Hugh Tracey Kalimba Treble Acoustic Kalimba
The Hugh Tracey Kalimba blended some of the best aspects of several different traditional instruments, but was tuned to a western scale to facilitate western melody and harmony. The Hugh Tracey Kalimba started the "Kalimba Craze" of the 1960s. Maurce White of Earth, Wind, and Fire and Taj Majal played Hugh Tracey Kalimbas in the 1970s. And the same great Hugh Tracey Kalimbas are still available today.
The Treble Kalimba overlaps with the Alto on 13 out of 17 notes, but it goes up a 5th above the Alto's highest note. Some people find the higher range of this kalimba goes better with guitars. The smaller box fits more naturally into smaller hands. The closer narrower tines are somewhat more difficult to play, but permit faster play than on larger kalimbas. Simply a delight - when people first bring this instrument home, they literally play it for hours. But people who have played it for 20 or 30 years are still working to improve. Very simple to play but difficult to master, these kalimbas sound and feel wonderful. Modern-sounding special effects can be created without electronics when you cover and uncover the sound holes, but THIS ONE COMES WITH AN ELECTRONIC PICKUP!
Just plug it into an effects processor or a guitar amplifier, and get ready to take off into an unexplored land. Single note melodies, two melodies in counterpoint, chords, and more complex arrangements can be created on this simple box. And there is a growing body of instructional material available for the whole family of Hugh Tracey Kalimbas.
