Mbira and Kalimba - ep 115

[@kevinsim1514]

I love how in the ancient world, distortion was a thing too, like in heavy metal.

[@fowlerad]

Nice production! 👏 A quick correction for anyone who's interested... The 'modern kalimba' was created by High Tracey in the 1950s out of his love for mbira. He used Western tunings to make it accessible, and named it after an ancient instrument who's layout has been inherited and incorporated into a family of sub-saharan mbira instruments. 'Karimba' is a Shona variant of the word 'Kalimba' (they have no 'l' in their alphabet), so we see both names used for this original/ancient ancestor of the mbira 🙀. Hugh considered the instrument commonly known as mbira dzavadzimu to be the most harmonious among today's family of mbira instruments. They all share a fascinating fractal-like song structure, which 'modern kalimba' players can find out more about, along with other helpful info at: www.mbiramagic.com/everything-mbira/top-12-questions-about-mbira-answers-facts-instrument-information Cheers! 🙌

[@markkilianschannel]

Thank you so much for this Andy!! Funny I’m just putting the finishing touches on a part B video of this where I consulted directly with Andrew Tracy to get all my facts straight after the criticism I received - mostly on FB. And mostly warranted. It is an interesting and fascinating history for sure. You are absolutely correct in what you say and I’m subscribing to your project now as it looks like a great source. I’ll let you know what I think:):) Thanx for reaching out! Mark

[@fowlerad]

​@@markkilianschannel Awesome - looking forward to the next one. Great to have you join us too! I've mailed over your access details - hope you love being part of the community 🙌

[@valangakh]

Hugh Tracey did a great job of preserving this traditional music. He however is not the one who created the Kalimba. He created his own version of the Kalimba. The Kalimba, like the Mbira, is a very ancient instrument occurring in many different variations all across Africa.

[@markkilianschannel]

Correct! What Andrew did was made a ‘western version’ of the kalimba that was diatonically or pentatonically tuned to the western equal tempered system so that they could easily play with any other instrument depending on key. And this made it perfect for education, which is why you will find them in so many schools and as toys and for kids.

[@OTYZH]

My problem is that when mbira is turned to khalimba an African will think the inventor is European and feel stupid I think it is right that he knows that the instrument is still mbira and I urge my fellow Africans to find lawyers and sue the companies that make mbira commercialy take it to the ICC and demand the real name back and the companies should pay royalty back to Africans since the first instrument was made we are tired of being taken advantage of...but still I appreciate the researcher who improved the technology of mbira glad my fore fathers taught him everything he knows thank you.

[@markkilianschannel]

I think you’ve got it the wrong way around. The Kalimba was made to make the Mbira simpler to understand for Europeans. The Mbira is a much more complex instrument and it is the Europeans who should be feeling inferior in this regard:)

[@mikeanderson1370]

I know laws are different within each nation, but humans have been using and improvising on ideas for centuries. Thousands of things we use today are just revised versions of older ideas. So what if a kalimba is a revised version of an mbira? They also have similarities to a xylophone, and also piano, harpsichord, .... I own a Kiku. I love to play it. It's a great instrument. I don't remember hearing anyone talk about suing someone because the concept of a guitar was combined with the concept of a ukulele. To me, if a guitarist wants the sound of a ukulele on their recording, and they already know how to play a guitar, but don't understand ukulele as well, because of their slight differences, then they can just use a Kiku. Whatever improves or adds to music, as a whole, is fine in my mind.

[@AmaterianAngel]

Did you remember the company for the Kalimba with the holes on the side? Do want. Started researching these for my D&D character, but have always been fascinated and now i really want one ;)

[@michaelmaps2004]

Great video

[@BlancainesCañónPérez]

😮

[@trabouliste1037]

What do you mean with „tuning them correctly“, sure that you don’t mean western tunings/ temperaments?!

[@markkilianschannel]

Actually, in my case, yes I do mean tuning them to an equal temperament system as I would with any of my instruments because I use them all in the context of writing film music and so they have to be able to play with any other instrument in my studio and indeed a group of string players in Budapest or orchestra wherever. But if I were to play a gig with say Pops Mohammed, well then he might very well tune outside of that framework which would be very common in indigenous mbira playing and in accompanying him I would then tune to his tuning whatever that may be.

[@fwah23]

I don't think you mean poorly, but comparing the untuned mbira with loose keys with the European made kalimbas in decent order does come off as showing the kalimbas to be superior instruments in a Eurocentric way. and they are not, same concept but there can be a lot of expert knowledge lost in that translation from expertly made mbira to commercially produced kalimba. the analogy of comparing like a out-of-order stradavarius with broken and out-of-tune strings (mixed with some souvenir instruments) VS a in-tune budget korean-made $200 violin comes to mind. it's hard to see that context as a newbie watching the video I imagine. Also neither of your examples Oliver Mtukudzi and Thomas Mapfumo play the mbira as artists, but their music is of course inspired by the mbira tradition and sometimes includes it. Both are legendary performers on the order of like a Michael Jackson and it's a bit misleading imo to call them mbira players. not trying to pick a fight :P but since your video is trying to educate, I figure I would write my two cents here.

