Bandophones are amplified instruments created with rubber bands. The simplicity of of materials is appealing; who as a child has not created a guitar from a tissue box and some rubber bands? But the materials can also elicit some surprising sounds when played in unorthodox ways.
When played with a smooth shaft of a motor and lubricated with some water, they sing and croak and wail. It is certainly possible to get notes from the instrument and tune it, but the nature of the elastic is that it falls out of tune quickly and tends to have a mind of its own. This is one of the reasons I like this construction, it is hard to control.
I have been making bandophones since about 1999.
Bandophone Images
