. Having a teacher made it possible to learn the basics, in a day.
You mean a mentor right?
And he's probably still learning
@@Barakon The relationship here looks to me more like (individual) teacher-student. Mentorship relationships are much, much closer and built over a long time. This is just a drop-in lesson on the instrument, its history and the artist/ teacher's history of learning to play it.
@@FlyingDwarfman they probably meant tutor :P
I’m guessing the guy already plays piano, and at least guitar(he mentioned it), so he already knows chords and other music theory. Those skills would transfer pretty quickly. He’d simply have to learn the basic physical parts of playing, instead of learning from the ground up.
“Why did you choose these instruments?” Dude, because they’re the coolest most eerie sounding and oddball instruments and they’re awesome!
There’s nothing worse than a teacher who is insecure when their pupil understands something very well. This man was a perfect example of the opposite of that person. He was so willing and ready to commend his efforts and praise his successes. What a wonderful example of a teacher
True that. I remember I apologized to my higher-up about asking too many questions but he then laughed loud and told me he was really glad that I did because it showed him how much passion I had. Some people enjoy teaching, just wish all teachers were like this.
Yup some people just mock you and belittle you when you're catching on it's really strange
@@sirderp4925 it all comes down to perception
I’ll give you an example. I had a Math tutor from 10-15. Purely because, at the time, I loved Math THAT much. I loved learning and still do
My teacher told me about this story where when he was being taught. Because he would pick up things way faster than his teacher did, instead of being proud of him, the teacher felt jealousy. Realizing a kid would essentially know all he did
It in turn brings with it this nasty envious feeling. And then you hate the student you’re teaching. You want the student to learn how you did. Same learning speed and all
Some are just THAT insecure about themselves. They have ONE area they excel in. And once someone way younger can do JUST THAT. While making it better and simpler? It’s like you took away their only redeeming points
Thankfully my tutor was never like that. But I have encountered teachers like that. When you start to question beyond what they know and/or know all they do and expect more when they have nothing left? Yeah those types should never be teachers
Cuz much like parents, they must realize their job is to simply pass on knowledge to the next generation. Not care about why this gen gets it far easier than you did
Why would someone be insecure about teaching to smart capable people?
@@JohanKylander because the fact is, many aren’t lol
It’s also because some teachers don’t have the skill to BE a teacher
An aspect people always brush over about teachers is that they should REVEL in you learning more and more and faster and faster
Most people who become teachers? Are know it alls sadly to say
People who are indeed SMART but lack that aspect I mentioned to properly TEACH
I love the dynamic between this fun chaotic dude and his fragile bloodbath instrument.
*The instrument demands BLOOD.*
sacrifice! sacrifice!
Best comment ever ;)
Jesus Christ is coming soon.
Are you preparing?
Jesus loves you
Check out Chuck Missler on TH-cam
This guy's so stoked to share his niche instrument with someone whose genuinely interested
@@eternallaurumhoos
It was very interesting and very neat
They are both so exited! Always awesome to watch two experts share things with each other!
@@eternallaurum you’re a turd 😭 spell checking yt comments
He is not „genuinely interested” he just wants attention and ad money
I think the glass harmonica was also used by Italian composers in the early-1800s. The opera, Lucia di Lammermoor, has a big part during the soprano’s mad scene, since it sounds hauntingly crazy. It was recorded in the 1970s in a performance with Beverly Sills.
Funny enough, the glass armonica was a sound sample on the electric keyboard I grew up with. So I actually knew the name and the sound, but not what it looked like. I am so glad this came up for me. This is phenomenal
Yeah same, it sounded like a kind of woodwind flute to me on the keyboard.
Mine actually listed it as a glass *H*armonica, and i had no idea what that was but i never imagined something like this. It's magnificent.
I think that must be how I know the names of many of these instruments, but don't have any idea even what CATEGORY they are (wood wind, string, etc) let alone how they work. I just vaguely know the timbre from synth presets.
Same
Aren't those old keyboards a wild ride of options haha.
This dude got cut from the glass and still played it while all the blood colored the glass in red and still finished the song is metal af.
No, it's GLASS af
yessss
id be like uhhhh is this a hardcore metal show and its about to bass drop??
Reminds of Justice Yeldham, he plays a piece of glass with his mouth and occasionally breaks it but continues the show
11:00 for anyone wondering when
The sound this instrument makes is both a terrifying and a enchanting sound. It's like being sucked into something terrifying, but your not sure if you want to hear more or want to run for your life. I love it.
People were dying of heart attacks in the audience because this thing makes sounds that no human should ever hear. I have a smart watch on and my heart rate is like 20 bpm above what it usually is.
@@benxgaming3484 I have been fucking around with some crystal wine glasses I found duped outside my house but maybe I should be more careful lol
huh, you're the first I see with the same profile picture as me.
