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How to Play Glass Jars

Using glass jars to create music can be a fun and innovative way to reuse old glass. Many people discover, often inadvertently, that by blowing across the top of a glass jar, a noise is produced. The amount of liquid in the jar can alter the pitch of the noise, allowing the user of multiple glass jars with different amounts of liquid to produce music. This will work with any glass jar or bottle, so experimenting with different sizes and shapes can produce different sounds.

Things You'll Need

  • Glass jars or bottles
  • Water
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Instructions

    • 1

      Gather several glass jars or bottles. As long as the jar or bottle being used is made of glass, the size or shape of the jar does not matter, though different sizes and shapes will produce different pitches. Anything from empty wine bottles to jars of preserves and soda bottles will work and allow you to create music.

    • 2

      Fill the glass jars with liquid. Water is the easiest liquid to use to fill the glass jars or bottles with. Put different amounts of water in each jar, as the varying amounts of liquid will create different pitches to be used.

    • 3

      Line the glass jars in order from least amount of water to most amount of water in each jar. This will help you notice the different changes in pitch according to the amount of water in each jar.

    • 4

      Blow across the top of each glass jar or bottle to determine the pitch created. By blowing across the top of the jar, you make the air within the jar vibrate. This creates a pitch. You may notice that the bottles with the most liquid in them make the highest pitch, while bottles with the least liquid in them will make very low pitches.

    • 5

      Experiment with the amount of water in each jar. By adding or subtracting water in the jars, you are able to change the pitch and create exactly the tone you are looking for. Many commonly known songs can be played with glass jars, such as "Mary Had a Little Lamb" and "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star." You can surprise your friends and family with your ability to recycle glass jars into musical instruments.

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