Turbinophone
An interactive musical jet engine.
About
The Turbinophone is an interactive art installation that allows you to play music with a jet engine. It is built from the compressor section of a J79 turbojet engine. Prior to singing its musical tones, this engine used to scream across the sky in an F-4 Phantom, propelling the aircraft to speeds over 1400 miles/hour (Mach 2+) using 17,000 pounds of thrust.
The Turbinophone was first exhibited at Burning Man 2013: Cargo Cult. It was located deep in the desert, where curious participants discovered how to play this instrument.
The Turbinophone is played by participants dropping steel ball bearings on the blades. As the balls bounce down through the engine, they strike the blades, which ring like tuning forks. As the ball bearings fall down through the engine, the blades get shorter and shorter, and the pitch of each blade increases.
About the Artist
Kunal Dovedy is an interactive artist from San Francisco, CA. He enjoys creating art that provides an environment of creativity and connections between people. He loves music, aircraft, and most importantly, making!
The Turbinophone is Kunal’s first large scale public interactive art installation.
Contributors
This page serves as a BIG THANK YOU to everyone who has contributed in some way, big or small, to the creation of the Turbinophone.
Special Thanks to:
AgentJayZ for providing the J79 compressor section!
Oakland Aviation Museum for giving the Turbinophone a great home to delight people!
Techshop San Francisco for helping me learn and build everything here.
Thank You Kickstarter Contributors!
8-Bit Lit
Aaromal Syam
Aaron
Aaron
Adam Prange (aka Monday)
Alejandro Velez
Alex Campbell
Alexander McEachern
Alexis Davis
Amanda Ball
Armando Cortes
art
Arya Shirazi
Ateet Piplani
Audrey Weller
Barbara Harrison
Becky Taylor
Ben Engelsberg
Ben Lee
beth clarke
Bill Watson
Brian Joseph
Cameron Colby Thomson
Camille
Carl-Johan Callin CJ
Carla Malek
Carlos Valdesuso
carrie mae
Chais Meyer
Charles Brandick
christine
Christopher
Cleo Wolfus
Cole
Cosmo Goodnick
Damien
Darci Wehrli Fersch
Dawn!
Demelza Benton
Donna Lee
Dorian Fougeres
Douglas A. Suriano
Duleesha Kulasooriya
Ekaterina
elena
Emililly Russell
Emma Webster
eric smiley
Erik Sundelin
Eva "TruDat"
Evan Tenenbaum
Gabrielle Benson
Glenn Morgan
Global Lives Project
Greg Lee
Handybear
Hannah Rosales
Henry Reily-Collins
hollis
Humberto Padilla
Ian Morrow
Idaho CORE 2013
Ivayla Dermendjieva
J Claire Dean
Jaakko Nygren
Jack Allen
jackie Saskatchewan RC
Jairam
James
James Kibbe
Janet Infinity
Janneke Dommisse
janson boyd
Jared Milligan
Jason Burwen
Jason Thomas Borneman
Jeff Waldeck
Jennifer Farren
jennifer houston
Jennifer Kingsley
Jesse Brister
Jesse Sleamaker
Joe Ungerer
John Parts Taylor
Jon Duffy
Jonathan Weisblatt
Josiah Blomquist
Juan José
Julian Albinski-Euler
Julian Cash
Katy Luo
KentKB
Kevin Ells
Kevin Snowden
Lawrence Smith
Lee Scheele
Levi Weintraub
Lex Sisney
Lexi Lobdell
Lindsay Robinson
Luke Sheridan
Madhuri
Maggiemayday Clayton
Manoj Khatore
Massimiliano Manera
Mathilde Berchon
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Matty Morin
Max David Littman
maya korling
Mayank Lahiri
Megan Cleland
Michael Figge
Michael Gondi
Michael Kuntz
Michael Schlindwein
Michael Weinreich
Mike Brown
mike mansbach
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Missy Mack
Monica Dovedy
Nelle Chilton
Nick Battaglia
Nick Dikas
Nifer Kilakila, Goal Vaulting
Noel Radcliffe
Pace Willisson
Paul-Dominic Lopez
peter eames
PocketPunk
ProtoTank
Rachel Clarke
Rachel Ungerer
Ralitsa Ivanova
Rashi
Reed
Richard azera
Richard S Cohen
Rizwan Kassim
robert l wolf
roy two thousand
Sam Neff
Samuel Baumel
Sandy Brelsford
Sara Chieco
Sara Harmon
Sean
Shoham Adizes
Shreyas Sadalgi
Sonia Dovedy
Spencer Burke
Stephanie Lopez
Stephen J. Payne
Steven Grimm
sunil dovedy
susieclue
Ted Timmons
Terry Rossi
The Buddz
The Life Cube
The Longbow Group - Marco Sterk
Thomas Hurlburt
thomas m tordel jr
Tim Neunzig
Topaz Adizes
Travis O'Guin
Victoria Edison
Vinay Satish Kumar
VooDoo
Wee Heavy
Wendy Fox
XioNoX
Zack Sheppard