advise me on building glass xylophone/marimba

MMMers,

I have just replaced old (probably 1930s) windows on my house, and
have a surplus of glass from the old ones which I'd hate to just
throw out entirely. I can't think of a better use than building a
20-to-40 bar glass xylophone or marimba, probably from pieces sized
an inch or two to possibly a foot in length. I probably will tune
them to a 19 or 22 equal or near-equal temperament scale.

I'd appreciate suggestions on:
--safely cutting the bars
--safely cutting holes into the bars (I'm currently thinking I'll
put the bars on rope ladders)
--sanding down any sharp edges
--cutting to create a good tone
--mounting the bars to ring properly (I'm currently thinking of a
horizontal surface for 'em, but am open to suggestions)
--making resonators for the bars
--anything else I've missed

FYI: So far, I've not found a book or online resource which
specifically covers building a GLASS xylophone or marimba.

I may be able to hand my surplus materials to any of you once I'm
done with this project (if you can pick 'em up in Boston, MA).

Soundly yours,
Harold Fortuin
www.geocities.com/harold_fortuin

on 7/10/03 18:24, harold_fortuin at harold@... wrote:

MMMers,

I have just replaced old (probably 1930s) windows on my house, and
have a surplus of glass from the old ones which I'd hate to just
throw out entirely. I can't think of a better use than building a
20-to-40 bar glass xylophone or marimba, probably from pieces sized
an inch or two to possibly a foot in length. I probably will tune
them to a 19 or 22 equal or near-equal temperament scale.

I'd appreciate suggestions on:
--safely cutting the bars
--safely cutting holes into the bars (I'm currently thinking I'll
put the bars on rope ladders)
--sanding down any sharp edges
--cutting to create a good tone
--mounting the bars to ring properly (I'm currently thinking of a
horizontal surface for 'em, but am open to suggestions)
--making resonators for the bars
--anything else I've missed

FYI: So far, I've not found a book or online resource which
specifically covers building a GLASS xylophone or marimba.

I may be able to hand my surplus materials to any of you once I'm
done with this project (if you can pick 'em up in Boston, MA).

Soundly yours,
Harold Fortuin
www.geocities.com/harold_fortuin

Try "Sound Designs" by R.Banek and J. Scoville. There's a section on
building a glass marimba with details on cutting and mounting.

Sincerely
a.m.

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