Somewhere Over The Rainbow Kalimba Numbers? The 7 Latest Answer

And how to play melodies over it. This recipe works for any diatonic kalimba with alternating note layout

In an article I wrote earlier this month, I said that every non-traditional kalimba in the world owes its existence to Hugh Tracey. (Of course, they also owe their existence to the hundreds and thousands of people in Africa who have pioneered and played the karimba, mbira and related instruments over the past 1000 years.) But most non-traditional kalimbas are copies of the design of the Hugh Tracey kalimba and note arrangement.

This arrangement of notes makes it particularly easy to create melodies high up on the instrument while also creating good chords low on the instrument that perfectly accompany that high melody. Would you like to find out more?

First, where are the high notes and where are the low notes? If you’re familiar with the kalimba, you’ll know intuitively – the low notes are in the center and the high notes are both hard left and hard right. At least with tines of the same thickness and steel quality, longer tines produce lower tones and shorter tines produce higher tones.

The real beauty of Hugh Tracey’s kalimba design is that when a melody note is played with a thumbs up, the chord that works with that melody note is usually low down on the other side. This ties into what I call “Mark’s rule of thumb” – if you play two notes that are directly opposite each other, they sound bad… but if you play one note down and the other note up, they sound nice.

This lesson will use this basic information to help you play chords and melodies together on kalimba. While this sounds like an advanced technique, it’s actually very simple if you just focus on the basic thumb movements and ignore what notes you’re playing.

A triad is a specific type of chord common in music, typically made up of the 1, 3, and 5 of a specific scale. To play a triad, play any three adjacent notes on the same side of the kalimba. To do this, you will probably want to use the glissando technique (see links at the bottom of this blog post).

(Hey, does the low C go left or right? See the black vertical line in the middle of the accompanying tablature, between the low C and the D? It’s an invisible line that separates the left tines from the right tines So the C belongs to the right thumb.)

Give it a try – randomly select three adjacent prongs (making sure not to cross the middle black line). Pluck them individually or strum them all together with a glissando. What chord is it? Find the lowest note (longest, most central prong) of the three you played, then find the name of that note. This note is the note name of the chord. Is it major, minor or diminished? You may be able to tell by the sound, and if you really need to know, see the attached tablature illustration. And remember!

Do you see what this music is doing? It systematically plays every triad on the kalimba (in standard inversions, anyway – if that was Greek to you, don’t worry). We’ll start with the C chord, then the D, then E, then F. You’ll notice that some triads are in major and some are in minor. You can’t control whether something is major or minor – this tuning automatically only makes C major, never C minor. And all D triads will be D minor. You just take what the kalimba gives you, which luckily is a good set of chords

At the very end of the tablature we come back to the C major chord, centered at the top left. The beginning C major chord was on the lower right side. You can do any of these triad chords in the top octave – the top D minor chord starts in the middle of the right side, on D, then the two outer adjacent tines, F and A.

Before attempting to play this tablature, start on your middle C – the painted tine at the center left side. Jump to the next note in the scale, D, which is also painted. Then back (left) to the E and alternating to the high C, the last painted prong on the far right. We will add this scale to the previously played chords.

This music works beautifully because the note we added above is actually the same as the note each chord is named after. To the first chord, C major, we added the C note an octave higher. This is key: the high note we add is always on the opposite side of the chord.

It will take a while before you can play this smoothly – like days or weeks or even months of practice. But this time is totally worth it, because this basic movement will open up a world of possibilities for you. Go as slowly as you like. When it comes to chords, slow is better than fast. You’ll soon see why.

Another thing: look at the movement your thumbs are making, both moving to the right, then both to the left as you move from one chord to the other. This is the wiper method, detailed in Mark’s Rule of Thumb article. If you think about the movements your thumbs are making rather than the notes you are playing, you will begin to gain freedom in your playing.

Oh, and I called these high notes “melody notes” – but they’re actually notes on which to build a melody, and that part comes next.

Look at bar 1 – I do the low triad, C major, on the right side and add the higher C on the left side. This C is a melody note. And the melody? It’s three high notes, C, D, and E, played left, right, and left. Note that only the first melody note needs to be on the opposite side of the chord; After that, you are no longer limited by what notes you play.

This isn’t “Doe, a Deer, a Female Deer” – but it might as well be – this song actually uses the same simple chord progression built from the musical scale. And the first three notes of the scale sound like the first three notes of “Doe a Deer”.

Once you understand the pattern in bar 1, look at bar 2. This is a mirror image – the chord is played on the left, the melody starts on the right D and goes right, left, right.

After you get the first two bars, you should be able to play the rest easily, repeating the same basic patterns, dodging just one note further as you move up the scale.

As for melodies, this one is a bit simplistic. But it gives you an idea of ​​how to combine chords and melodies.

In music, a whole chord is often played at the beginning of a bar, and while it is held a melody is played, just like in the previous example. In the tablature here I have given the chord and one of the melody notes (the top note of the chord). Your job is to do something fancy, probably with the top notes of the kalimba, on the two beats that have tablature rests.

Those two pairs of squiggly lines on beats 2 and 3 of each bar are quarter rests. If you’re not familiar with rests, see our co-published article on rests in tablature. For starters, choose a melody note to play in place of each rest – so it will be a close sister to the previous tablature. But as you get more comfortable with the chords, try mixing them. For example, go ahead and change the top note of the chord (i.e. the first melody note in a bar) to a higher note, further out on the same page as where you are right now. And instead of just two more melody notes, input more notes before moving on to the next chord. Above all, experiment. Walk around and discover. Play things you don’t like. It’s okay, you’ll never find cool and amazing new things without making mistakes. But when you play the cool thing you love (after you’re done appreciating the beauty that has come to you), do your best to try to understand and repeat what you played with it you might be able to play it again in the future.

This is where my job ends and you go off on your own – preferably on your journey!

The kalimba is a simple, beautiful instrument. It has a rich, warm tone that captivates and keeps the listener mesmerized. It’s a relaxing, soothing instrument when played in moderation, and is very enjoyable and fun to play.

It’s amazing how many great songs you can learn on the kalimba. Here we look at some of the easiest kalimba songs that you can learn quickly.

“Can’t Help Falling In Love” by Elvis Presley

Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling In Love” is an essential rock ‘n’ roll ballad, and like some of the other songs mentioned here, it has a melody grounded in deeply rooted traditions. And each song that renders melodies that are part of the cultural fabric serves as a gateway to deeper musical study.

It sounds quite nice on the kalimba, as the video demonstrates.

“Wake Me When September Ends” by Green Day

Punk rock band Green Day began taking things in a more pop-oriented direction in the mid-2000s. But it was mostly a good effect, giving way to songs like “Wake Me Up When September Ends.” Unsurprisingly, however, it is the image of simplicity, making it a quick study of the kalimba.

However, the arrangement shown in the video below is sophisticated, and there are simpler versions.

“The Sound of Silence” by Simon & Garfunkel

It’s hard to imagine a folk duo more important to American music than Simon & Garfunkel. “The Sound Of Silence” is just one of many songs that have been a staple for several decades, but “The Sound of Silence” is probably their most haunting. The harmonies make it a great tune to learn inside and out. Nice and easy too.

Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen

Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist Leonard Cohen has written some true classics. He will be remembered most for “Hallelujah”, but the truth is that most of his songs featured very slow and moderate tempos. It’s no wonder, then, that the melodies of his songs are so easy to learn and play, on almost any instrument, including the kalimba.

You’re Still The One by Shania Twain

For country-pop fans, Shania Twain’s love ballad “You’re Still The One” might be a fun venture on the kalimba. The slow melody is soft and light and of course highly recognizable. A great tune to play to your friends.

Careless Whisper by George Michael

In my opinion, there aren’t that many artists who can pull off melodrama without coming across as pompous or cheesy. George Michael was one of those rare talents, and “Careless Whisper” is the proof in the pudding. This ballad’s haunting melody is the kind that sticks in your mind, and the guilty conscience lyrics are relatable to many.

Imagine by John Lennon

Often mistaken for a Beatles song, John Lennon’s “Imagine” encourages us to imagine a strange, utopian society that only a hippie could dream up. Ultimately though, I like to think of it as a song of unity and harmony, a song of erasing the dividing lines. And in that sense, it couldn’t be more relevant.