Honestly reminds me of the merry go round in roller coaster tycoon
oMG LIKE SIREN LORE
This post is the reason why I go down so many YT rabbit holes. I want to search and end up on a content like this one. Three intriguing factors are present:
1) a musical instrument of such delicate build. Fascinating, mystical physics with glass, speed and technique.
2) a master that plays his heart and lifelong experience out every time he touches the glass
3) a scholar that is curious and talented, able to understand within a few tries the profound capability for sound that instrument is delivering.
A collateral beauty!
Totally agree😊
lovely comment
He’s like a kid excited to show off his new toys to his friends. You can tell he really loves his craft.
😝
I think he's on the spectrum. This is special interest level and this is his domain.
I'm really impressed by how quickly this guy is playing some serious melodies.
Rob really is a natural talent. In every one of these new instrument videos, the guest is always as happy as this guy was to share and watch as Rob starts to figure out how each instrument works. Robs a real humble guy but I'm always blown away with how quickly he picks things up and is ready to make music.
My name
@@WiseMysticalTree4 shut up
I like how proud he was when asked if anyone's dropped it.
"Has anyone dropped it?"
"**I'VE** dropped it."
"When I _open_ it and it's _not_ broken, it's... ✨CHRISTMAS!!✨"
"We pull the pins.... And.."
"✨CHRISTMAS!✨ :D"
I swear I could listen to him say all these things again and again😂
Bro this guy was so awesome. Loved that he let you just figure it out yourself and would immediately point out and got excited with our quick you were. This instrument sounds beautiful
It was an amazing video!
Rob playing weird instruments is a timeless genre we all adore.
You must try to match the tone of this instrument with your pedals
Ok
I think it’d be pretty cool if he played the American Fotoplayer
I'd honestly want to sample some of his little ramblings for my own pieces if he'd let me. Especially from this video.
Maybe he should do remix contests for his tries at all these instruments :)
Watching him nail it and get a good sounding chord after 5 seconds is what I’m here for.
The fact that this guy can do clearly articulated dynamics without breaking the instrument is extremely impressive
Now imagine that Ben Franklin was doing it for the French court almost two and a half centuries ago.
@@bigguy7353 big flexed on the whole continent
Every time Rob makes an observation about how difficult it is to play dude just makes a face like "welcome to my suffering Rob"
It think it's more like "yes don't make it look to easy now"
@@xixieed facttss we all seen his face when the chords started coming in ( to be fair this instrument really doesn't look that hard to play... )
A true musician lol
@@ZepyhrLight lol yeah he looked rather annoyed that Rob picked it up so quickly
@@rdean150 annoyed and proud at the same time. It’s always a crisis when a brilliant old timer sees a young buck come up and play their licks that took decades to come out of their life experiences, but at the same time, you can see the joy and promise you felt too. It’s just like having children but music is really like a family of quite literally spirit. You don’t even have to speak the same language, but music and expression is within everyone.
Grinning ear to ear the whole time he was helping dude play. Great teacher and talented student. You can just feel how excited the teacher is to share his joy to his student
The teacher here is an absolute treasure. A man that is truly passionate about his music.
Indeed, indeed, indeed. What a lovable and educative demonstration. A music lover ought to see and hear this to enrich and broaden their horizons.
@@FarhanAmin1994 Passionate about the world around him it seems... not just music. My kinda guy, would love to share a coffee with him.
@@MartiensBezuidenhout Stand in line my friend..stand in line. 😉
All the way up to 666
Total gem! I would have loved to be there when tsa said "you didn't build this....no way." 🤣 I hope they appreciated what they got to see! ❤️ Amazing creation
It's adorable how passionate the man is about his instrument. It really doesn't matter that much about what as soon as I see someone talk with passion and excitement, I could just listen for ever.
I agree!
Came here to say this! The guy is infectiously passionate about his craft and hilarious.
And a great teacher as well, the way he explained everything was amazing.
It's how that passion spreads to his audience as well. Amazing
even the teacher becomes fascinated with his playing ability.
This is completely mad! And the fact that Mozart wrote a piece specifically for this instrument is so fascinating
You know, Mozart being Mozart, makes pieces for random pieces of instruments: piano, violin, then this beautiful piece of instrument.
@@paodepota8373 don't forget Mozart's electric guitar solo
I'm joking please don't kill me
@@maji2510 also, don't forget Mozart's edm track
@@adiznuts645 we all know Mozart was the father of dubstep
@@ludens1472 especially the Skrillex vs Mozart ERB
It’s so beautiful how music and instruments can bring people together. It’s almost childlike the expression on robs face while figuring out to play the armonica. It’s beautiful.
Exactly! This is why they say that music (and food) is a universal language! 😊😊😊
This sounds so haunting when it's played and it looks like it's breathing when you watch it spinning. It's so bizarre and beautiful.
