Artist Turns A Simple Plastic Drinking Straw Into A Musical Instrument

Clarinetist, pianist, theoretical physicist and author, Peter Bastian was a true Renaissance man. This multitalented man was born in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1943 and was a member of the Danish Wind Quartet, the Danish band Bazar and was knighted in the Order of the Dannebrog.

In this video, Peter Bastian applies his technical knowledge as trained classical bassoonist on a simple McDonalds straw. He was actually able to manufacture an instrument out of a plastic drinking straw that produces a sound like saxophone or clarinet. What we heard completely blew us away with how beautiful it sounded. The deep yet playful tones belong to Bulgarian folk song.

At the beginning of the video, you can see that the end of the straw is flattened and perforated on both sides. This way it can work like the mouthpiece of a clarinet. The end of the straw is vibrating from pushing air through it, creating the sound. He originally made the straw (cut holes in it) for a children's television program back in the 80'es and has kept it in a wooden box ever since. In the forwards of his 1987 book “Into the Music: A Book about Music and Consciousness", Bastian explains his deep relationship with music:

"I would tell about music and experience, God and the devil, how the triangle must fit in a samba so it swings, the meaning of life, Bohr and Einstein, gypsy wedding in Bulgaria, the new world, Mozart, Jesus and Buddha, music elements, eternity and my own mystical experiences on stage and in the high mountains of Lapland."