Complete Encyclopaedia of Music/A/Armonica
Armonica. The name given by Dr. Franklin to a musical instrument which he constructed, consisting of hemispherical glasses, which yielded the most agreeable tones by laying the wet finger upon the margin and giving a rotatory motion to the glasses. Might not bells of glass be substituted with advantage in place of the musical metallic bells now in use ? The Italian word armonica means harmonious. This term, when used adjectively, implies a quality, or character, of harmony - as, sinfonia armonica, harmonious symphony; guide armonica, harmonious guide.