The adage “All Beatles songs are easy” doesn’t always stand up to scrutiny (most are more complex than today’s Top 40), but “Imagine” is a great song for any beginner musician to study and master.

“In the End” by Linkin Park

Here’s a fun project for a kalimba if there ever was one. Many kalimba players have observed that transposing “heavier” rock and metal songs onto the instrument creates a rather stunning, dramatic effect. Minor melodies just sound so good on the kalimba.

Linkin Park’s “In The End” was one of their earliest hits and the definitive anxiety and depression-ridden rockers they’ll always be remembered for.

“I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz

Laid-back, acoustic guitar-driven beach bum music was all the rage as artists like Jason Mraz, Dave Matthews and Jack Johnson rose to prominence in the mid-2000s. Most of these artists have real talent. I won’t comment on who I think doesn’t.

“I’m Yours” might be overkill, but the song still shines through, and Mraz always adds strong melodic hooks to his music, and usually positive mantras and messages as well.

“Heal The World” by Michael Jackson

“King of Pop” Michael Jackson proved to be a rare talent with widespread appeal, and his music thoroughly affirms his legacy. “Heal The World” is certainly a product of its time, the socially conscious and self-referential ’90s, but the message feels authentic to Jackson.

The moderate tempo of “Heal The World” makes it a relatively easy piece to learn for musicians of all persuasions, and a beautiful melody for the kalimba.

Zombie by The Cranberries

Depending on the arrangement, The Cranberries’ “Zombie” can be a challenging piece. That said, it’s a fun minor song to try out, it sounds great on the kalimba, and as you’ll see in the video below it’s possible to adapt the different riffs, chord progressions and melody parts to the instrument. Look for simpler arrangements if necessary.

“With or without you” by U2

Irish punk rockers U2 burst onto the scene with pent-up youthful energy and a politically, socially and spiritually charged message they wanted to convey to the world. However, with their breezy, atmospheric, pop-friendly sensibility, as heard on ballads like “With Or Without You” (Brian Eno played a major role in it), they would eventually find more success.

It probably wouldn’t be too much of an exaggeration to say that U2 guitarist The Edge invented the guitar sound so associated with mature contemporary/easy listening/alternative rock bands like Coldplay and Snow Patrol today. It’s even imitated by pop bands like Mariana’s Trench.

“With Or Without You” is simple but backed by a strong melody.

“Hey Jude” by The Beatles

The melody to “Hey Jude” by the Beatles can easily be played on the kalimba. If there’s something difficult about it, it’s the fast-paced melody that accompanies the “take a sad song and make it better” lyrics, especially the “make it better” part. Either way, it’s a great song to study and add to your kalimba repertoire.

“Take On Me” by A-ha

A-ha’s “Take On Me” might require quick fingers (especially if you plan on working on the signature synth riff), but it’s fun to imagine you could transfer it to the kalimba, if only is for fun. And here’s a crazy thought – you can!

The trick is to start slowly and gradually increase the speed as needed. Everything can be learned note by note, and as your muscle memory kicks in (with repetition and practice) it will only get easier.

“I Want To Break Free” by Queen

Queen’s “I Want To Break Free” has a unique quality when played on the kalimba. It just sounds a little mysterious and indecisive, but certainly not in a bad way. It is also the perfect song for beginners to develop their skills on the kalimba.

Coldplay’s The Scientist

Colplay’s The Scientist is a great starting point for kalimba beginners. There are some fun tunes, but they’re mostly straightforward and easy to follow. If you’re struggling with other tunes on this list, maybe try this one first.

“Sweet Child O’Mine” by Guns N’ Roses

Guns N’ Roses’ “Sweet Child O’ Mine” is one of their most memorable, if not their most memorable power ballads. It starts with Slash’s famous “guitar finger exercise that should never be turned into a song” riff and then unfolds with the addition of the full band.

From the opening riff to the melody, there are at least a few areas worth studying here.

“The House of the Rising Sun” by The Animals

The Animals’ version of traditional folk, “The House Of The Rising Sun” is certainly the best known and one of the best versions of the song. It’s moving and thought-provoking.

It’s not the easiest tune to play on the kalimba, but it’s breathtaking. A good way to work your way up!

“Numb” by Linkin Park

Linkin Park’s fearful nu-metal knew no bounds in their heyday, and “Numb” is just one of many songs that reflect their restless energy. “Numb” specifically addresses a toxic relationship and how it affects one’s psyche.

Oddly enough, it sounds a bit like a lullaby on the kalimba. The arrangement in the video below is probably not the easiest to understand, but it doesn’t sound good. Of course, you can always learn one thumb at a time.

“True Colors” by Phil Collins

English progressive rock band Genesis is one of the best-selling artists of all time. What is surprising, then, is how the more pop-oriented solo careers of singer Peter Gabriel and drummer Phil Collins essentially eclipsed the band’s popularity. Of course, rockers will always learn more from Genesis’s considerable work on saturation.

Here we find Collins covering Cyndi Lauper’s “True Colors,” originally written by American songwriters Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly. In this case, it doesn’t really matter which version you choose, Collins or Lauper, both songs are pretty close in cadence. But I have a slight personal preference for the Collins version, which I think is more melodic overall.

Shape Of You by Ed Sheeran

Modern pop fans will rejoice at the inclusion of this song here. Ed Sheeran’s “Shape Of You” is simply composed and far more pop than its juicy and sentimental acoustic guitar crooners.

I know there are people who would disagree with me, but I’m having a hard time telling the difference between the Sheerans and the Biebers of the era… I feel like there were only four or five songs touted in 2017 with slightly different arrangements Artist.

In any case, “Shape Of You” should be an easy song to get your hands on.

Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd

Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here” sounds quite authentic on the kalimba and thanks to the moderate tempo of the song is not difficult to play. If anything, the kalimba adds a bit of Asian flair to the song, or maybe more accurately, it brings out that Asian flair in the song that you didn’t necessarily know was there.

“Seven Nation Army” by The White Stripes

Fueled by a youthful punk rock attitude, The White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army” has quickly become a widely recognized modern garage rock classic. And I still can’t decide whether to be thrilled or horrified (mainly because I think there are better Jack White songs out there).

It’s a simple song for sure, and probably the best part about it is singer/guitarist Jack White’s “let me strangle this incredibly difficult-to-play guitar” approach to playing. It definitely adds flavor to the song.

Bring Me To Life by Evanescence

Here’s another “heavy” song whose melody easily translates to the kalimba, with quite surprising results. It probably helps that it’s classic-inspired rocker at its core.

Evanescence’s “Bring Me To Life” was a product of its time and a legitimate entry into the 15-second nu-metal corridor (which isn’t saying much). In hindsight, things seem to be falling apart a bit, to me at least, with the one-chord staccato guitar riff, singer Amy Lee’s over-the-top melodrama (how much can you take?) and male vocal chants. It doesn’t last, at least for me.

The kalimba version, on the other hand, is a refreshing take.

“How Deep Is Your Love” by Bee Gees

“How Deep Is Your Love” showcases the softer, gentler side of the Bee Gees. Of course, they always had a way with their voices, and this song features intriguing, cascading, multi-layered harmonies that dazzle the ear. It also has a nice taste on the kalimba.

“Carry On Wayward Son” by Kansas

American progressive rock band Kansas found considerable popularity with singles like “Dust In The Wind” and of course this “Carry On Wayward Son.”

In terms of difficulty, the song is probably “moderately difficult”. There are some fast notes that may take some getting used to, but this is the hardest part.

All in all, a very entertaining song to listen to.

“Stairway to Heaven” by Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway To Heaven” is widely regarded as one of the greatest rock songs of all time. There are no standards competent enough to definitively judge something like this, but there’s no denying it’s the perfect storm of mood, surprise and anthem.

“Stairway To Heaven” is a bit of a project for any instrumentalist, so don’t expect that you’ll learn everything without making an effort. However, most would say it’s worth the effort.

It sounds pretty authentic on the kalimba too.

Fly Me to the Moon by Frank Sinatra

Jazz standards can often be intimidating, but it’s not so bad once you fit it to your thumbs, especially when it’s as direct as “Fly Me To The Moon.”

In terms of difficulty, the following tutorial is well suited for beginners. The melody should sound familiar to you so that learning the song doesn’t hurt a bit.

