#8 The Hydraulic Key Pressuriser

Invented and realised at Bourneville Junior School in Birmingham, this invention uses a syringe to push water along a pressurised pipe to press the piano note.

Oliver’s design shows the piano played by a pair of syringes connected by a hose. This was one of the ideas we explored with the kit of parts we used before Christmas. But the supports that hold up the hose appear to spell out the word “Piano” and, when we talked about this with the children at Bournville Junior in March, they liked this idea. So, the most obvious feature of the design on stage will be the big letters that spell out the word Piano and the syringes and tubes will be mounted on top of them. The letters are cut out of plywood and screwed to the floor for stability.