But then you remember that it temporarily accepts blood sacrifices
@@thepanzerofthelake732 it will always take the blood sacrifice, it just won’t settle for anything less than absolutely fresh.
We're 250 years into the future and we still haven't made a shatterproof glass harmonica.
It’s not so much impossible, but hf finding someone to fund that.
Make the same thing but with reinforced glass might work i think
Laminated glass I imagine doesn't quite produce the same tones as mineral glass, besides it would cost far more making it even more impractical.
Called a keyboard
If you made it shatterproof, wouldn't you ruin the resonances that make it sound like that in the first place??? You need a very specific type of glass to do this, I think.
It’s insane how this goes back and forth between sounding like a violin and a flute and a piano…not to mention the engineering and technical ridiculousness in the creation and the upkeep. Amazing!
I think it mostly sounds like an organ or bagpipe, lol.
I think it sounds more like a church organ tbh
It moves from a nearly perfect sine wave (flute-like) at the lightest touch to having more of a sawtooth edge (violin-like) as you increase the grip/grab force, getting more friction on the glass, losing water faster, etc.
No doubt one of most impressive things I ever saw the instrument and the skills of the man that BUILT AND PLAYS it. It's wonderful. The sound personally must be unique. And what authentic admirable man! I wish one day I'll be like him.
"Blood works, until it starts to dry.." I would say "that's so metal," but ... it's glass.
Also, I love that Rob has played so many unique instruments, and most of the experts tell him "You're a natural!"
Um, the damn thing was possibly killing audience members? It even SOUNDS like some kind of heavy-metal concert:)
Glass could very easily be a genre
well, if you think about it blood has a little bit of iron in it,
👈Heavy glass! 👉
I was thinking the same thing. Haha
Rob's ability to quickly get a feel for a new instrument is so impressive
Once you know your way around a couple of instruments, every new one takes just a bit less effort to learn the basics of. Still he does pick things up surprisingly quickly.
@@bowel_movement yeah I've noticed that, some of it translates suprisingly well for some reason, like going from guitar to drums for example (in my experience)
Picking harmonics on a guitar cleanly and clearly has a lot of the same precise control of touch and feel technique that this instrument does, so Rob already has years of that exact kind of muscle memory built up.
@@athmaid its like learning languages but the grammar of each one is the same
@@athmaid I don't play either but I feel if I started drums I'd pick up really quickly , I tap all the time and even for the longest would drum the exact drum pattern to songs I jammed, and well I can tap great but if I get on the kit 🤣. Long story short , I feel guitar translating easy to drums is because of all them 01s 🤣 chugging usually is very similar to base drum patterns
I am constantly astounded by Rob ability to understand these unusual instruments so quickly. He is an incredible musician.
It does help that it’s layed out like a piano.
And my boi straight up got a first hand view of him setting it up, piece by piece
He literally played a triad.
Any 5 year old can do that.
Did any of these replies even watch the video?? It is very clearly not "just like a piano" every note required a very specific combination of rotation speed and pressure. Being able to play "a simple triad" would be incredibly difficult on an instrument such as this. So frustrating to see people with such little skill diminish an incredibly skilled musician.
@@joshbothell151 and the fact that he started to learn so fast and could play chords
I once had the opportunity to hear this instrument live at a concert, but the musician became ill. Finally, thanks to you, I was able to see this instrument up close, Thanks.
Robs got the coolest, most sincere way of showing interest and understanding, it always shows through the guests reactions. You can tell that moment early on when they're like 'oh damn, he gets it and/or oh damn, he actually cares about what I'm saying and respects what I do.' Idk I just really love that. It's such a sincere show of respect which is exceedingly rare. Respect.
I agree. I watch every single episode he does where he tries the interesting instruments.
Yes! I notice that Rob _never_ interrupts the guests, and his way of listening is so earnest and rapt. He really respects each guest, and he never makes it about himself or his show. The guest gets the spotlight every time, and it is SO refreshing when compared to the overwhelming majority of the internet - loud and obnoxious.
The fact that this guy found records of this in history, made one from scratch, and then became fantastic at playing it is insane. This guy's a genius
Edit: People are arguing in the replies for some reason, dont go in there
Goes to show how much passion he has for the instrument and music. You don't see that in many musicians these days
@@liam.da.ghostboy this is the stupidest thing I've read this year
@@noahleach7690 Can you elaborate, or would you prefer just coming off as someone who wrote the stupidest thing I've read this year?
Is it the comment about "not many musicians these days?"
@@liam.da.ghostboy do you know a significative _and_ representative sample of musicians? Or are you saying this based on a feeling?
@@tempestive1 It's pretty unquestionable that there aren't a lot of present-day musicians that are researching historically forgotten instruments, building them from scratch out of discouragingly fragile materials and learning to play them at a high level of proficiency. That's a level of passion for the instrument and the music that it's safe to say is extremely rare no matter WHAT time period we're talking about. You and Noah just come off as argumentative for no reason.