“Let It Be” by The Beatles

The smooth pacing of “Let It Be” makes it a great choice for the kalimba. As with any other song, there are both simple adaptations and more complex ones. The video below presents a more complex version, but if you take it slow you can probably pick it up a bit at a time.

What you see when you play “Let It Be” on the kalimba is how classic the melody of the song is.

“(Everything I Do) I Do for You” by Bryan Adams

Bryan Adams is like Canadian Def Leppard. His rock songs contain intentional pop elements, unexpected modulations and surprising arrangements. All without deviating from simplicity.

“(Everything I Do) I Do It For You” is mostly a straight-forward power ballad, and that makes it easy to play as well.

All of Me by John Legend

John Legend’s piano love ballad “All Of Me” isn’t exactly my style. That means it’s good for beginners. Some of the melody parts happen pretty fast, but other than that it’s not too difficult to play. Enjoy!

Eric Clapton’s Wonderful Tonight

Eric Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight” is considered one of his most famous ballads. The opening guitar riffs are memorable and relatively easy to duplicate on the kalimba. The song also progresses at a gentle pace, so this one should be a shoo-in for beginners.

“Yesterday” by The Beatles

The melancholic melody of “Yesterday” by the Beatles is perfectly transferred to the kalimba. The arrangement shown in the video may be a little more advanced than beginner oriented, but it’s a great piece to work on independently to develop your skills.

Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody

Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” is the pinnacle of rock opera tunes. As such, like “Stairway To Heaven”, this song will likely be a minor endeavor for the budding kalimba player. Still, it’s an incredibly rewarding and fun song to learn, and it doesn’t detract from the learning process.

Even on the kalimba it is immediately recognizable.

“What a Wonderful World” by Louis Armstrong

As one of our readers pointed out (here’s a wink and a nod), jazz legend Louis Armstrong’s tune to “What A Wonderful World” is based on nothing more than the melody of the popular English lullaby “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”.

And since most nursery rhymes, lullabies, and nursery rhymes are easy to play on most instruments, this one shouldn’t falter too much either.

“Think Out Loud” by Ed Sheeran

Ed Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud” can be played note by note, so it’s pretty simple in that sense. The note changes can be fairly quick, but that generally comes with practice and repetition. So gradually build it up to speed if it’s too fast and you’ll do just fine!

Pumped Up Kicks by Foster The People

Foster The People’s “Pumped Up Kicks” quickly topped the charts and became a radio-friendly hit. Its theme is somber and the upbeat pop tunes contrast with the story of the tune.

It doesn’t get particularly exciting until the chorus, but either way, a fun song to learn and easy to recognize.

“Billie Jean” by Michael Jackson

There’s something about Michael Jackson songs that makes you want to get up and dance, and “Billie Jean” has such a great groove that, how can you not get up and start moving to it?

But how does it come across on the Kalimba? That’s the real question, isn’t it?

Of course, the song needs to be adapted to the instrument, but as you’ll hear in the video below, it can sound pretty cool!

“Unchained Melody” by The Righteous Brothers

A melody that all kalimba players and instrumentalists should learn. Unchained Melody is very beginner oriented and easy to play.

“Iris” by Goo Goo Dolls

Goo Goo Golls’ “Iris” has an unforgettable melody, and it happens to be perfect for the kalimba. When played on the kalimba, it basically becomes a lullaby.

Jack Johnson’s Banana Pancakes

Beach-dwelling acoustic guitarist Jack Johnson sang songs about paradise, and the simplicity of it all was refreshing at a time when angsty alt-rock and nu-metal were still alive and well on the charts. Jackson’s voice is a little too relaxed for my taste, but his songs are the living picture of lightness.

Brown Eye Girl by Van Morrison

Van Morrison’s “Brown Eyed Girl” showed us that an anthem can tell a story, contain multiple hooks, have dedicated singalong sections in the bridge, and still be cool. No cover band in their right mind wouldn’t at least consider “Brown Eyed Girl” for their set as it’s still a part of the zeitgeist.

“Sweet Home Alabama” by Lynyrd Skynyrd

Lynyrd Skynyrd’s ode to Alabama — a state famed for its Southern hospitality — somehow became a universal hit about everyone’s favorite state. And that perhaps has more to do with the incredibly talented band and their knack for arranging catchy tunes that anyone can easily sing along to than anything else.

Again, no cover band on their setlist (past or present) would be caught dead, and it’s good study for both beginner and intermediate musicians, too.

“Really Insanely Deep” by Savage Garden

Australian duo Savage Garden’s popularity has come and gone, but looking back they’re one of the few groups that embodied the pop sound of the ’90s. Their debut album spawned several hits, along with the juicy ballad of “Truly Madly Deeply.”

There’s nothing “special” about the song, but it’s not terrible either, and it has a lullaby-like quality that makes it fun and easy to play on the kalimba.

“Wind Of Change” by Scorpions

“Wind Of Change” by the Scropions is very easy to play on the kalimba. A great tune for anyone starting out on the instrument to learn!

“Sweet Caroline” by Neil Diamond

Speaking of Barroom singalong classics, few karaoke nights end without someone selecting Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” and belting it out along with everyone in attendance. The call-and-response vocal and horn section seems to have embedded itself in the fabric of cultural consciousness.

“Dust in the Wind” by Kansas

We’ve already looked at a Kansas song, and here we have the far more depressing, existential “Dust In The Wind”. Then again, it became a hit for a reason and continues to this day.

The following video shows the “hard” version, but there are also easier versions.

Metallica Nothing Else Matters

Few Metallica songs can be described as “straightforward,” and the same goes for “Nothing Else Matters.” But the little melodic stems make for a haunting yet beautiful song to hammer out on the kalimba.

“All To Myself” by Mariana’s Trench

Modern pop-rock band Marianas Trench originally learned more from punk rock, and some of their earlier hits like “All To Myself” show that. Repetitive melodic figures make the kalimba fun to engage with, and it’s undeniably catchy even if you don’t like the genre.

“Hysteria” by Def Leppard

No wonder we should pick one of Def Leppard’s most infamous power ballads for this list. “Hysteria” is loved by most, even those who think it’s a guilty pleasure and wouldn’t admit it to anyone. It sounds cool on the kalimba.

“Rock And Roll All Nite” by KISS

KISS’ trademark “Rock And Roll All Nite” features an infectious three-chord chorus that’s hard to get out of your head once you’ve heard it. There is a bit of movement in the verse melody, though, so take it slow and you should be fine.

“I Can’t Tell You Why” by Eagles

The Eagles, along with many of their cohorts from the same era, had a knack for turning simple songs into complex ones by layering instrumentation on top. However, at the heart of every song is always the dedication to simplicity.

“I Can’t Tell You Why” has a great melody and is worth tackling.

“Hey you!” by OutKast

There’s just no way OutKast’s four-chord wonder “Hey Ya!” with its tight melody could be a difficult song to play. But there’s more to it than you might expect. So buckle up before you try.

Easy kalimba songs final thoughts

Although we’ve mainly focused on pop songs here, it’s worth noting that there are plenty of classical compositions, traditional folk songs, nursery rhymes, and Disney songs that are also easy to learn and play. If you want to delve deeper into the world of kalimba, you will benefit from a deep dive into these areas as well.

I received my kalimba from China a few days ago (yes, the one handmade by April Yang himself 🤭 ). And while I can read sheet music (easier to read sheet music than codes imo) I’m stuck at that 0 that I can see on the supplied sheets. Any suggestions ? Any help would be greatly appreciated 😍

Have a nice day !

For centuries, kalimba players have grown their thumbnails long so they can play for hours without pain. But what if you don’t have that kind of thumbnail? Read and Learn! Alaskan spikes are an easy, pain-free alternative…or have you ever tried super glue on your nails?

Father Dos Santos, the first European to document the kalimba in 1586, wrote that the players “play this instrument by hitting with their thumbnails the loose ends of the sticks, which they are growing long for the purpose, and striking them on the keys as lightly as a good player strikes those on a harpsichord.”

More recently, when Paul F. Berliner went to Zimbabwe (the country was then called Rhodesia) in the 1970s, players sometimes used metal wires on their thumbs to play mbira tines to save their thumbs. (See illustration.)

