Dub-T-123 Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 I went to Hollywood yesterday so I made the customary trip to GC. I was hangin out in the drum room with my friend and I found this little thing. For size comparison (FF is in an MXR sized enclosure) This thing is pretty fun to play. It sounds like a little wind-up music box. I think I might try to put a little Piezo on it and see what it sounds like. They have a little acoustic version too but this one is more comfortable to hold and sustains for days LOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damian Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 You do know what those are ?? I lived in Africa in the mid-sixties for four years....had a couple of the original style ones. You might try using it in recordings...Anyways, nice toy / instrument... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigh Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 It's a Kalimba. They come in many different sizes. Craig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeoConMan Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 Kalimba? Isn't that another name for Korina/African Mahogany? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigKahune Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 The ones I've seen have the tangs mounted on a hollow box with a sound hole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChanMan Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 Gratz the cool toy! What key is it in? Could it be used like a tuning fork??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Versatile Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 Yes ! They have those in my local Hobgoblin folk/roots music store Amongst various lutes, ouds, didgeridoos, nose-flutes etc It's great to see this kind of stuff I think I am right in saying it is Quite Unusual V Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 It's not a toy! Well, in the same sense that an ocarina, a penny whistle, a ukulele and so on are not toys. They feature prominently in music from a large part of the African continent - especially from places such as Mali. They're easily made and are almost indestructible! All of the ones I've seen 'in the flesh' have had the soundhole. I've never seen a solid one before. A few miles from where I live is a museum (the Horniman Museum) which has one of the greatest collections of musical instruments from all over the globe. Downstairs they have a 'Hands-on' room where kids - and adults too, for that matter - can pluck; whack; strum and otherwise play a variety of instruments. I think there were 3 kalimba there the last time I visited. They also sell them in the museum's shop. Gratz the cool toy! What key is it in? Could it be used like a tuning fork??? They come in all sizes and, therefore, 'keys'. None of ones I've played had a regular 8-note scale; obviously the length of the 'tines' determines the note produced and these tines can be adjusted individually to fine-tune the instrument. In fact the biggest drawback to the ones in the 'hands-on' room I mentioned above was that the bar(s) which tightened the tines to the body of the instruments had, in each case, loosened-off so it was impossible to know exactly how they should actually be tuned. I'm sure someone on here will be able to shed light on the matter! P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted November 24, 2010 Author Share Posted November 24, 2010 I don't know what key it's in. I don't really know about keys. I'm self taught haha. I'm sure if you tuned it precisely enough you could use it like a tuning fork. As it is, I could probably tune more accurately by ear/ memory. I call it a toy because it seems like they dumbed this thing down a little so kids can play it. I still think it's pretty cool and it's fun to play though. They had an "acoustic" one but it was really just a hollow piece of wood with a hole in it. The wood was really thick and it was pretty obvious that even though it had a soundhole the sound was not enhanced or projected in any way. So I got the solid body for that rockin sustain haha. I want to somehow make it electric. The wood is really resonant. I'm thinking about putting a cheap little piezo transducer from radioshack on the back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChanMan Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 Sorry to ruffle your feathers, Pippy. Menfolk often refer to their things as "toys". I have a shop full of power tool "toys", for instance. I think it's pretty danged cool that it can be tuned! Drop D music box tunes, anyone??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShredAstaire Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 If you can go Drop C, i'm in! hahaha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grampa Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 I've played one and I might still have one stored away somewhere. Great fun but then making music is always fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WahKeen Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 I'da bought one!.... I'm a sucker for little things like that... (I have a few kazoos, whistles, etc...) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChanMan Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 I have one of these.... who am I to judge?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artie Owl Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 I love my ocarnia, I should take it up again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 I have one of these.... who am I to judge?? Good grief ChanMan...you're a braver man than me! I had one of those as a kid and almost broke my teeth trying to get the hang of it! LOL! (And no feathers were ruffled in the slightest, I assure you! I was just speaking up for the little 'un!) P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChanMan Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 Most honorable and chivalrous of you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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