Go build a glass instrument from hundreds of years ago and learn to play it. Then you can come back and tell us how common it is.
Rob I love how you're able to find these folks who just have such a passion for the instruments, the music, the history ... all of it, and your own curiosity and enthusiasm helps bring out the best in them.
How are you 20 hours early
NO, NOW YOU LISTEN TO ME! why should i waste my time at school? i am super famous on youtube. tell me, dear criq
@@fiftysecwithoutza member or patreon
@@AxxLAfriku ?... not sure what this had to do with anything, but don't do crack kids
@@better.better He’s a famous troll, just ignore
you can tell this man loves the music he playes only truly passionate people could go on for hours on the little intricate details of how an instrument works
11:07 imagine going to see a cocnert of this guy, then he cranks it up, cuts his finger and the whole instrument goes red, and the madman just keeps playing with his blood. Metalheads have nothing on this guy.
i played my guitar with a 1 inch flap of skin off in a preformance.
@@SlavCatt no you didn't
@@untroubledwaters2137 yes he did i was literally watching his incredible live performance from the crowd. He even did a encore! #freebird
You can get the same spectacle by pulling your hand away, swearing, and adding red food dye.
@@untroubledwaters2137 Knowing the people I know, my only question for them is the actual dimensions of the flap.
3.3/4 an inch at most.
You know this is serious when Mozart made a composition exclusively for this instrument!
Definitely! My first thought was, oh, so Ben Franklin invented some instrument with his kitchen bowls… but if Mozart, all the way in Vienna, made music for it, it was a serious thing!
@@sammarks9146 it's a beautiful "instrument" that gives off a lovely noise. He had to have heard it and immediately became inspired to write a song. And man was it a pretty song.
@@NobuxD he was deaf.
@@BigWheel. that would be Beethoven not Mozart
@@BigWheel. stupid
"Blood-spewing Armonica" would be an absolutely killer metal album
When he told that story I could practically hear the intro for "Raining Blood" played on the glass armonica.
I like Bloodbath Armonica, but absolutely
@@yoshimitsu5537 HOW CAN WE MAKE THIS HAPPEN!!!
Rob's new challenge XD
taking notes...
It's gonna be a bloody affair, but:
Pig blood and rubbing alcohol.
"Serenade in Water, Blood & Spirits"
16:16 such a cinematic shot seeing reaction in the mirror from Dennis
This is probably one of the most emotional instruments I've ever heard.
Yes I agree. I think this instrument is for a sensitive artist who feels emotions much deeper than an average artist.
@@hahnkf8111 it's ok Hank we still find you marginally amusing.
@@hahnkf8111 Uncalled for.
Delicate yes... Emotional? That's a human feeling, not the instrument friend.
@@SerenitynPeace I meant it in the way that it accentuates a lot of emotion. At least to me personally.
Very interesting. Part of the reason why glass armonica musicians died young was of course led poisoning but mostly from breathing it in. The axles used to be lubricated with led graphite which vaporized when it became warm. I learned this from Dean Shostak who is a glass armonica virtuoso in Williamsburg, Virginia. He also plays a glass flute and a glass violin. I've also seen one of these glass armonicas on display in J.S. Bach's house in Eisenach, Germany.
It's lead, not led. Not trying to be an asshole, just fyi
@@SixJayy 🤣😂 "not trying to be an asshole" buddy ive learned it doesnt matter really. The english language is a sham. Its ever changing. Who has time for that? We got their point.
@@stevie3372 lead is a metal, it's not led. Led is the past tense of the verb 'to lead'. I'm just trying to help man, calm down
@@SixJayy im calm im saying English doesn't matter. The language does not matter truly. Its not even the proper way the language was meant to be spoken and like. In the end? We understood what they meant
@@stevie3372 yeah okay whatever. I really don't understand why you want to have this argument, again, just trying to help. Please just leave it at that
”I put glass bowls in my piano then put Ramen in”. I’m intruiged
Mattias krantz moment
Seems like I know what your next video is gonna be about xD
Love your stuff :)
I am also I intrigued (and an engineer)
Do IT!!!
JUST DO IT !!!
Genshin's Fontaine Underwater ost bring me here. It's so unique to use instruments related to water to make it more immersive.
How inconvenient do you want your musical instrument to be?
This guys : Yes
how about collecting a list of improvements? i suggest a mister above it, so hands and bowls do not dry up as quick
My dog would lose her mind and jump up on it, she hates my guitar
It just needs a strap.
My first thought was to have it stand vertically with water continuously cascading down it, but I skipped through the assembly part of the video and assume there is something obvious in the assembly that makes that impossible.
How dead to you want your shitty meme joke to be?