I recommend that people play with their thumbnails rather than the meat of their thumbs. Playing with your nail allows you to play for hours without pain. Actually, I recommend that just before you pluck a prong with your nail, you lightly touch the prong with your thumb flesh first to dampen any ongoing vibrations, so the hard nail doesn’t make an ugly ZZZZT noise when it touches a vibrating prong . Pull the nail off the tip of the prong in one motion with the initial flesh touch of the prong, tilting down as you lift but not pressing down very hard at all. Even with a short nail, pointing the tip of your thumb down can bring the nail into contact with the prong.

On the other hand, there are players like Kevin Spears for whom playing with the meat of the thumb is part of their technique. I know several people who started out playing this way but ended up playing with their nails. It’s a personal choice and you’ll find out for yourself.

In the early stages of playing kalimba, almost everyone’s thumb meat hurts, even if you play with your nails – but over time you’ll develop little calluses on your thumbs and you won’t feel any more pain. I have small ones just under my thumbnails. If you play with your thumb meat, your eventual calluses will be much larger.

Need ALASKA PIKS?

If for some reason you can’t grow your thumbnails, such as if you’re a massage therapist, you can use Alaska Piks, which are available at your local guitar store or at the Kalimba Magic Shop. I like Alaskan spades because they are well made and made out of plastic rather than metal which means they don’t click loudly on the metal kalimba prongs when played. Alaska spades are sized for fingers (for playing guitar) not thumbs. They are also expandable. Keep these things in mind when choosing some Alaskan spades for your thumbs. See the diagram below.

ALASKA PIK SIZE CHART

Alaska Piks, originally intended for guitar playing, are made for any fingers other than the thumb. So we’ve translated the sizes and made a chart just for use on your thumbs. The numbers on the left of our chart represent the thumb circumference (measured approximately at the base of the thumbnail) and the letters on the right are the associated Alaskan spade size. In this system, children use M, young teens and women with small hands might use L, and anyone with normal to large hands uses XL. Remember these are finger sizes; If you have very large thumbs, you are probably outside of the size range available. We’re sorry!

CRACKING, TONIC, CELEBRATE

Sometimes I don’t keep my thumbnails at their optimal length for gaming (just forget to trim them). As they get longer they tend to become brittle. When I’m reaching for something (a door or a drawer handle) I can accidentally press a thumbnail against a hard surface and snap the nail. (When the nails are that long, it doesn’t really hurt.) But within an hour, I often notice a crack at one end of the nail that hasn’t come all the way. If left untreated, this crack will eventually spread to the other side and the nail tip will soon detach.

There are two things I did to fix this. First, if the crack is only a half inch or less, I trim the cracked portion of the nail, possibly removing a sizeable chunk of the nail but leaving most of it. File off the sharp corners and edges so that you do not endanger yourself or others. You can either play with the remaining nail or it works great to back up an Alaskan spade.

The other approach is Krazy Glue: you can actually glue over the crack to prevent further cracking. On more than one occasion my thumbnail snapped straight out and I successfully reattached the whole thing. In these situations, it may be necessary to reapply the adhesive every two or three days until the break grows out. Krazy Glue comes in a bottle with a small brush applicator perfect for fixing thumb nails. You can actually paint your nails with this glue to strengthen them and prevent breakage and slow nail erosion from playing a lot of kalimba. You can also have acrylic overlays professionally applied to your nails. This is a solution that guitarists often praise highly. These are among the best answers to nail wear or breakage.

If you play kalimba hard for an hour or two in a day, you’ll find that the thumbnail is still wearing away at the spot where you tend to hit the kalimba tines. You should file the nail until the profile is straight or convex curved to improve your game next time.

It can also be useful to shape your nails differently for different kalimbas. The pentatonic kalimba likes flatter nails because there is more spacing between tines and a sharper nail tends to snag between them – a flatter nail profile can also play two adjacent tines at the same time. On the other hand, the Treble Kalimba, with its small and narrow tines, prefers sharper nails.

LENGTH CONSIDERATIONS

If your nails are too long, they can break easily. If they’re too short, you won’t be able to perform the glissando, or you’ll wear them out too quickly. So there is an optimal nail length that you can work with enough, but not so much that you break it off and leave nothing behind. Find your own sweet spot. I actually like to play when my nails extend about 3/16″ past my thumb meat, but they tend to snap at that length, so it’s just too long! About 1/8 inch as shown in the photo strikes me as a really good balance of length and practicality.

Nails that are longer than optimal and not hardened can also produce an awkward sound when playing. Work around this by playing closer to the left or right side of the nail, using Krazy Glue to harden them, or just keeping them short enough. For the same reason, right after you clip your thumbnails, you will find your Kalimba game unleashes a clicking attack. It will take either a few days of normal life or a few hours of playing kalimba to smooth your nails enough to get rid of that clicking noise. I personally prefer filing my nails every few days rather than waiting to trim. Filing helps eliminate some of these problems, but not all. So file after you cut your nails and play a lot of kalimba!

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us using the email form or speak directly to Mark Holdaway at 520-488-7641. Contact Us

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If you are new to the kalimba, you may have noticed that many kalimba players use their nails to play the instrument.

Many of us may not want or can’t grow our nails for long and if this sounds familiar you may be wondering do you need nails to play kalimba or are there other methods out there?

Luckily you don’t need nails to play kalimba. There are many great alternatives that can be used instead, such as:

Play with the flesh of your thumb rest.

Use of thumb protectors.

With a thumb pick.

However, each of them has its pros and cons, so let’s take a closer look at each one!

Play kalimba with the thumb pads

The first and most obvious alternative to playing kalimba with your fingernails is to use the pads or flesh of your thumbs instead.

This is a great option for those with short nails as it doesn’t require any additional tools or equipment.

In fact, many purists usually dislike this option as it alters the sound the kalimba produces. Playing with your nails typically produces a clearer, brighter sound, while playing with your thumb pad produces a softer, more muted tone.

There is neither right nor wrong, and a true kalimba player should use both in order to have a wider variety of sounds and sound qualities in their playing.

However, if you are new to the kalimba, you will notice a downside to playing with your thumb pad. It will hurt!

This is normal and is simply because the skin on your thumbs is not used to hitting the metal prongs and takes time to callous.

Stick with it though, and after a few weeks to a few months you’ll find that your thumbs will adjust and you’ll be playing pain free in no time!

Of course, if you’d rather avoid this, there are options to protect the balls of your thumbs.

Rubber thumb guard

Rubber thumbguards are sleeves you wear on your thumbs that protect your skin from the kalimba’s metal prongs.

They’re a great option if you don’t want to go through the hassle of building up calluses or growing nails!

Unfortunately, they are not a perfect solution and will dampen the sound of the kalimba quite a bit. They also make it a bit more difficult to feel the kalimba, which can lead to missing notes and more difficulty playing overall.

The best way to use thumb guards is while you are building up your calluses. You should start fiddling with your thumb pads and when this starts to get a little sore, put on your thumb guard to give your thumb pads a rest!

Playing kalimba with a thumb pick

Thumb picks are another great alternative to playing kalimba without having to use your nails

Thumb picks come in many forms, but the general premise is that they sit over your thumb and the kalimba prongs can then be plucked with the pick rather than using your nail or thumb rest.

Of all the alternatives, thumb picks produce the closest sound to a nail. So if you prefer the traditional kalimba sound but don’t want to let your nails grow, thumb picks might be your best bet!

As with thumb guards, you lose a bit of kalimba feel when using a thumb pick. This is only natural as you are creating a contact barrier between you and the instrument so it can be a little more difficult to judge the distance to the tines.

There are several variations of the thumb pick to choose from.

Plastic Thumbpicks

Plastic thumb picks are perhaps the most common and popular thumb picks not only for kalimba but for many other instruments such as guitars.

Aside from the loss of direct contact between you and the kalimba, there are very few downsides to the plastic thumbpick and overall they give a very clear sound when used to pluck the tines.

Metal thumb picks

Metal thumbpicks are almost identical to plastic thumbpicks, with one key difference, they’re metal! (I’m just as shocked as you!)

The metal thumb pick arguably gives the closest sound to using nails, but be warned they can damage your kalimba tines due to the metal-to-metal contact.

Alaskan spades

The Alaska Spade is the final thumb pick variant and the best middle ground to play kalimba with a thumb pick and your nails.

The Alaska spade slips over your thumb and slides under your nail or just in front of it if your nail is too short.

The end result is like an artificial nail connected directly to your thumb, allowing for the most natural feeling while playing the kalimba, with no pain or nail growth!

