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Percussion instrument, any musical instrument belonging to either of two groups, idiophones or membranophones.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uT3SBzmDxGk&feature=player_embedded As Fr. Z says, "[t]his just goes to show that an instrument, a tool, is neutral. We choose to use them in certain ways."

SNIPPET: "A Reston man who federal officials said sold $250,000 worth of machinery parts from American manufacturers to Iranian companies pleaded guilty to felony charges in U.S. Federal Court in Alexandria on Thursday. Vahid Hosseini, 62, ran a business called Sabern Industries from his home in Reston, FBI officials said."

It looks and plays like a piano, but it sounds like a string quartet — and it took 500 years before anyone built it. Leonardo da Vinci’s flight of fancy in designing a hammerless piano, called a “viola organista,” has come to life half a millenium after da Vinci designed it, thanks to a Polish concert pianist and musical engineer. It couldn’t have sounded any better in da Vinci’s head (via Brad Thor and Dan Gainor): A bizarre instrument combining a piano and cello has finally been played to an audience more than 500 years after it was dreamt up...

In a fresh New Republic story, reporter Rebecca Dana profiles Phil Griffin, the boss of a surging MSNBC. It’s a sympathetic look at the network exec, complete with a detailed rundown of how he and others happened upon the programming identity that has captivated liberal Americans across the land. One aspect of the piece that Griffin himself must adore is its disavowal of equivalence between MSNBC and cable top dog Fox News. Here’s how Dana makes the case that these outlets are distinct: Still, MSNBC isn’t an instrument of the Democratic Party in the way that Fox is of

BINH THUAN, Nov 19 (Bernama) -- A set of stone musical instrument dating from 3,000 years ago was unearthed by a farmer in Da Kai commune, Duc Linh district, when he dug holes for planting coffee trees, according to Vietnam news agency on Friday. The music instrument comprises of five slabs of black blue stone, which when arranged from small to big form a trapezoid. This is a typical character of ancient lithophone, different from new lithophones or sounding stone slabs. The instrument has been handed over to the Binh Thuan museum. Earlier, the Binh Thuan museum in coordination with...

Looking to gain some quick knowledge on high school band instruments, guitars I know, brass ones I dont!

Adventure stories involving the exploration of the interior of Planet Earth have a long and distinguished history in science fiction. Jules Verne’s Journey to the Center of the Earth (1864) was perhaps the first such tale. Despite the title, the story involves explorers following the instructions of a 17th century runic message on a trip that descends into the crater of an Icelandic volcano and into a long tunnel connecting to a vast cave containing a conveniently phosphorescent ceiling, an ocean, islands, dinosaurs, and mastodons, all in the interior of the Earth some miles beneath the surface. Following Verne’s...

© 2004 WorldNetDaily.com A school district's long-standing policy banning Christmas songs with religious references is under scrutiny after officials clarified that it includes the prohibition of the performance of instrumental numbers without lyrics. Instead of tunes about Jesus, and even Santa Claus, the 40-member Columbia High School brass ensemble will be limited for the first time to seasonal selections such as "Winter Wonderland" and "Frosty the Snowman," the Newark Star-Ledger reported. Some parents of students in the South Orange/Maplewood School District in New Jersey are perplexed, including Eric Chabrow, whose son plays saxophone in the ensemble. "There needs to be...

Contact: Mary Tobin mtobin@ldeo.columbia.edu 845-365-8607 The Earth Institute at Columbia University Climate linked to the quality of musical instrument making Little ice age and maunder minimum enabled stradivari violins Image credit: Mark Inglis There has been considerable debate surrounding the reasons why instruments crafted in the late 17th and early 18th centuries are tonally superior to modern instruments. Theories range from the skill of the craftsman to secret techniques such as a special varnish, the drying of the wood, the storage time, or even the use of old wood from historic structures. Lloyd Burckle of the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia...

Living Dolls: A Magical History Of The Quest For Mechanical Life by Gaby WoodThe 18th-century mechanician, Jacques de Vaucanson, made 'robots' that were capable of playing musical instruments as melodiously as human beings - but it was his incontinent duck that has fascinated down the ages Gaby Wood Saturday February 16, 2002The GuardianThe 18th century was the golden age of the philosophical toy, and its reigning genius was Jacques de Vaucanson. His magnificent creations were admired by audiences all over Europe; they were praised by kings and applauded by scientists. Voltaire labelled him a "new Prometheus". Like the Greek Titan,...