Quantcast
VIDEO: Man uses his hair to replace strings on violin – Metro US

VIDEO: Man uses his hair to replace strings on violin

http://vimeo.com/94183669

A man has replaced the strings of a violin with his own human hair. Tadas Maksimovas unveiled the follicle fiddle to promote the annual Street Musician’s Day in Lithuania. Maksimovas had his waist-length mane of hair glued into fibrous strands, which were then wrapped around violin pegs and fitted like strings.

From the artist

“My hair was so long it was difficult to take care of, so I decided to cut it. But then I thought that’s rather boring and came up with the idea of playing music with my hair, says Tadas Maksimovas, a freelance art director based in London.

Horse hair? Why not human hair?

“I knew that bows are made using horse hair. I’ve also seen spider web string made by a Japanese professor but I’ve never seen anyone actually replace the strings with human hair, especially while still attached to someone’s head,” says Maksimovas, who recruited Lithuanian violinist Eimantas Belickas – a previous Eurovision Song Contest entry – for the project.
Tadas Maksimovas, violin hair strings, video, lithuania Eimantas Belickas , long hair Artist Tadas Maksimovas gets his hair turned into violin strings. Credit: Linas Justice/Rex Features

Super glue turns locks into strings

In the project aptly dubbed ‘Hair Music. The Experiment’, organizers used super glue for the hair strings to make them harder and more solid. Maksimovas chose to use an electric violin so the sound of the music could be transferred directly to a recorder. It took the Lithuanian- born artist two years to turn his idea into a complete video piece.

By the numbers: 10

It took ten years for Maksimovas to grow his hair before he embarked on his violin experiment. At its longest, his hair measured more than 80 cm. Since completing the video the freelance director says he is enjoying his bald head, and his hair strings remain on the violin.