Final Thoughts

So is it possible to play kalimba without nails? The answer is a resounding yes!

As you now know, there are many options to choose from if playing kalimba with your nails isn’t for you.

Even if you enjoy playing with your nails, it’s always worth considering the options above to spice up your sound from time to time. It will surely do you no harm and will make you an all around better kalimba player!

Why not record yourself playing kalimba with and without nails and see which sound you like best?

An instrument can be learned with a modest day’s work – but touch it every day

The kalimba is one of those amazing instruments that magically sounds great even when you don’t know what you’re doing, often right out of the box. However, if you practice, you can play really well. I have put together some thoughts on my experiences practicing on the kalimba to help you on your kalimba journey.

If you want to “get good” at the kalimba, you should try to play it a little every day. Do it 15 minutes a day. Every once in a while you will probably actually start playing and it will be 60 minutes before you realize it. Playing 15 minutes a day will keep you from slipping backwards and will help you get comfortable with the instrument, but it’s the days when you play a lot that will really improve your game.

An important aspect of the practice is that you are physically relaxed. Most people find the kalimba relaxing, although some people may become tense looking at the tablature, a distinctly “left brain” approach to learning kalimba. If something makes you tense up when trying to practice kalimba, change it. You can return to tablature or learn specific songs or riffs after you have developed a good relationship with your kalimba.

And try to practice in a place that isn’t too distracting, a place where you can relax and not worry about how you sound.

I try to make practicing kalimba a spiritual practice, a practice about peace, love, self-improvement and self-reflection. I find that it works best when I can cultivate mental detachment. At the beginning of the game you will find that you are concentrating on the left thumb or on the right thumb at any given moment. Try to take a higher perspective that breaks away from the duality of left and right, but sees the two as part of something bigger. Try to sit on this higher level and you will find that you experience both left and right, but as one, not duality. From that higher point, you can decide, “I’m going to move that thumb a little to the right at this very spot in the phrase.” Or, even better, if you can let your thumbs off the leash to try something new of your own design , then your relaxed, higher mind has a much better chance of observing and understanding what your thumbs just did. If it sounds good, go ahead and try to remember what you did.

One way to remember what you’ve done is to write it down in tablature. Writing something down means first analyzing each thumb motion with your mind and then going to the point where you can jot down the thumb motions one by one with notes on paper. It’s sort of the opposite of the detached, higher kalimba mind we just wrote about, but being able to switch back and forth between the two is a great mental exercise.

And here’s a little advice: if you’re going to return to your kalimba day after day, you must love your kalimba. If you have an instrument that you don’t love, you should look for another. A great place to start exploring the many different types of kalimba is the Buyers Guide (see link below).

Are there alternative tunings?

For me, half the fun of the kalimba is exploring the alternate tuning realms. If you ever get tired of your kalimba and the things it plays, it’s probably time to experiment with an alternative tuning. A good mood changes the universe of possibilities open to your kalimba. You can invent your own tuning, but first you should check out the alternative tunings we’ve documented for each kalimba. And really, for every kalimba there are thousands of good tunings, so there’s a lot to explore.

While not exhaustive, many of the tunings are listed below:

There are many other tunings for the Hugh Tracey Alto Kalimba, but I recommend starting with the standard G major tuning. Most tips, tablature, and books have been written for the standard tuning, so keeping your kalimba in the key of G for a year, two, or three years while you learn, and then branching out into other tunings as you do, is a good way to go progress.

The standard tuning of the Hugh Tracey Alto Kalimba is two octaves of the G major scale. The lowest and highest notes are both G, which is the root, making this tuning easy to understand. In addition, there are plenty of books and downloads that work with this tuning. The A, Ab, G, F#, F, and E tunings are all basically the same pattern, all with the root on the bottom notes and the top notes – so they can all read the same tab and use the same books. Why would you want a key other than G? If you don’t know, stick with G-Tuning.

The letters on the tines in the diagram are the names of the notes to which each tine is tuned. The numbers are the degrees of the scale – that is, 1, the root, is “Do” as in “Do, Re Mi, Fa, So”. The number 5? Count up, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, which would be “Do, Re, Wed, Fa, Su.” Of course, 8 is the top “Do” of the scale and the same note name as the bottom “Do” of the scale—that is, 1 and 8 are the same note. The “Do, Re, Mi…” scale is synonymous with the major scale, which is the standard reference for all other scales. Some other scales have flatted versions of some degrees of the scale – a minor third is a flattened or flattened (down a half step) third, and we refer to it as “3-“. Some scales have sharpened or sharpened (raised by a semitone) versions of some of these notes, and we denote them with a plus sign, as in “4+”. And some scales skip some degrees of the scale entirely—the major pentatonic scale skips the 4 and the 7. Stick with it, and you’ll learn a lot about music from the little kalimba.

Maurice White of Earth, Wind, and Fire used a Hugh Tracey 17-note kalimba tuned to an A minor pentatonic scale with redundant notes and wowed people in the 1970s with songs like Evil and Kalimba Story. The tuning of our Evil Alto Kalimba is analogous to the tuning of Maurice White’s Treble Kalimba.

In the tablature diagram, the painted tines in the middle of the left side and the middle of the right side are both tuned to A notes, and the next lower tines on either side are tuned to G notes. This novel tuning allowed Maurice to play a rapid trill on each of these notes, quickly alternating between the left and right versions of either the A or the G, twice as fast as you could trill a single note played on just one side is played.

The lowest note is the “7-” or flat 7, also known as a minor 7, and it leads into the root, A=1. Other notable features are the minor third or “3-” and the missing 2 and 6, and the root A top right and top left.

This type of scale originated from the work of Chicago jazzman Phil Cohran, who used an electric kalimba with a similar tuning when recording with Sun Ra in the 1960s. Part of the appeal of this scale is its distinctly African “feel” – one of Hugh Tracey’s research findings was that around 40% of traditional African kalimba tunings use a pentatonic scale like this. Phil Cohran inspired Maurice White with his use of the kalimba as a symbol of Africa, the pentatonic scale to represent African music, and his use of these redundant notes to build musical tension.

Coming soon: Evil Alto Sound Recording

There are actually several “blues scales”. I’ve known this type of blues scale for 40 years. It’s almost exactly the same as the minor pentatonic scale, and would go great with the Maurice White Evil tuning. It has an extra note, the Eb, between the 4th and 5th in each octave. You can think of it as a raised 4 or “4+” or a flat 5 or “5-“. Unlike the Evil tuning, this one has no superfluous tones. In this tuning, a C is added at the top, with two “5-” notes, the Ebs, both on the right. In the language of the blues, the “5” note is also referred to as the “blue note”; in the classical world the “tritone”; In the Middle Ages it was called the “Devil’s Interval” and its use was banned by the Church!

This isn’t the same vibe Kevin Spears uses, but it’s quite similar in nature.

Coming soon: Alto A minor Blues Tuning recording.

The oriental mood was my first alternative mood, in 2001 of all things.

There are two very different ways to change the key of your kalimba. One way is to retune all the tines the same way (i.e. pulling each tine out half a step, retuning the standard alto kalimba from G down to F#). The other option is to revote the

Circle of Fifths – changing just one note per octave changes both the key and note layout of the instrument. An example of this is the transition from the alto’s standard G tuning to the C tuning shown here. The two F# tines are tuned down a half step to F, and the root becomes C.

Why should one change an alto kalimba from G tuning to C? Three reasons come to mind: (1) you may need to play kalimba in the key of C to accompany a singing song in order for it to be within your vocal range, (2) you can play similar music but in a markedly different range in terms of down to the root, allowing you to potentially play a wide variety of music, and (3) you may need to play in the key of C to play with other musicians – I use my C-tuned alto to play with my marimba band Playing Baba Marimba.

Here’s the best thing about the C-tuned alto kalimba: This is one of the easiest retunings you can do yourself.

The G minor tuning is conceptually very close to the standard G major tuning. Every note present on the standard G alto is also in the same place with the same letter on this kalimba, but the F# is now F (F is also called F natural), the B is now Bb (B -major) and the E is now Eb. (By the way, these are the same basic changes that must occur to turn a G treble into a Bb treble.)

It is instructive to compare the G major tuning with the G minor tuning. The root (1), 5th, 2nd, and 4th, which are the most important notes for chord progressions in a given key, are the same for G minor as for G major. The G minor tuning has a flat or minor seventh (denoted 7-), a flat or minor third (3-), and a flat or minor sixth (6-). The notes that are changed in this retuning produce a marked change in the emotional flavor of the scale.