This guy: yes
“You’re already 6 months into it” a high compliment from this guy lol this is beautiful. The instrument, the conversation everything
That guy is awesome! just the right kind of crazy that we all love lol
Rob really seems like some kind of super high functioning savant of instruments... So many different instruments that require years of dedication and study he just picks up in a session and always ends up playing something that makes it seem like he's played with the instrument for years.
Given the same opportunity I would go home having not gotten a single sound out of that instrument... just saying Rob is on some kind of other level...
@@plank5797 it probably gets easier the more unusual instruments you learn. Like you have more universal knowledge to apply
@@urbanumbra6170 or you have the open-mindedness to realise that each unusual instrument has very different quirks and there is no universal knowledge (other than basic musicality which anyone who can only play one very common instrument very well has)
Playing this instrument seems like the pure embodiment of anxiety
Anxiety the musical
I'm sure it's relaxing enough after you've gotten used to it. I'm sure the story with the glass breaking while playing thing is real, but probably really uncommon and played up a bit for effect and because it is so uncommon
@@blarghblargh speaking as someone who's severed their flexor tendon before, this is something I'd never try no matter how rare. Sure sounds nice though!
@@Hyperdisk 😂
Can end up making beauty or fucking up everything at once
Thank you very much to Mr. James for preserving and exhibiting this totally fascinating piece of (reproduced) history. Always warms your heart to see passionate people preserve things that could be easily lost
Fun Fact: Camille Saint-Saëns' composition "The Carnival of the Animals - Aquarium" requires a Glass Armonica. At one performance in the UK the stage manager misunderstood and ordered a "Harmonica Accompanist" instead... What followed was one of the strangest performances of the piece.
lol - I would *really* like to hear that
link?
As an harmonica player I love to listen to that
Was it recorded?
I remember loving that composition… but I can’t remember which part was my favorite 😆
This is hands down, THE coolest, random thing to have ever popped up on my recommendations. I'm so stunned, speechless. Beautiful. And this man is pure passion and I love that.
Same
It really has everything in a good random recommendation!
Hands down...I see what you did there😄
I'm with you on that. It made me realize that I have some questions.
Didnt have to call yourself beautiful you vein full pesky mite. 😑
🤠
i love that he talks about how fragile it is while he is sitting on it
The case is probably sturdy as heck, which is appropriate for how fragile the instrument inside is.
If you want to see a very recent (2023 recent) use of this instrument in a song, look up:
“Fontaine combat music” from Genshin Impact.
The game is pretty good, but the soundtrack is phenomenal.
Edit: The actual song name is: “Rondeau des fleurs et des rapieres”
🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨🧐🧐🧐🧐🧐🧐
Mr. Denis is so charismatic... It's lovely to see him excited about sharing his instrument with someone really interested. At 19:12 its looks like a proud dad on his son's graduation. Such a nice guy!
My husband is a music guy and he gets excited when someone "speaks his language".
This guy probably doesn't come across many that can pick up this instrument so quickly.
I just wrote the same, purely the most charismatic person I have seen in so long
Seems like one of those just all around awesome dudes
I am a scientific glassblower of 48 years and I have made various glass bowl instruments that relies on the "damp touch", that is called stridulation, always facinating to see and hear that piece of recreated history
You should record yourself playing and your instruments sir
How does one become a scientific glassblower?
@@thomasfolan5401 you take scientific glass on a date first
@@thomasfolan5401 as in scientific glassware producer, I reckon. Test tubes, flasks, etc...
@@thomasfolan5401 This is a question I get asked a lot. There are two ways to enter into the profession, one way is to be an apprentice in industry and the other is to be trained in a glassblowing workshop at a university. In Europe ther are several schools that train glassblowing, the main one is in Paris. There are some in the USA, Salem college is a good starting point.
May we all be so fortunate to find ANYTHING we can be passionate for as this man is for his antique wet glass bowl
instrument.
Best quote of the day. Love it.
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Why did this make me chuckle 🤣🤣🤣🤣
but the glass bowl is so cool!
I can say with certainty that this video shattered my expectations, the blood story really cracked me up, and I think it’s pretty clear to see that this is beautiful instrument
This man plays the most unique instrument I've ever seen. His laugh is so warm and inviting.
You should also check out the Earth Harp
Got me laughing like nothing!
I appreciate that you guys really take the time to even include the setup and not just a demonstration of the instrument. That gives such a broader context and story to the video. Bravo!
Totally agree, seeing the set up really added a lot to this video. What a well built machine!
The years of experience in that man’s hands… chills..
Thats what she said
@@aflooki that's what he said🤨😏
I don’t know which is more impressive. The fact that he can play this instrument or the fact that he built this instrument.
That sound back in the day would have been other worldly. It’s even kinda surreal now with all the synthesized music we have I can’t imagine the first time people heard it.
good point, music must have been much more magical to the people back then
There were accusation of witchcraft or stories that the instrument itself was evil!
