Watch a Musician Create Lush Melodies on 33 Wine Glasses Filled With Water

Petr Spatina Playing Glass Harp

Photo: Screenshot from YouTube

Musician Petr Spatina makes melodies with drinking glasses. What might be seen as an elaborate party trick is actually a musical discipline. The practice comprises upright wine glasses filled with water at varying levels. These “instruments” are altogether referred to as a glass harp. To make a sound, Spatina runs his fingers around the rim of the glasses in different combinations and the vibrations create a variety of notes. The result is a delicate and lush sound reminiscent of the string harp.

Spatina is from the Czech Republic and has been playing music for most of his life. When he was younger, he learned the accordion and the piano before eventually mastering the glass harp. This ultimately became his instrument of choice, and Spatina has been writing and playing his own music for it for two decades.

The dedicated musician takes his glass harp to the streets, where he wows passersby with the combination of beautiful music and the unusual sight of 33 drinking vessels on a table on the sidewalk. Spatina always draws a crowd, and he’s gained worldwide attention thanks to spectators watching him work his magic and sharing it online.

Watch the videos below to enjoy some of Spatina’s glass harp music.

Musician Petr Spatina makes melodies with a series of drinking glasses, which is an instrument known as a glass harp.

He uses upright wine glasses filled with water at varying levels.

To make a sound, Spatina runs his fingers around the rim of the glasses in different combinations and the vibrations create a variety of notes.

Spatina plays his music on the streets of Prague for all to enjoy.

h/t: [Reddit]

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Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes is a Staff Editor at My Modern Met, Manager of My Modern Met Store, and co-host of the My Modern Met Top Artist Podcast. As an illustrator and writer living in Seattle, she chronicles illustration, embroidery, and beyond through her blog Brown Paper Bag and Instagram @brwnpaperbag. She wrote a book about embroidery artist Sarah K. Benning titled "Embroidered Life" that was published by Chronicle Books in 2019. Sara is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art. She earned her BFA in Illustration in 2008 and MFA in Illustration Practice in 2013.
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