Why do you want this tuning? To understand and experience the minor key more fully, with the psychological benefit of having the root of the minor key in the bass. G minor also goes with B flat major, so this would be a good kalimba to play with the B flat.

F tuning is made from G tuning by simply tuning each note down a whole step. The role each tine plays in that scale—that is, the 1, the 5, etc.—does not change, so everything you’ve learned on the G alto is easily played on this tuning, just one step down can be. And unless you have perfect pitch, you won’t even notice that this instrument differs from the G alto, as it seems to play the same as the standard G tuning.

To tune to A major, each tine of a standard tuned G alto is pushed in just enough to raise the entire instrument a whole step in pitch. Just like the F alto, you won’t even notice that this kalimba differs from the G tuned alto unless you have perfect pitch. Any song you play on the Standard G Alto can be played on this kalimba, it just sounds a notch higher.

In addition to F, G and A, the alto kalimba can also be tuned to E, F# (Gb) and G# (Ab). Why don’t more people tune their altos down to E, a great key for playing guitar? The Alto’s body size is designed to resonate down to the low G tone, but it starts to lose resonance at F#, more in F and even more in E. You can offset this by playing in a gourd or on a table – a larger resonance structure that helps boost the lower notes. Playing through a pickup also helps in reproducing notes from the low range of the kalimba.

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If you’re undecided about tuning, it’s best to choose the default G major tuning and configuration. Most tips, tablature, and books have been written for the standard tuning, so keeping your kalimba in the key of G for a year, two, or three years while you learn, and then branching out into other tunings as you do, is a good way to go progress. Of course the

Kalimba Doctor at Kalimba Magic can re-tune your current high-altitude kalimba at will!

The letters are the names of the notes to which each tine is tuned. The numbers are the degrees of the scale – that is, 1, the root, is “Do” as in “Do, Re Mi, Fa, So”. The number 5? Count up, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, which would be “Do, Re, Wed, Fa, So”. The major scale is the standard reference for all other scales, and scales with different intervals indicate their deviation from the major scale intervals with a + or – sign, as in 3- for a minor or flattened or flattened third degree of the scale.

The B Treble kalimba reads alto tablature – compare the numbers, i.e. the degrees of the scale, and the painted tines with the standard alto tuning – they are identical except for the high 2’s and 3’s which are in the standard -Tuning of alto kalimba is missing tuning. The notes are all raised a minor third from standard alto tuning. All tines can be pulled out or pushed in and this basic tuning can be extended to the keys A, Bb, Bb or C.

The D Treble Kalimba reads Alto Tablature – compare the numbers, i.e. the degrees of the scale, and the painted tines with the standard alto tuning – they are identical except for the two lowest tines B and C# (unnumbered here). absent from the standard tuning of the alto kalimba. The notes are all raised a fifth above standard alto tuning. This basic tuning can be extended to the keys C, Db, D, Eb, E and F.

This is similar to the tuning that Earth, Wind and Fire’s Maurice White used on essentially all the kalimba songs they made. I reverse engineered it from a YouTube video starring Maurice White.

This was my very first alternate tuning, done in 2001, and it uses the B as the root for a Middle Eastern tuning scale. This is a tuning you can easily do yourself, as all you have to do is slide the bottom two D prongs onto D#. I liked leaving the top D natural, which can cause dissonance when playing the octaves – so take care. This also plays in E minor. It’s actually a lot of fun to switch back and forth between playing in B Middle Eastern and E Harmonic minor.

Click on the tuning name to see and read about the tuning. Two different tuning setups are available for both the Box Alto Chromatic and the Celeste Alto Chromatic Kalimbas: G or C tuning on the front). The Treble Chromatic Kalimba has two different setups: both in C, with or without redundant notes on the back.

On these chromatic tuning charts, the front tines are the long ones in the diagram above; Six are painted (shaded grey). The back color prongs are shown twice – first up in the top diagram

The prongs on the back are displayed as if you could see straight through your kalimba. In this view, where there is a rear tine, there is also a point on the corresponding front tine. The rear tine is always the face of the corresponding front tine. If you turn the kalimba over and look at the back, you will see the mirror image of the previous depiction. These are the unpainted tines shown in the diagram below.

Kalimba Magic recommends that your Chromatic Kalimba be tuned to G on the front so that it is exactly like the Alto Kalimba. This means if you know how to play songs on the alto kalimba, you can play all those songs on the front of the chromatic and add the chromatic notes on the back at your own pace. This also means that all Alto Kalimba books and teaching materials will work for the front of your Chromatic Kalimba. Also, since the upcoming Chromatic Kalimba book will be written for the G Chromatic Kalimba, you can use it.

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It is possible to retune from G to C (or from C to G). The chromatic kalimba in G or C setup has all chromatic notes over the same two-octave range, but some people prefer the C tuning, which has all front notes “natural” notes and all back notes “natural” notes makes “flat tones”. (When the Chromatic Kalimba is retuned to C, the front notes are the same as the C Alto, for which there is a guide download.)

Retuning G to C on the front is trivial and only requires tuning F# to F natural. On the back, most of the tines need to be both rearranged and retuned – the tines need to be removed from the kalimba and reinserted through different slots, as the gaps on the back are positioned in different places in the two tunings. It’s difficult, but not impossible. If you know in advance that you want your chromatic kalimba tuned to C front, you should order the instrument in C tuning.

If you already have the Chromatic Kalimba, the

Kalimba

The doctor can take care of the readjustment for you ($20 covers the readjustment and shipping back to the US).

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The chromatic treble kalimba has a bass note of C, and the front face is laid out like the Bb treble, tuned to C. In standard tuning, each tine has a flat on the front just behind it. That means there are 17 prongs on the front and 17 prongs on the back. However, since C major = B and F major = E, which are already on the obverse, this kalimba has redundant B notes and redundant E notes, one on the obverse and one on the reverse. This allows you to trill those notes – play quickly on the front and then on the back, etc.

Another way to think of the reverse is that it’s a full kalimba, tuned to B Natural…but if you look at it from the reverse, the notes are reversed from left to right. If you could look straight through the kalimba, the notes would be aligned in the usual way.

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The C Chromatic Treble Kalimba can also be arranged in a non-redundant setup. The gaps between the tines on the back help me a lot to navigate the Chromatic Kalimba, just like the black notes and the gaps in between help a pianist on the keyboard in a similar way. For this reason I prefer to remove the redundant tines from the back of the Chromatic Treble Kalimba, but both configurations are available.

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We offer the African-tuned Karimba in its standard African tuning plus four Westernized tunings:

The standard tuning for the traditional African-tuned karimba is complicated. Use the attached chart to tune your instrument. If you have a Karimba that is tuned differently, you can use this information to retune it to the African tuning. And even if you don’t have a karimba, you can learn how a traditional microtonal tuning is constructed—it has a recognizable logic. This is one of the tunings studied by Hugh Tracey when learning about the detailed tuning of traditional African instruments.

The numbers in the table are intended to help us see exactly how sharp or flat the standard tuned notes are. Each number represents how many “cents” high (if a positive number) or low (if negative) that particular prong is relative to the note name on each prong. Half a step is 100 cents. The A’s and E’s are in tune correctly, while the C# is 40 cents flat, almost halfway between a C and a C#. Why? This is the traditional African tuning that developed and perfected in Africa.

You can achieve this tuning with an electronic tuner that displays cents flat or sharp.

Note that all octaves are perfect – every F# is 20 cents flat and every G# is 40 cents flat, so from low G# to high G# is a perfect octave.

Almost all intervals of fifths are also perfect—that is, there is a fifth from A to E, and both A and E have a “0” underneath. From B to F# is a fifth, and both are tuned down 20 cents, so the interval between those tines is also a perfect fifth.

This tuning doesn’t work particularly well with Western instruments like guitar or piano, unless those instruments focus primarily on the A and E notes.

When A is the root, C# is the 3rd, F# is the 6th, and G# is the 7th. A simple way to understand this scale is that the 3rd, 6th, and 7th are all between the major intervals and the small intervals. These are so-called “blue notes”.

