Comprising of 3,000 wood pieces, 2,000 marbles, and the patience of a 16th Century Zen Master, the Wintergartan Marble Machine by Swedish musician Martin Molin is certainly unlike any other instrument you’ve seen before.
Although the machine looks like a highly-complicated loom that could knit you the most satisfying sweater ever, it is instead a calculated marble run that powers enough instruments to create a one-man band: a kick drum, a vibraphone, and a bass guitar.
Aside from the skill it takes to build such a machine; the skill it takes to play it is certainly more impressive than your average college hipster’s synthesizer skills:
Molin, who spent over 14 months building the storybook-worthy contraption, thankfully documented the build process in all of its pure and honest glory over a series of YouTube videos. In fact, he was so dedicated to documenting the process that he established an entire YouTube channel for the resulting videos.
Says Molin in an interview with Wired UK:
“The crank turns a series of gears that send a stream of marbles up a conveyor belt and through a series of chutes to the various instruments. It is strange how that happens when the finish line is in sight, everything slows down automatically except the avalanche of new unforeseen problems. We need to start making music now and spend less time picking up marbles from the floor soon soon soon. But it is happening. When it is finished, music will follow.”
Molin will be taking the Wintergartan marble machine – along with his band of the same name – on tour this summer, so keep your eyes (and ears) peeled.
