#10: Tsabouna

These bagpipes were first created in Greece over 2,000 years ago, and are still played today. They are made from an inflated goat skin.

#11: Washtub Bass

This instrument from the early 1900’s is typically used for folk or country music. It’s made from a string, a stick, and a metal washtub, and is also called a gutbucket.

#12: Waterphone

You made have heard this instrument being used for the soundtrack of a horror movie, as its water-filled base allow it to create some eerie chords.

Thanks for checking out this list of what are, in my opinion, the twelve weirdest musical instruments ever. Do you know of an instrument that you think should be on this list? Leave a comment below!

(Note: I do not own any of these videos.)

#7: Katzenklavier

Though thankfully not around today, this odd instrument could be called a “cat piano” – a line of cats sat with their tails underneath keys, and pressing the keys would make the cats meow.

#8: Laser Harp

This electronic instrument emits several vertical lasers, and is played by touching them. Needless to say, each laser produces a different tone.

#9: Theremin

Often regarded as one of the hardest instruments to play, the theremin is operated using an electrical field, producing a sound eerily similar to the human voice.

Part 4 coming tomorrow!

(Note: I do not own any of these videos.)

#4: Contrabass Serpent

One of the rarest instruments in the world, the serpent is an early relative of the tuba, yet its major difference is that it usually made out of wood.

#5: Hurdy-Gurdy

This instrument is similar to a fiddle, but rather than using a bow, the strings are placed on a wheel and hand-cranked, giving it a sandy Middle-eastern vibe.

#6: Jal Tarang

Originating in India, this instrument is so easy to make you could do it at home. It’s made of porcelain bowls filled with water, and played with bamboo sticks.

Part 3 coming tomorrow!

(Note: I do not own any of these videos.)

I wonder what it would sound like if you put all of these in a twelve-piece orchestra?

#1: Aeolian Wind Harp

This harp is named after Aeolus, the Greek god of wind. It is not played by a human, but in fact is played by the wind vibrating its strings.

#2: Armonica

Benjamin Franklin created an early version of this instrument, which uses glass bowls filled with water to create a haunting sound.

#3: Cajón

Originating in Peru, this drum-like instrument was originally just a box with a sounding hole, but nowadays has an updated electric version.

Part 2 coming tomorrow!

(Note: I do not own any of these videos.)

Check out this cool game called Antichamber. It’s a puzzle game that utilizes the ability to have inconsistent topology in the game to create a huge, maze-like environment. It’s like the puzzle aspect of Portal meets the exploration aspect of The Stanley Parable. Check out the trailer for the game for a more thorough explanation!

For the next round of fact-a-day, we’ll be covering the Civil War!

1: The oldest soldier in the Civil War was 80 years old, and the youngest was 9.

2: The odds of a soldier surviving the war was about 1 in 4.

3: Ulysses S. Grant, William McKinley, and Rutherford B. Hayes all fought in the war.

4: The average soldier was 23 years old, weighed 143 pounds, and was 5 feet 8 inches tall.

5: Almost all soldiers marched 15-20 miles a day.

6: The first state to secede from the Union was South Carolina. It seceded on December 20th, 1860

7: The Battle of Gettysburg was the largest battle ever fought in North America.

8: There were approximately 60,ooo partial or complete amputations during the war.

9: The national divorce rate went up 150% percent in the 20 years after the war.

10: The body of a Union soldier was found in Antietam, Maryland in 2008.

1: Hedy Lamarr was both a 4os movie actress and an inventor who came up with an idea for a radio-controlled torpedo device to help in World War II.

2: Frances Perkins was the first female member of a President’s Cabinet (she was Secretary of Labor for FDR).

3: Women outnumber men in the United States.

4: In 2013, for every dollar men earned in the US, women in the US only earned 78 cents.

5: Everybody remembers Paul Revere’s midnight ride to warn of British soldiers, but Sybil Luddington’s ride was twice the distance of Paul’s ride, and warned the troops of an attack on the city of Danbury, Connecticut.

6: Josephine Baker worked in France during World War II as a singer, dancer, actress, and spy. She helped get messages to the French military, using tricks like hiding the messages inside her dress, or writing them in invisible ink on her sheet music.

7: In 1756, Lydia Chapin Taft became the first woman to legally vote with the consent of the electorate.