The Wintergartan Marble Machine, via Samuel Westergren
This wonderful marble-filled music box is like nothing we’ve ever seen before. It’s best you take a look.
Every now and then you think that what’s possible in music has already been achieved. Then something like this Wintergartan Marble Machine comes along and, with the help of 2,000 marbles, blows your mind.
Built by Swedish musician Martin Molin, the construction of the elaborate machine has been blogged throughout, with countless teething issues finally being overcome earlier this week.
With more than five million views already on YouTube, it’s clearly a hit, and well worth all the effort.
Not long ago, Molin wrote of his anguish at the final obstacles to be overcome ahead of the video debut, saying “we need to start making music now and spend less time picking up marbles from the floor soon soon soon”.
“The closer the machine gets to be finished the harder it gets to finish it. It is strange how that happens, when the finish line is in sight, everything slows down automatically except the avalanche of new unforeseen problems.”
However, obstacles were overcome and now the finished handmade music box powers stringed bass, percussion, a vibraphone and more, with a hand crank doing all the hard work now that the engineering is complete.
It’s pretty incredible. Enjoy.