[@markkilianschannel]

Yeah I suppose I should have spent the time to tune those damn mbiras! And indeed to learn to play them properly. But my point wasn't to compare them as one being better than the other. It's rather just an exploration of where the kalimba comes from. I think most who want to experience a 'thumb piano' will be more likely to encounter a kalimba than an mbira. It's the 'pop' version of the mbira if you like. And like all instruments, they do one thing well (hopefully) but not all things and your challenge as a musician is to summon an emotion or story from this inanimate object. I've sometimes heard better music come out of a piece of a tin can on a street in africa than I have come from a 2 million dollar stradivarius.

[@markkilianschannel]

And as for the examples I used you are absolutely correct. I should have mentioned people like Stella Chiweshe and Ephat Mujur and Dumisani Maraire instead. But my target audience with these videos are most likely not people who have even heard of a Mbrira, let alone played one. So as I mentioned in a FB post to a similar criticism - when I introduced my wife to Jazz (kicking and screaming I might add) I didn't start her out with John Coltrane.

[@fwah23]

@@markkilianschannel thanks for the reply. yup no issues with the suggestions, great ones! just the wording of mbira players. Some great mbira played on their songs by their bands!

[@hepker]

Cool show, Sparks. Was wondering when you’d do a whenwe show. Btw. Your subscribers should check out Stella Chiweshe. Known as “Queen of the Mbira”. She is amazing. Saw her perform at Skirball with her band. Shot, bru.

[@markkilianschannel]

Thanx bud. Yes I should actually have mentioned Stella. I saw her too once. Amazing stuff.

[@Prof_Tad]

It's incorrect to say the mbira became metallic when the rail roads were built in Africa or in Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe and Africa were in the iron age for thousands of years before the white man came. If the mbira the presenter is holding was made by someone who improvised with rail pins, that doesn't mean that is the origin of the metallic mbira. There's is no evidence in Zimbabwe to suggest that the mbira was made of bamboo keys at any stage in our history!

[@markkilianschannel]

You are absolutely correct. I made another video on Mbira/Kalimba called Redux to address this and other inconsistencies. And I had the help of Andrew Tracey in doing so. But there is so little archeological evidence of the origins of this instrument that even the historians who have studied this in depth like Hugh and Andrew Tracey don't know for sure about the history and development of this instrument. It's a bit of a guessing game. Same with the bamboo tines. There is no hard evidence of this because bamboo doesn't last, but there are descriptions of these instruments with bamboo tines from other parts of Africa that go back thousands of years.

[@sitfrogsit]

13:54 The Rhythm

[@applejuice1557]

For advice next time when you want people to hear how it sound play a short clip from an actual player...

[@Prof_Tad]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/bKPGXqGnZ7SCeqM And this

[@cardinalflower6959]

Try me again after you've tuned your instruments.

[@msbeastinator4689]

Your Mbira doesn't sound right u should have at least gotten a properly working one

[@gari8352]

Why didn't you tune the original mbira and put on the deze so that it amplifies the sound before you compare it to your Eurocentric version? Your video lacks depth and understanding of the Mbira.

[@AndeMarimba]

Terrible misinformation in this video. If you're going to present something to the world, learn how to play it at least a little, and make sure you present the actual facts! Jeez.

[@markkilianschannel]

No, I'm not a great Mbira player. Nor even a good one. And even tho, yes I got some things wrong here, I got a lot of things right. I have just released another video to correct the things I got wrong. I don't know if you've ever made a video like this, but it takes a lot of time and effort. Time I'm happy to spend to spread awareness of instruments I love. I appreciate constructive criticism because that's how we learn. Your criticism however, was not constructive and seems a little personal.

[@urruvar]

Cannot beleive a video about thumb pianos done to spread awareness for the instrument be a cause for some people to become offended! Virtue signaling is a disease let's keep it out of music please! And FYI an mbira cannot be deemed inferior/superior to a kalimba ect... Although related they are different instruments in the same way a harpsichord is related to a piano!

[@markkilianschannel]

Couldn’t agree with you more! In fact I’m planning an episode to deal with that exact issue. Not so much because of the response to this episode, But rather because a friend of mine working on a film score recently got into a bit of poo because he decided to use a Chinese instrument in a Japanese movie. Someone was offended by that.

[@thesultrykitchen]

Nonsense

[@markkilianschannel]

Actually I prefer constructive criticism. So if you have something to say ....

[@trustjesusoursavior4179]

Sounds horrible, african made

[@AndeMarimba]

That's because his instrument is in terrible disrepair, and he obviously doesn't know how to play anything on it. Very disappointing he didn't do his due diligence.

[@Prof_Tad]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/bKPGXqGnZ7SCeqM Listen to the beauty of the in tune mbiras

[@jaovao]

Very racist comment. Strange sentence especially when looking at your youtube name! Jesus would never write so I guess. Except you have another crazy and stupid one.