What is a Quijada - Jawbone Instrument From Peru

The Quijada is a truly unusual musical instrument. It's made of the actual jawbone of a donkey and the teeth rattling in the sockets create the sound of this unusual rattle.
This video visit to the music museum tells you all about the instrument and it's creation and use by Afro Peruvian people. If are a musician or percussionist, you might want to know that this instrument was said to be the inspiration behind the percussion instrument, the vibraslap.
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[@DirtBikeBoy5ive]

My left ear loved this

[@dokchampa9324]

I love the creativity of people all over the world, never in a million years would I have thought to try and make music by hitting a donkey's jawbone, yet somewhere along the line someone else did

[@DariaMusic]

Exactly! The world is so full of creative and unique instruments!

[@tahutoa]

I love the implication that if you had enough of these jawbones you could play a chromatic scale. The first jawbone sounds like an A 1/2 flat while the 2nd sounds B quarter sharp. It might not be _that_ melodic but it'd work. Inserting more teeth probably affects the rattle but does it lower the pitch?

[@MusicMuseumOnline]

Wow! I never though of them melodically, but I think you are right. As a musician I have noticed that I like the "tone" of some more than others, each with different sizes, number of teeth and general looseness of the teeth. I'm not sure if you could exactly "tune" them, though. It's a great idea!

[@tahutoa]

@@MusicMuseumOnline thanks! I unfortunately don't have any genuine jawbones on hand, so if you ever find out, please let me know! :-)

[@spartakip9507]

Excellent. Thank you for sharing.

[@jameschristian2673]

Great overview of the instrument and its history!

[@DARIASingerSongwriter]

Thanks, James! This is one of my favorite instruments to share with my audiences!

[@OriginationMusic]

I’ve read that the “vibraslap” is the modern day version of this. LP getting their inspiration from this instrument.

[@MusicMuseumOnline]

You are correct, but to my ears - this is a way cooler (and more authentic) percussion instrument!

[@UrsahSolar]

Yipee ai ai sounds like "She'll be comin round the mountain" that's so cool!

[@MusicMuseumOnline]

OMG! I never noticed that. I can't believe I missed that, so I made a new video about it! kzbin.info/www/bejne/pWOoY4SFgc-Kbq8

[@misterrioter3575]

oh this is cool as hell :o

[@mikolotko]

Came here for the clanking sound at the end of the song called The Grudge by Tool.

[@owenjohnston6505]

Same. Danny's drum tech's Instagram right? I kinda want one now. It sounds really cool in a percussive context

[@JohnT-kg3oi]

Same haha, I just saw this Reddit post

[@voidface8827]

Equines are born with extremely long teeth, they never get new ones, instead they grind them down as they age. (Vets can age equines solely based on their teeth!) This makes me wonder if the age of the donkey would have an effect on the sound!

[@MusicMuseumOnline]

I didn't know that! And your idea makes sense.. I have literally never heard two quijada that sound alike... each is totally unique which makes me feel that the age of jaw and/or teeth make a difference. Thannks for chiming in!

[@Cracktaculus]

Oh man.... if you had like a really big mule or donkey or a horse that you loved and decided that from an early age that his dead jaws would make the ultimate quiada then you would have to be really nice to him before ya ever dried his bones out made a musical instrument out of his face! If you want to make sure it was going to be the best instrument ever you would like brush his eeth everyday and make sure they didn't fall out!!!

[@DariaMusic]

When this instrument was created, the folks had literally NOTHING to use to make music, so they reverted to things like bones. I know most folks think that this is gross, but it really did create music that made people happy and soothed their soil, so maybe the donkey's spirit lived on through the music!

[@PrisonBrain]

this video is fucking with me

[@dennisdevine9563]

Do you know of anyone in Central or South America who played the bones, or rhythm bones

[@MusicMuseumOnline]

Hi Dennis- I have never heard or seen anyone in Central or South America play bones, the way you hear them in Irish or Celtic music. That said, I have seen actual bones carved as guiros played in rural Mexico. Perhaps the closest thing to playing bones is the tradition of La Danza de Las Tijeras (Andes) where dancers play iron bars in a way this is similar to playing bones. Reach out to me if you want more info. That is an amazing tradition that I experienced when living in Peru in the 1980's.

[@sodapopxsounds]

You can hear it sampled on The Grudge by Tool, around the 7:36 mark of the song.

[@minisynthmaniac]

Samson killed a thousand philistines with this thing

[@AngelsEverywhere-1111]

Really? I have to look that up!

[@minisynthmaniac]

@@AngelsEverywhere-1111 Judges 15:15 And he found a new jawbone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it, and slew a thousand men therewith. 16 And Samson said, With the jawbone of an ass, heaps upon heaps, with the jaw of an ass have I slain a thousand men.

[@Bram25]

I thought they used a shin bone to play the quijada?

[@DariaMusic]

I've never seen that. I have seen some folks play it with a wooden stick or clave like a guiro, though.

[@mcmario67]

Yes in veracruz mexico thats a style i think

[@mcmario67]

Oh i dont know about a shin bone but like a stick like implement to rattle the teeth

[@sebastianvalenciavalenzuel8527]

@@DariaMusic kzbin.info/www/bejne/r3-xcoavqM2bpLM

[@nnm7761]

creepy.