If you’re looking for something that will keep the kids busy and let them be creative, Upsound Instruments might be just the thing. Each 45-minute session allows children to explore the limits of their imagination and create their very own musical instrument, which they can then take home.

We were welcomed into the open-air tent and asked, ‘What would you like to make?’ Various wacky homemade instruments were on display, either hanging from the roof or on tables able to be tested: a violin made from a clog; panpipes made from garden hose; a guitar made from a cardboard box; and plenty more. We had the option to make a wind instrument, a guitar, or a percussion instrument. Initially my daughter was unsure, but Jacob and the other instrument maker kindly helped to break the ice, guiding her through the making of a simple wind instrument. She then felt confident enough to leap into making a box guitar.

While the instructors are there to help facilitate the making (and manage power tools as required), parents are encouraged to participate with their children and help them as needed.

We participated in preview week, and while the workshops are in full swing, a few elements are not yet set up. From next weekend (or maybe sooner), I’m told there will be more instructions on the wall to help with the making of some of the instruments. 

While there are examples that you can copy, in the end the only limit is your imagination! While we were there, another young child used a broom to make another form of guitar, and with Jacob’s help, soon learned some basics of acoustics, such as the need for a resonating chamber to amplify the sound of the string (will it be the metal lid of a pot, an empty box, or something else? Experimentation is encouraged). Young musicians will especially find this workshop interesting, as they explore what an instrument needs to make its sounds.

Upsound Instruments is the perfect way to fill some time between shows, or to give children something creative and fun to do, and it might even inspire them to start learning an instrument!