Was almost like hearing Synths before real synths
I heard (don't know if it's true) the first time Franklin's wife heard it, she was awakened in the middle of the night and was scared out of her mind...she thought she had actually died.
I like the look of pride and humility in the guys eyes as he was thinking that someone he taught could readily surpass him. Great teacher.
Honestly seeing how happy this guy is, even away from the camera in the mirrior being smiling, and just enjoying watching someone else play is heart warming.
And I kinda have a feeling he doesn't see others play it that often just because of the uniqueness and specialist type instrument.
I've had the good fortune to be treated to a private glass armonica concert from Dennis in his home (he didn't invite me to play it and I didn't ask) and can confirm that he is generally this happy and amicable, at least when I've been around him. He's a really interesting guy with an interesting home full of all kinds of instruments.
@@TheSoCalledZoner1 the world might be a better place if we all said what we are really thinking ;)
just from watching this vid, dennis seems like such a lovely guy. its hilarious he got stopped in europe for trying to smuggle out an "antique" instrument heheh
This was the best thing I have seen in a long time. OMG I love it when people are this devoted to knowing their craft.
Wow. It blows my mind how many things like this that are out there that I have no idea about haha. Great video!!
Ayy it's him.
vladimeir putin doesnt want ou to know bout the russia magic
First I read: it bowls my mind
Yea I thought I had a pretty good idea by now but I never would of guessed this
I'm an atheist but I get why would a god create and observe us for eternity. Humans are interesting.
man no wonder people in the past thought this instrument caused depression and melancholy. those dissonant notes are crazy
Exactly what I was thinking listening to the cadences in the Mozart! very profound
Dissonant? Hmmm... nope.
for me the melancholy would come from how difficult the thing is to play. every note needs a different amount of pressure to activate 🤯
@@22vx dissonance is an integral part of classical cadences
Yes, that sounds ugly
I remember hearing about the Armonica when I was a child and there was that urban legend that hearing it would make you insane. I've always been fascinated by the strange, ethereal instrument and being able to hear it finally is amazing!
Have you become insane?
@@temporaryname4121 I think you did you got indoctrinated into anime
Written from an asylum
It’s so cool to see passionate people can make you excited about something you didn’t even know existed 30 min ago
Well.... maybe it CAN drive you insane. Maybe you are. How would YOU know?
That Mozart piece that he played was super articulate and honestly mesmerizing.. Rob playing weird instruments is a timeless genre we all adore..
A few years ago, I contacted the last company that makes these instruments. They are in the US and they developed a special glass to use in it. They sent me a great DVD that showed all about it and even had a slow motion segment of the glass flexing as it was played. Beautiful. Ben Franklin was a genius in so much. This was his gift to the arts.
Cool, that dvd must be on youtube somewhere
Care to share the company and or/ the glass manufacturer? Interested gaffer here 👋
aw hell nah you dont just comment something like that without uploading it to youtube
My interest is immesurable... and my day is sleepless. I need that silvery disc.
@@user-jy1cw5yz4n G Finkenbeiner Inc.
that man is an actual genius, the amount of disciplines you need to understand in order to operate that instrument is crazy and he knows it all like the back of his hand
Like the sterilized fingers on his hands.
You can really see Dennis light up when Rob starts to play. Must be a great feeling to teach someone to play such a unique instrument.
Yeah he does at first. After a while he seems slightly put out that someone could pick it up so fast, thereby making itlook easy
Rob is not just a guitarist. He's a true musician.
“oh he’s a natural”
- every obscure instrument specialist ever, about rob
16:49 He’s a good teacher for leaving him to his own after showing him the ropes. Look how invested and experimental he is when left to his own. No pressure but pure learning
God, Mozart was a genius, can you imagine the effort that mustve been needed to just to get this sort of intrument into a workable state? Incredible.
Even now, juice glasses, bowls, cake covers and only he knows what else in between. Simply amazing.
A glass blower must make the bowls one by one, blowing round globes and cutting them in half, with a bottle neck that fits a cork which goes on the shaft. Then each bowl must be tuned to the right note by grinding away the rim. But once the instrument is tuned and built it keeps its tune forever.
yeah he was but ben franklin was the inventor of this instrument and he was a genius as well.
Opium addict. Makes people do dumb shit and people will call it genius hundreds of years later.
@@mrdanforth3744 It keeps its tune forever. Until it breaks.
Ever since I was a child, I've enjoyed writing scenes and stories. Several times a day, every single day, I will see something or hear a sound or a phrase that immediately launches my mind into a fantasy land. An instant tale starts to weave itself in my head, sprung forth by whatever small, insignificant moment I've just experienced. The phrase, "Blood still works until it's dry," sent me spiraling. As fast as you can click the shutter button on your camera, a picture formed behind my eyes.
