The
tubulum is a man-portable, backpack-mounted version of the
PVC Pipe Instruments played by the
Blue Man Group in their show
Tubes. At present, I believe the tubulums have only been used in the
Las Vegas show, due to the different space constraints of their
venue at the
Luxor hotel; they have also been played on the
June 29th 2000 Tonight Show with Jay Leno, where the Blue Man Group was the musical guest act.
The tubulums consist of varying lengths of PVC piping, mounted and arranged such that striking their ends produces a range of hollow tones. The three Blue Men play them, usually to the accompaniment of their band, producing a unique percussion and melody.