It’s hard to find someone who doesn’t love a great xylophone solo. There’s just something about the instrument’s wavering jingle and playful percussive strikes that speaks the words “fun in the sun.” ...

The MIDI format has long been used to create some banging electronic music, so it’s refreshing to see how [John P. Miller] applied the standard in his decidedly analog self-playing robotic xylophone.

Want to play the xylophone but don’t want to learn how? [Rachad]’s automatic xylophone might be just the ticket. It uses homemade solenoids to play tunes under computer control. Think of it as a ...