Waterphone

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A waterphone is a unique type of atonal acoustic musical instrument constructed largely of a stainless steel resonator "bowl" with a cylindrical "neck", containing a small amount of water, and with brass rods around the rim of the bowl. The waterphone produces a vibrant ethereal type of music sometimes classified as "ambient music."

Several sizes and design variants of the instrument are available. It is generally played in a seated position by a soloist and played by bowing or drumming and movement so as to affect the water inside, and thus the resonant characteristics of the bowl and rods. The waterphone is recognized as a true musical instrument and appears in movie sound tracks, record albums, and is used in live performance. As in the "ambient music" genre, there is no established formal notation for scribing compositions.

The waterphone is a modern invention inspired by the "Tibetan Water Drum, a round, slightly flattened, bronze, drum with an aperture in the center top," according to the inventor of the waterphone, Richard A. Waters.

Contemporary classical composers who have written parts for waterphone in compositions include Sofia Gubaidulina, Tan Dun, Christopher Rouse, Carson Cooman, Andi Spicer and Todd Barton. It has also been used prominently by rock musician/producer Richard Barone.

The waterphone has been featured in many movies, including The Matrix, Poltergeist, Startrek, and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon as well as in Tan Dun's opera The First Emperor (2006). A sound sample can be found at the Freesound Project.