A dark, mysterious mansion, filled to bursting with strange and outdated artifacts long forgotten by time and modernity. The handsome, charismatic, and eccentric man who resides in this place sits behind an impressively ornate but unfamiliar object which, he explains to his lovely female guest, is a musical instrument. He calls for his servant before launching into a long winded explanation of the history behind this piece and the great men associated with its execution. As he speaks, his servant dutifully prepares it for play, tenderly swiping the rolling glass dishes with alcohol-soaked cotton and filling various dishes with what appears to be water. When this glass harmonica, as he called it, is fully primed, The man begins to play. Gently, he lays his fingers along the edges of the glass and a beautiful, almost ethereal sound fills the room. Soft, quiet tones barely above a whisper dance between her ears as she listens intently to this incredibly new, and yet somewhat familiar, sound.
The enjoyment and wonder she's experiencing is plain as the nose on her face, and the man cannot resist the sadistic urge to muddy those waters rising up within him. He continues his educational lecture on the instrument as he plays, explaining the many intricacies of producing specific notes, continuously highlighting how crucial delicate touch is to the process in an almost sensual manner. He wordlessly signals for his servant to approach who, for the first time since her arrival here, seems to briefly hesitate before complying to his masters command. A second, sterner glance from the man shakes the servant from his wariness. He swiftly approaches and offers his bare hand, palm facing down, to his master. The man takes the offering, dipping the servants hand into the small dish of water affixed to a corner of the surface, then guides that hand over the same glass rims that he, himself, just fingered. The servants stoic mask slips for the briefest of moments, almost imperceptibly, and in that split second he appears fearful. The woman's heart rate increases, and her face twitches with tiny micro spasms of anxiousness as she watches on. The air in the room suddenly becomes thick, and heavy, and the atmosphere shifts into something uncomfortable. The mans eyes twinkle with amusement as he continues his instruction on pitch and volume, explaining how firmer touch equals louder tones. The woman begins to absorb some of the nervous energy that the servant desperately tries to hide as she watches the man press the servants hand down with an increasing pressure. Louder, and louder, and louder still, her apprehension seems to crescendo along with the sound. A warning falls from the mans lips in an almost gleeful cadence as he insists that to much pressure will harm both the instrument _and_ the musician. He then applies an even firmer pressure to the servants fingers, and before the man can even finish his sentence, a new sound, that of glass cracking, echos off the walls. The jarring audio is instantly accompanied by the horrific sight of blood splashing through the air, spurting out a few feet from the instrument to splatter across the floor in a crimson pattern reminiscent of a Jackson Pollack painting. The blood cascades across the surface edges of the instruments rolling glass bowls, reinventing the scene into something from a horror film. The man unceremoniously discards his servants hand and dismisses him, presumably to care for his injury, and the woman holds her breath as she watches on with a newfound fear, taking note of the euphoric expression the man now wears. His hands are now stained red with the servants blood as he continues to finger the instrument. To her eyes, this man has never looked more joyful and content than he does in this moment with another man's blood, quite literally, on his hands. He ominously declares, with a crooked smirk, that blood still works. Until it's dry, that is. He jokes that one would need a constant source of warm, fresh blood if they truly wished to play an entire piece this way. As if demonstrating his statement, the glass harmonica begins to falter, squeaking out sounds that dwindle away into silence. To her great relief, it appears that, with this, the mans dangerous and unsettling performance has finally come to an end.
I love the unique instruments, but the people who play them are always just as interesting
Yes you are right
Why have I never heard of this instrument? Even Mozart composed for it. What a shame it has been keep a secret. Thank you for sharing this treasure.
due to it being extremely expense to make (for obvious reasons) it never really became widespread the same way other instruments did. the cost to make it can be compared to a grand piano, but the cost to upkeep it and make sure all the bowls and in good condition as well and the difficulty to play it well made it pretty short lived
@@EmberDrake475 Lead was only used in "expensive" glass. If there are reports of glass breaking as easily while playing this in the 1700s as there is today, then it's safe to assume that they weren't using lead glass to make this instrument.
Mandela Effect
It's not been kept secret. People just were ignorant.
It's so beautiful too!!! I love absolutely everything about this instrument and this man!!! Amazing Amazing Amazing!!!!!
Best thing to pop up in my feed EVER!!
❤❤❤
And I thought drummers were crazy for wanting to play the most pain in the ass instrument to setup and transport. This guy is like "hold my beer"
"hold my 50 delicate glass bowls"
@@ReinventingTheSteve lmaooo
Hold my water supply
Hold my distilled water lmao
What a beautiful ethereal sound it makes, and I have never heard of Ben Franklin being an accomplished musician before this video. This was nice to know in addition to this strange instrument. How unique.
You can see that this guy really enjoyed this especially because rob is actually really interested in the conversation and appreciates the instrument and how it’s made and played.