We can “Westernize” this intonation by tuning up to the major intervals (ie C#, F#, G#) or tuning down to the minor intervals (ie C, F, G). In any case we can play the traditional African songs, but we can also play along with normally tuned western instruments.

The Karimba and Disciple Karimba books, as well as the 10 Traditional Pieces and 11 Advanced Traditional Pieces downloads all work with this tuning. They also work with the tunings A major or G major.

This is the westernized A major tuning for the African karimba. In this case, the numbers in the chart relate to the scale degree – 1 is the root, 3 is the third, 5 is the fifth, and these notes should all match perfectly on a properly tuned piano or guitar. Therefore, you can play this karimba with many western instruments, including guitar and piano. Of all the westernized karimba tunings, this is the most useful. Andrew Tracey says that if you put this tuning in the hands of an experienced African player of traditional karimba, they would accept it as more or less correct, while they would not accept a minor-tuned version as correct. This essentially means you can play any traditional song in this tuning and still get the basic feel of it.

The Karimba and Disciple Karimba books, as well as the 10 Traditional Pieces and 11 Advanced Traditional Pieces downloads all work with this tuning.

This is the westernized G major tuning of the karimba. This tuning is exactly one whole step lower than the A major tuning. The numbers are all the same, so all the intervals are the same. Why do you want this instrument in G instead of A? Because the default key for Hugh Tracey alto and treble kalimbas is G, and if your karimba is also in G, you can play it with the other Hugh Tracey instruments.

The Karimba and Disciple Karimba books, as well as the 10 Traditional Pieces and 11 Advanced Traditional Pieces downloads all work with this tuning.

In the accompanying tuning diagram, the minus sign after the 3, 6, and 7 indicates that these intervals are now minor, making it the original African tuned instrument with its notes corrected down to produce a western A minor scale. Why do you want such a tuning? In this tuning, this karimba can produce wonderfully mystical, New Age-sounding music. It’s also playable with a sansula, since A minor is also the default key for the sansula. I keep a karimba in this tuning because the A minor tuning has the same notes as the C major scale, and I use it when I play with my marimba band.

The Yekermo Sew and Three Original Pieces downloads work with this vibe.

This tuning has the same minor intervals as the A minor tuning, but has been tuned down a whole tone.

Why do you want such a tuning? Some people tune their alto or pentatonic kalimbas to G minor because that tuning can give a more mystical New Age experience. I use a karimba tuned in G minor because it has the same notes as the B flat major scale, so it matches my B flat treble.

The Yekermo Sew and Three Original Pieces downloads work with this vibe.

While the A-based 17-note karimba is built on a treble platform (either celesta or box), it is also possible to build a 15-note F-based karimba on an alto platform. F is important and very desirable because of the 55 (at least) year long history behind the 15-note F karimba. In 1960 Andrew Tracey discovered the musician Jega Tapera in Bulawayo Parish, Rhodesia (now the country of Zimbabwe) and he played a 13-note karimba in F. Jega Tapera was hired to teach traditional music at the Kwanongoma College of African Music, where students learned on an extended 15-note karimba in F. One such student was Dumisani Maraire, who brought the 15-note F karimba to the United States in 1968, where he marketed it under the name mbira nyunga nyunga (the twinkling, twinkling Mbira). Dumisani’s daughter Chiwoniso also played the 15-note F-tuned karimba. Read more

This is the same instrument as the 15 note F karimba but cast in a minor tuned version. Read more

SaReGaMa’s Solo for Lotus is played in G minor, but the tuning supports either G minor or C minor. In a way, C minor is more psychologically compelling because the bass note on the lotus is C. When G is made the root, this is a pure natural minor scale except that the 2nd is missing.

This chart has the exact same note names as the G minor lotus tuning, but the numbers — that is, the role each note plays — have shifted to make C the “1” or root. From this point of reference, the sixth is missing, giving this tuning a sort of pentatonic feel. To be fully pentatonic, the D or second would also have to be missing.

This is a C minor scale but also works as a Middle Eastern G scale. The natural C minor would have a minor 7th, a minor 3rd, and a minor 6th, but the 7th is a major 7th in the harmonic minor scale.

SaReGaMa Air tuning is a form of D minor with a 4 and a 5 in the bass below D (the 1), but skipping the 7th of the scale in the lower range. Why? Avoiding the 7th allows one to hear either an implied major 7th or a minor 7th so that the lower range does not clash with the harmonic minor (where a major 7th is required). The upper range uses the minor seventh (that’s C) making this a natural minor.

Originally each sansula was tuned to what I now call standard tuning, which is mystical, enchanting, beautiful, but ultimately somewhat limiting and even boring. Yes, I’ll admit it – I got bored with this tuning, so I looked for other ways to tune the sansula, and these new tunings keep me interested for months to years. If you buy a Sansula from Kalimba Magic, we will put it in one of these moods. You may very well be able to change the mood yourself. And you can send the instrument to us at any time and we will do the retuning.

Listen:

A large part of the purpose of the alternative tunings to other kalimbas is to enter the world of different possibilities – different universes of sound that can amaze and delight. Student karimba, however, is about staying true to that possibly old tune. The different tunings that we present for the student karimba are all the same basic tuning but shifted into different keys – there are general reasons to put the student karimba in any of C, F, A and G, but any of these Student karimba tunings may be able to play exactly the same songs because the relative tuning between the different tines is the same in all of these tunings.

The large Student Karimba Book has G recordings, while the Student Karimba for Kids has G and C recordings. The rightmost note, 8 = G, is an optional note and is exactly the same note as the third G prong on the left.

The large Student Karimba Book has G recordings, while the Student Karimba for Kids has G and C recordings. The rightmost note, 8 = C, is an optional note and is exactly the same note as the third C prong on the left.

Hugh Tracey demonstrated that traditional African tunings do not use the same notation system that western music was based on – that is, African music does not exactly fit the notes of the piano.

This tuning chart represents the notes in relation to the degree of the scale (1, 3, 5) and the cents to which each note should be tuned. The 0s below the 1, 5, and 8 mean these notes should be tuned exactly to western notes, while the -20 and -40 indicate these notes should be tuned flat 20 or 40 cents. There are 100 cents in a half step (which is the distance between two adjacent notes on a piano).

We usually tune the student karimba to match the western notes exactly, but you can request an African tuning (in A, G, C or F) or do it yourself.

Why would you want an A-tuned Student Karimba? So you can play it with the 17-note all-African karimba, which usually comes in the key of A.

Why would you want an F tuned student karimba? So that you can play it with the 15-voice Karimba in F.

The pentatonic scale is a five-tone scale (five notes per octave). There are actually many different pentatonic scales, each with a different character, and some of them can be found here.

The letters on the tines are the name of the note each tine is tuned to. Since G is the root, its role in the music is “1”; D is the “5” of the scale. Note that the 4th and 7th are missing. With practice, you should be able to see the “1 2 3” and sing “Do Re Mi”… but this vibe skips “Fa” and jumps straight to “So.” By paying attention to the numbers, you can understand how the scale goes and how to use it musically.

The standard tuning of the Hugh Tracey Pentatonic Kalimba is G major.

The Pentatonic Songbook, half of the book

playing the pentatonic kalimba,

and the full number-based book 6-Note Pentatonic Kalimba Songbook will all work for this mood.

Listen to this kalimba tuning

One of the simpler and more obvious alternative tunings for your pentatonic kalimba, the minor pentatonic scale, has recently become popular because of the Native American flute. It’s a great scale for jamming and you can have a lot of fun without the tutorial, but if you want guidance, read the second half of the book

Playing the pentatonic kalimba works for this tuning. This kalimba works with the Bb Treble kalimba or any G minor tuning.

Listen to this kalimba tuning

The Ake Bono scale is a Japanese minor pentatonic scale. The song “Sakura” is written in this mood. Das Interessante, was diese Stimmung von den anderen pentatonischen Tonleitern unterscheidet, die wir besprochen haben, ist, dass diese Tonleiter zwei Halbtonintervalle (von 2 bis 3- und von 5 bis 6-) und zwei Intervalle hat, die jeweils zwei Ganztonschritte sind (3 – zu 5 und 6- zu 1). Sie ist sehr eng mit der standardmäßigen pentatonischen G-Dur-Tonleiter verwandt – Sie stimmen einfach H und E auf Bb und Eb herunter. Dies ist eine sehr mystische und schöne Tonleiter. Hören Sie sich diese Kalimba-Stimmung an

Diese Stimmung findet sich im Song „Breaths“ der kamerunischen Musiklegende Francis Bebey wieder. Mehr weiß ich darüber nicht.

