The Musical Clock - Rhythmic Time Keeping For Children And Adults Alike!

These days you can get all sorts of different clocks, depending on your preferences. Most people have clocks that are basically silent, although some do have a slight ticking sound. However, some people prefer that their clocks mark the hours, and sometimes the half hours or quarter hours, with some sort of noise.

You can get clocks that chime, or clocks that make different noises at these times. However, the more sophisticated versions actually play tunes on the hour, if not more often. There are a number of different types of these musical clocks.

When musical clocks first came into existence around 1598, the music was created through the use of spiked cylinders that made hammers hit multiple bells in order to create the tune.

Many of these clocks played multiple tunes, and as time went on they were made to sound like various instruments, using such things as horn bellows and organ mechanisms in place of the typical bells. People could choose the tune that was played by selecting the option they wanted from a dial, although some clocks had interchangeable drums for this purpose.

Although you can probably find some old musical clocks using these methods, most of the musical clocks for sale these days use newer methods for producing songs. Since 1988 it has been possible to get battery powered clocks that use computer chips to play the songs.

The best thing about these newer clocks is that they feature a light sensor. This means that when the room is dark, they know not to play the music, so you don't have to worry about you or your guests getting woken up in the middle of the night by the clock.

Two manufacturers of musical clocks are Seiko and Rhythm Small World Clocks. They make clocks playing all sorts of different types of music, from Christmas music to country music to popular music.

Some of these clocks rotate between up to eighteen different tunes, and some of the fancier ones also include light shows or other special features that happen when the clock starts to play music.

Obviously there is a lot more selection than there was in the past, so you are sure to be able to find one that you would like if you want a clock of this sort.