A styrophone is an acoustic device made from
expanded polystyrene foam (often referred to by the
genericized trademark
A generic trademark, also known as a genericized trademark or proprietary eponym, is a trademark or brand name that, because of its popularity or significance, has become the generic term for, or synonymous with, a general class of products or ...
''Styrofoam''). There are at least two varieties:
* an acoustic
musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make Music, musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be considered a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. A person ...
* a type of
loudspeaker
A loudspeaker (commonly referred to as a speaker or, more fully, a speaker system) is a combination of one or more speaker drivers, an enclosure, and electrical connections (possibly including a crossover network). The speaker driver is an ...
Musical instrument
The musical Styrophone is a type of friction
idiophone
An idiophone is any musical instrument that creates sound primarily by the vibration of the instrument itself, without the use of air flow (as with aerophones), strings (chordophones), membranes (membranophones) or electricity ( electrophone ...
created by
Robert Rutman
Robert Rutman (15 May 1931 – 1 June 2021) was a German visual artist, musician, composer, and instrument builder. Best known for his work with homemade idiophones in his Steel Cello Ensemble, Rutman is regarded as a pioneer of multimedia perf ...
in the 1990s as a parody of his well-known
sheetmetal instrument, the Bow Chimes. It consists of a foam box from which protrude a series of thin
brass
Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, in proportions which can be varied to achieve different colours and mechanical, electrical, acoustic and chemical properties, but copper typically has the larger proportion, generally copper and zinc. I ...
rods played with a
violin bow. Rutman's ensemble would build the impromptu instruments prior to a performance, and then destroy them through the process of their use.
Other versions have been created with
wood
Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...
en sticks used in place of metal.
Styrophone loudspeaker
An inexpensive alternative to heavy-duty amplification systems, the Styrophone loudspeaker is usually of a cheap homemade variety that consists of a crystal earpiece attached to a cone made from a foam cup or sections of packing material.
"Styrophone Crystal Loud Speaker" from Peebles Originals
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References
{{Reflist
Idiophones