Francis Bebey neigte dazu, für jeden seiner Songs eine andere Kalimba-Stimmung zu verwenden. Er legte in einem einleitenden Solo eine Flut von Kalimba-Noten hin, gefolgt von einem von der Kalimba etablierten Groove. Der Rest der Band – Schlagzeug, Bass, Gitarre – würde dann auf den Kalimba-Groove aufsetzen. Der Kalimba-Groove blieb für den Rest des Songs konstant.

Das musikalische Beispiel dieser Kalimba verwendet im gesamten Stück eher einen „Solo-Kalimba“-Ansatz.

Hören Sie sich diese Kalimba-Stimmung an

Die pentatonische A-Moll-Tonleiter hat die gleichen Stufen der Tonleiter (d. h. die Zahlen) wie die g-Moll-Pentatonik, aber sie ist in der Tonhöhe um eine ganze Note nach oben verschoben. Als solches wird es auch mit der zweiten Hälfte des Buches funktionieren

Spielen der pentatonischen Kalimba. Diese Kalimba funktioniert mit anderen Kalimbas in G-Dur-Stimmung, anderen Kalimbas in a-Moll-Stimmung (wie Maurice Whites Evil Tuning on a Treble oder Alto) und der Standard-Sansula-Stimmung in a-Moll.

Diese pentatonische Stimmung in F-Dur ist genau wie die normale G-Dur-Stimmung, aber jede Note wurde um einen ganzen Schritt nach unten verschoben. Alle Beziehungen zwischen den Zinken bleiben bei dieser Umstimmung gleich. Auf diese Weise können wir tatsächlich auf F, F#, G#, A oder Bb umstimmen.

Dies kommt der pentatonischen Standardstimmung in G-Dur sehr nahe – die beiden B-Zinken wurden in einem Halbtonschritt verschoben, um ein C zu erzeugen, das zum Grundton wird. Die Quinte im Bass zu haben ist immer eine gute Alternative zum Grundton im Bass. Diese Abstimmung funktioniert mit dem

Zahlenbasiertes Buch 6-Noten Pentatonisches Kalimba Songbook. Natürlich funktioniert diese Stimmung gut mit allen Catania-Kalimbas in ihren Standard-C-Stimmungen oder mit jedem Instrument in a-Moll (wie der Sansula in Standardstimmung).

Die 8-Ton Kalimba kann auf verschiedene Skalen aus der ganzen Welt gestimmt werden.

Die meisten 8-Noten-Kalimbas haben eine Standardstimmung der C-Dur-Tonleiter (die Goshen Box 8-Noten-Kalimba hat das gleiche grundlegende Notenlayout, ist aber stattdessen auf D-Dur gestimmt). Die Bücher gehen davon aus, dass Sie diese Stimmung haben. Während diese Stimmung völlig logisch ist, gibt es tatsächlich viele andere Stimmungen, mit denen Sie wunderbare Dinge tun können.

Die Goshen 8-Note Box Kalimba hat die gleiche Grundstimmung, außer dass jede Note einen ganzen Schritt höher ist, was sie in D-Dur bringt. Sie können immer noch dieselben 8-Noten-Bücher verwenden, aber wenn Sie sich die CD anhören, können Sie nicht mitspielen, da sie in einer anderen Tonart ist. Read more

Wenn Sie diese Stimmtabelle mit der C-Dur-Stimmung vergleichen, werden Sie feststellen, dass die Buchstaben alle gleich sind, außer dass aus B Bb (B) geworden ist – das heißt, Sie ziehen es etwas heraus, um es etwas länger zu machen und niedriger. Diese Aktion wird es von der 7. der Tonleiter zu der 4. machen… Beim Countdown ist F jetzt der Grundton und die tiefe Note (und die höchste Note) auf dieser Kalimba, C, ist jetzt die 5. Note.

Warum würden Sie das tun wollen? Es stellt sich heraus, dass es eine ganze Reihe von Songs gibt, die Sie auf einem solchen 8-Noten-Kalimba-Setup spielen können, und sie sind im Standard-Setup nicht möglich. And the best news? Dies ist die kleinstmögliche Neueinstellung, die Sie vornehmen können, und Sie erhalten ein enormes Ergebnis! Wir haben einen 32-Song-Download für die 8-Note in dieser Stimmung; Klicken Sie auf den Link, um den Download zu kaufen.

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Nachdem Sie Ihren B-Zinken herausgezogen haben, um daraus ein Bb zu machen, können Sie auch in Betracht ziehen, den A-Zinken und den E-Zinken zu Ab und Eb herauszuziehen. Why would you do that? These changes will give you a minor 3rd, a minor 6th, and a minor 7th – all the changes you need to accomplish to form the C natural minor tuning. This tuning will be more melancholy, more moody, more mystical. In other words, it will play totally different music, and it is still a very simple retuning, and it is easy to go back to the standard C major. Try it, I think you’ll like it.

By now you are getting the idea: small changes in the notes you have on your kalimba can make profound changes in the music that comes out of it. The important change in this Middle Eastern tuning is the G going to a G#. Tuning the low C down to a B, and the high C up to an E, are less important changes that serve to reinforce the E as the new root. This tuning will play very cool Middle Eastern sounding music.

This is perhaps the most important alternative tuning – it reproduces the African Tuned Karimba, also called the Student Karimba. It is thought to be the original tuning of the African Mbira over 1000 years ago, and is thought to be the tuning that Father Do Santos saw when he first wrote about the kalimba in 1586 in present-day Mozambique. Also, you can find a lot of instructional material on this tuning in the Student Karimba section by clicking below.Read more

The Sansula is one of the coolest kalimbas in the world, and costs a lot of money too – but the good news is that you can put the Sansula tuning on your inexpensive 8-Note Kalimba. This tuning is an A minor derived from the Ake Bono scale. Learn more about the Sansula by clicking below.Read more

The Sansula tuning is based on the Japanese Ake Bono scale, but it skips a note. Here we have reproduced the C minor Ake Bono scale, without skipping any notes. This is a great scale, and playing it can transport you to another continent.

The Hitzazkiar tuning is a Persian scale similar to the Middle Eastern tuning. Look at the right side – C E G B – these are the same notes as the standard tuning, but the notes on the left side are all one half-step above the notes on the right side.

Listen to the 12-Note Kalimba in Standard C Major Tuning.

Almost all of the instructional material is for the Standard C Major Tuning, so if you are in doubt, stick with this tuning.

The kalimba is in C even though G, the 5th of the scale, is the low note.

Listen to the standard-tuned 12-Note played with G as the root note – in mixolydian mode.

This is the same Standard C Major Tuning, but this image shows you how your kalimba would look if you request painted tines. The painted E, D, and C match the three painted tines on the 8-Note kalimba, and the 66 Songs Download and the 12-Note Exercises Book work with tines painted this way.

Listen to the 12-Note Kalimba in G Major Tuning.

The G Major tuning is an obvious one to make – just push the F tine in a bit to reach F#, the leading tone, which makes the next note, G, be the root note… which just happens to be the bass (lowest) note already. This is a left handed G tuning though – it can be made right handed, but that requires significant retuning.

Listen to the 12-Note Kalimba in G minor Tuning.

G minor is a nice tuning – beautiful! Also works as Bb Major.

Listen to the 12-Note Kalimba in G Middle Eastern Tuning.

The Middle Eastern tunings always feel exotic. This also works as C harmonic minor, and has the same notes as the SaReGaMa Freygish-tuned Karimba.

The Hitzaskiar scale is very similar to the Middle Eastern scale, except this one has an F#.

Listen to the 12-Note Kalimba in G Major Pentatonic Tuning.

This pentatonic tuning also works as E minor, and it goes with the Hugh Tracey Kalimbas in their standard G tunings.

Listen to the 12-Note Kalimba in G minor pentatonic Tuning.

The G minor pentatonic is the “Native American Flute” mode – beautiful and mystical. Works with other G minor kalimba tunings as well as Bb major tunings.

Listen to the 12-Note Kalimba in G minor Ake Bono Tuning.

The Ake Bono scale is a traditional Japanese pentatonic scale, and this tuning can transport you to an ancient temple in a land far away. A favorite tuning.