The Olive-9 Book / eBook is Here!

Video of “Awesome Jig”, the final song in the Olive-9 Booklet.

The Olive-9 Kalimba, made by Magadi in China, was new to us earlier this month. Now, I am happy to announce that there is a 36-page booklet with sound recordings that will help you find your way with this amazing cool and economical kalimba. Most of the book is on the introductory level, but the video above is a jig I wrote for the Olive-9 that really highlights how it can dance in your hands. A truly rousing tune that gets my wife dancing!

We will include this booklet with every Olive-9 we sell. If you bought the Olivie-9 before the book was available, go to the Olive-9 support page listed on your tuning chart and you can download the PDF eBook for free.

Who Plays the Olive-9 Kalimba?

In the standard pentatonic tuning, the Olive is a great instrument for fiery improvising and jamming. I invite you to jam along with me as I show you the ropes on this kalimba – what it was built to do, and what it does easily. I use a variety of instructional modalities: geometrical patterns, tablature, image and word-based instruction, and numbers-based instruction. But the most important way I reach out to help you play the Olive-9 Kalimba is through the sound recordings I have made of each song, often with backing tracks for you to solo over.

The freedom of the pentatonic tuning can also lead the player to meditative playing – sparse floating melodies that linger in the air and invite us inward with a touch of serenity.

And the simplicity of this 9-note kalimba design also makes it an interesting choice for beginning kalimba players.

What Are the Cool Features of the Olive-9?

The oval shaped wood body is actually hollow underneath – meaning you have great “wah-wah” possibilities.

The two rows of tines make this kalimba generally easier to play than single row instruments. The typical distance between tine tips is larger, meaning it is easier to play accurately. You can do strategic slide-offs from upper to lower tines. And the two rows give you a different organizational scheme that helps you remember and play different riffs.

High quality metal parts and sturdy tine mounting system gives this kalimba a clear, beautiful tone.

How much music can you do with 9 notes? Well, 9 notes is not that much, so it is not a threatening instrument. And while you are certainly limited with only 9 notes, as you can see in the video, you can do a lot with this kalimba!

And in case you missed it: this high quality kalimba is one of the least expensive kalimbas we sell. Given how much fun it is to play, you almost can’t afford NOT to buy it!

Get the Olive-9 Kalimba

Get the Olive-9 Booklet:

Get the Olive-9 Kalimba Download: