Boomwhackers

A Boomwhacker is a lightweight, hollow, color-coded, plastic tube, tuned to a musical pitch by length. Boomwhackers are used as musical instruments in the percussion family. They were first produced by Craig Ramsell in 1995. His company, Whacky Music, has now sold more than four million units.

Sound production

Boomwhackers produce musical tones when struck together, on the floor, or against nearly any surface. They can also be grouped together and struck with mallets in different configurations, in specialized holders (homemade or available from the manufacturer), similar to a horizontally-aligned xylophone. When one end of a Boomwhackers tube is covered with what the manufacturer calls an Octavator Cap, the pitch it produces is lowered by an octave.

Usage

Boomwhackers are most commonly used in elementary music classrooms as an inexpensive alternative or supplement to traditional pitched instruments such as xylophones and [[metallophones==. Boomwhackers are often used by performance artists and other musical performance groups to add an element of spectacle. They can also be used by people with intellectual and developmental impairment to develop sensorimotor skills, social skills and creativity.