Freenotes Wings

Freenotes Wings aka xylophones are so easy to play and allow anyone to create enchanting music. These beautifully designed percussion instruments are the perfect first instrument for both kids and adults, but also the perfect next addition to any healing or meditation instrument collection. 

• Suitable for beginners and trained musicians
• Handmade by Grammy Award winner
• Explore your creative musicality
• Five-tone harmonic pentatonic scale
• Notes sustain for over six seconds
• No moving parts, no tuning
• Sturdy, lightweight, portable

Enables all to unlock their creative potential

Freenotes are available in several different easy to play models through Beautiful Sounds, including their Wings and complementary Bass Octaves, in the keys of A Minor, C Major, D Minor and G Major.  Head to the Listen section to see and hear them all played!

LISTEN

A Minor Wing

A Minor DUO (Bass Octave + Wing)

C Major Wing

C Major DUO (Bass Octave + Wing)

D Minor Wing

D Minor DUO (Bass Octave + Wing)

G Major Wing

G Major DUO (Bass Octave + Wing)

The Chromatic scale covers all 12 of the available pitches in Western Music used since the Middle Ages. Accordingly, the Chromatic Wing enables playing from sheet music, emulating common music by ear, and composing.

Freenotes Chromatic arrangement in our Wing architecture offsets the sharps and flats above and behind the natural notes. The sharps and flats are joined together as a unit, likewise for the naturals. The two units fit together in a piano-like arrangement of sharps and naturals. The range extends from A below middle C (A4) to E two octaves and a major third above middle C (E6).  The Chromatic Wing costs $1400. There are 32 notes and it comes with a pair of both normal and felt covered mallets.

MEET THE MAKER

Designed by grammy award winning music artist Richard Cooke, All Freenotes are made in Durango, Colorado.  Listen to Freenotes founder Richard Cooke in this short inspirational TedX Talk about his work in designing interactive outdoor music playgrounds in public spaces that remove the barriers of making music for all ages in any community.

Conformity was never in the plans for Richard Cooke. Growing up in St. Louis, Missouri, he studied music through voice, piano, and trumpet, but an organized band was not his calling. He went on to attend Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, where the improvisation of blues and jazz re-ignited his musical fire.  The freedom of improvising and teaching himself to play new instruments by ear set Richard on a happily rambling road of adventure, musical expression, and creation.

Armed with only a 10-speed bicycle, a contrabass clarinet he picked up at a pawnshop, and an unabashed enthusiasm for the vagabond lifestyle, Richard found his way to a retreat by the famed Paul Winter of the Consort jazz ensemble.  Though he had not yet played his “new” clarinet, Richard let his ear and soul guide through an experimental session.  There was a joy to playing when he had no expectations of himself.  He overcame the constraints of self-consciousness and reveled in the freedom of spontaneous music making.

That is where the seed for Freenotes was planted.  Richard eventually traded in his 10-speed for an old Volkswagen van and moved to the otherworldly landscape of Moab, Utah.  In Moab, he focused his abundant energy on building instruments that would make music accessible to novices and seasoned musicians alike.  Though he was blessed with talent, his mission was to bring an experiential component to music wherein anyone could step up to an instrument and play.

Richard continues to play music professionally, including collaborating with Paul Winter on the 2007 Grammy Award-winning Crestone album. His artist’s soul and wandering spirit underscore his dedication to building his instruments.  It is out in the wilderness where he finds inspiration. But it is long, focused hours in the shop where he hones each prototype until it balances the appeal, the durability and the perfect pitch that will earn the name Freenotes.