Making your own string instruments can save you a lot of money and can make for a fun rainy day activity. While no one is saying that a homemade craft project is just as good as a professionally made instrument, you really can create playable instruments at home with a few simple materials. Making these instruments at home is a fun way to introduce music to a child in a fun and safe environment. It is also economical, in that we all cannot afford to purchase instruments just for the sake of teaching our children what music is all about. Making music as a family is also a great way to strengthen the bonds between parents and children. Naturally, we can all see the benefits of strong family ties and can benefit from activities that allow us to spend time together as family members doing something that is productive, educational and fun.
String instruments are all very similar in that the strings on the instrument are what make the noise needed to create music. While sting instruments vary greatly in shape and size, with the right materials you can make a craft of virtually any string instrument out there. To make a string instrument you will need a box that resembles the string instrument that you would like to make. For example, if you want to make a guitar you would need a longer box than if you were trying to make a violin. Once you have the box that you would like to use, you need to cut a hole in the box. This whole should be on the top of the box and should not extend past the edges of the box. Using a tissue box is an excellent idea as the appropriate hole has already been made in the box. Now make another hole in the side of the box where the handle of the instrument will be. The handle for your string instrument can be a paper towel tube or a short broom handle, for example. Once you have the handle of your instrument secured to the body of the instrument you can begin putting the “strings” onto your craft. Start at the middle of the box and stretch the rubber bands around the box so that they cross over the opening in the box. You only need 5-7 rubber bands to make the strings on your instrument. After you have all of the strings on your instrument you can decorate your musical instrument in any way that you wish, just make sure that you do not put anything on top of the rubber bands as the rubber bands will be what gives the instruments its sound. After you have decorated your instrument and colored it the way that you like, you can play it. To play simply pluck at the strings of the rubber bands that are suspended over the whole in the front of the instrument.
You can mimic the look of a real guitar or other string instrument when you make this craft and learn the basics of the instrument. For example, by putting the appropriate number of rubber bands around the music craft, you can use the craft to illustrate where certain musical notes are on the real instrument. This craft is great for kids who think that they may be interested in getting and learning how to play a string instrument. By helping them to make their own, they can learn where certain strings are, what those strings do and why the strings of string instruments are so important to the sound.
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