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With only 9 notes, the Sansula seems underpowered. But the real strength of the Sansula lies in its simplicity and its beauty. It is very easy to make absolutely enchanting music with the Sansula, because of the high German engineering standards of the instrument and its materials, because of the simple and intuitive tuning, and because of the mind-blowing special effects.   When you play the Sansula, you don’t really need to worry about which notes you are playing – you just twiddle your thumbs and out comes enchanting, mystical music. The flip side of this: if you try to make your Sansula play a song you know such as

If you have an F-15 Karimba (Nyunga Nyunga) you can play along with them Visit Stango and Nongoma’s Facebook page   In 1960, Andrew Tracey discovered the karimba player Jega Tapera in the township surrounding Bullawayo (then Rhodesia). Jega Tapera taught Dumisani Maraire to play karimba… which he renamed mbira nyunga nyunga. And Dumisani taught his daughter Chiwoniso to play mbira nyunga nyunga. Jega, Dumi, and Chiwoniso are all gone. But now, there is Stango and Nongoma! If you are looking for inspiration for your karimba or nyunga nyunga playing, check out their music! A rare fusion of guitar and mbira nyunga nyunga, this music is so beautiful! Stango’s guitar

This is a great song to play on the kalimba Click to download the tablature PDF for Payphone   I long thought that the best music was created in the 1960s, and some in the 1970s. However, I am now of the belief that the pop music of the last 10 years is as good as its ever been. So I am starting to learn some of these modern pop songs on kalimba, and you, dear reader, will be the beneficiary of these pop songs. Enjoy this arrangement of the Maroon 5 song “Payphone”. Click on image to download the tablature PDF. We are doing things a bit different here.

Do you have a tired old kalimba that doesn’t ring true? We can help Visit the Kalimba Doctor   The most important thing you can do to keep your kalimba sounding good is to keep it in tune. The second most important thing you can do is to fix any buzzing tines. We give you the resources you need to do these kalimba maintenance items yourself – click through to see the links. If you are unable to accomplish the tuning and fixing yourself, let me introduce you to The Kalimba Doctors: Mark Holdaway, and Mike Ankomeus. Together, we will do our best to improve your old kalimba in about

What makes African kiaat wood so great?   In the 1950s, Hugh Tracey made prototype kalimbas from dozens of different types of African hard woods. In the end, he chose Kiaat for the wood for his new invention, the Hugh Tracey Kalimba. Even though it was a new-fangled instrument, it reflected many design choices from traditional instruments, and the Kiaat wood choice was one of those, as many traditional kalimbas were made from Kiaat wood. And today, in 2020 – or 66 years later for the math challenged among us – the Hugh Tracey Kalimba is still made from Kiaat African hardwood. What makes kiaat so special?   Kiaat is

The Full Historical Document in PDF, Free To You Click Here to DOWNLOAD the 1968 Hugh Tracey Instructioanl Manual   When Hugh Tracey made his new kalimbas back in 1954, there were only a few people in the world who could play this non-traditional African instrument. But what about people in Africa? Didn’t they too play kalimba? They did, but they played instruments with other designs, other setups, and other tunings. The Hugh Tracey Kalimba was a new instrument in the kalimba family, ideally suited to playing western music. Hugh’s eldest son Andrew Tracey went to Oxford to study music so he could write a manual for the Hugh Tracey

The Prime Lesson: The Kalimba Comes From Africa   I recently got this message in my Facebook feed: “Hey man, I just wanted to say thank you for your research regarding the kalimba. I came across it randomly and thought it originated in Asia, but boy was I wrong! Thank you for showing us where its true roots lie.” Yes, so many kalimbas are made in China that the African roots of the instrument are becoming obscured. I have a really cool video I made that explains some of the important parts of the kalimba’s story in Africa. Part of the story of the kalimba’s birth, evolution, and migration in

Click to learn more about how to adjust your kalimba’s tuning   Most people who play kalimba quickly discover a set of musical tricks that are easy to do and sound good… but sometimes, they get stuck in a rut and don’t really know what else to do. To get out of the rut, they could get a new kalimba with a different number of tines or a different note layout, as the new kalimba would provide new vistas and new opportunities for creativity. Most people who play kalimba for more than a few years will end up getting multiple kalimbas. However, there is an easier way to get the

We are very rich in time just now – what will we do with it? Snowmelt from the Catalina Mountains flows through braided channels in Tanque Verde Wash, Tucson, AZ. Photo: Su Lupasco Washington   This particular moment is a fantastic time to pick up the kalimba. It attracts you into the NOW and invites you to focus in as deeply as you can. And when the world looks as it does right now, with fear and uncertainty, having something that you CAN do to create beauty and an aura of peace gives you a confidence-boosting sense of control over your life. I know that some of us have very