This glass guy is genuinely interesting. Has a passion that makes me pay attention.
He is a young spirit. Ever joyful. Laughing and the jokes are good. Enjoyed this so much.
I’m not even a musician but I was smiling just watching the pure joy you were getting in learning the instrument and sharing the experience with a friend. Truly a one of a kind experience with great people.
This is absolutely fantastic! I'd accidentally heard about this instrument on another channel & put this on out of curiosity.
Was I ever in for a super-treat! I can't imagine the sacrifices performers made to play this. Just the idea of someone building something so incredible, doing all the required self-torture (almost) in order to play it, even dying because of the previously
unknown side effects, what a fascinating world to learn about! I love these two gentlemen, so totally super-enthusiastic, feeding off each other's delight. This has been quite an experience! You really must be ultra dedicated to take on the various challenges to actually become a master of this instrument. Thank you so much for this delightful presentation!
I lived in NY for 34 yrs. If I'd known this instrument was only about an hour from my house, TRUST ME, I would've seen this thing in person somehow some way. It's incredible and the sound is immaculate. I feel like I've heard this in a piece of music before somewhere, or a replication of it at the very least. I'm AMAZED at how quickly you picked this up Rob. I'm in awe.
Yeah, not surprising at all that he lives within throwing distance of Corning.
@@Xelseragoth right? talk about being in the right place lol.
The Mozart he plays was a HUGE emotional trigger for me: it was the background music of a reading by Tammy Grimes of a lesser-known Maurice Sendak story that I loved as a kid ( th-cam.com/video/LDuKQKnaG2A/w-d-xo.html ). Ever since, I've associated the sound of the armonica with the feeling of wistful melancholy (anemoia? saudade?) that this reading evoked for me.
I believe it is in one of the Harry Potter songs
Breh
Makes me imagine an alternate universe or perhaps centuries from now a world where all the instruments we know and use today are replaced by others like this one, it is quite fascinating.
The people in that universe are watching a video about pianos rn and thinking the same thing
Ahh kinda like that final fantasy theme aye
People in that universe are eating on pianos and playing in bowls
@WinterFrostarian digital can't perfect it but it can improve it. digital > than physical instruments.
this just isn’t practical so no
Holy crap this is the most fascinating instrument I’ve ever seen, and he’s such a master musician at playing it. That mozart piece feels like listening to lost art! Incredible!
it sounds like a glass desert
@@-loarado
With two s'es
Dessert.
@@jgar611 no I literally mean desert
That is, without a shadow of a doubt, *the* most beautiful thing I've ever heard.
I adore this fella. He's a joy. Brought me out of a bad mood.
I can't stand him
Good way to put it! He’s definitely passionate about his craft and it shows in his excitement. Very cool.
@@robertferguson5562 has he like killed your whole family or something lol
he did the same to me! his passion is infectious!
Same!!
The way Rob can quickly and naturally assess how these crazy acoustic instruments work and how to get good sound from them is just so inspiring and amazing.
I think the part that doesn't mean mentioned that's very important is that this is not simply glass, this is high grade crystal with an amazingly high lead content. It's the equivalent of playing a Waterford glass Symphony
could modern tough glasses by corning be used? perhaps with small changes to the blends?
@@CouchPotator Would not be Corning glass then.
They literally mentioned it like 21 minutes into the video.
Crystal?
*Cue breaking bad intro*
We need a recital with this glass armonica and a Theremin! What a natural talent to be able to functionally play this so quickly. And the death stories at the end - wow!
OMG this guy is such a great teacher! He's giving Rob some basic direction and idea for what he would be feeling for, and then just letting him fine it on his own! I love this guy and seeing how excited he is to talk about his weird instrument. And he's so clearly excited to have someone like Rob who is just as intrigued by it and excited to play.
Also, side note: this guy totally looks like Terry Jones.
The intrigue Rob has, combined with what is a genuine innate talent for music, I'm not surprised he did as well as he did when playing the Glass Armonica. Of the instruments I've seen him play on the channel, this one is without-a-doubt one of the more (if not most) technical just for even getting it to make a sound. The Church Organ was just insane to watch.
I was thinking that he looks like Alfred Molina
He also gives wonderful encouragement as well.
Please, I know I speak for many of us, have this man BACK. I want to see his whole collection documented by you guys if you all had the inclination and patience. Absolutely hours even unedited. Wonderful content. I’m only sorry I hadn’t found you before this video but you absolutely have a new sub.
I’m always impressed on how quickly Rob learns to play a wide range of instruments. He’s very musical and a pleasure to watch. I love how he’s introducing a variety of unheard instruments to us.
It's just a piano
@@Bzorlan i wouldn't say so, sure the keys is maybe roughly in the same place, but the way to play it and the sound it produce depending on how you play it can create something that piano couldn't
im not joking this is one of the most beautiful sounding things ive ever heard oh my god