Kalimba Magic NEWS
Volume 1, Number 3
June 20, 2006
Kalimba Magic Celebrates 1 Year of business and Mark Holdaway Celebrates 20 years of kalimba playing
I remember the day 20 years ago when I was exposed to the beauty, wonder, and magic of what a kalimba in the right hands can do. So 20 years ago this month I bought my first Hugh Tracey Kalimba, a Treble, and have been chasing down the dream of creating beauty and joy through the kalimba ever since. I know that many of you have also been living that dream. For me, that dream exploded a year ago, June 20, 2005, when I got an email from Christian Carver, director of African Musical Instruments (AMI), the manufacturers of the Hugh Tracey Kalimba. That email inspired the birth of Kalimba Magic, a business with the mission of spreading kalimba joy and popularizing the kalimba through CD's, instructional books, and selling kalimbas.
I have just recieved the latest shipment of kalimbas from AMI in South Africa, and I'd like to celebrate this first year of business and these 20 years of joyful kalimba music making by giving you 20% off any purchase made this week: June 20 - June 26. When you go to shop at
enter the secret code "20Thanks", and you will get 20% taken off your bill. Feel free to share this code with your friends, but don't hesitate because the sale ends midnight June 26th!.
We have accomplished an amazing amount of good stuff in our first year at Kalimba Magic: we have launched a top-ranked web site (search for "kalimba" at www.yahoo.com or www.altavista.com search engines, and we are near the top; for some reason, Google still ranks us like 500+, but Google will catch up soon), produced a new Christmas CD, written four kalimba instructional books, and we have sold over 600 kalimbas, many of them to people who are making music and making joy in their lives and the lives of those around them. Of course, I never could have done this without the enthusiastic support of my friends and family. So, I give a HUGE THANKS to Deb Driskill, Tim and Taylor Holdaway, Mike and Angie Holdaway, Meredith Little, Wendy Keilin, Pat Hickey, Betty and Milo Edwards, Paul Tracey and Andrew Tracey, Eleanor Dart, Alan Karcher, Jim Gates, Jordan McGary, Della Estrada, Glen Davis, Geo Melville, Frank Gacon, Susan Taunton, and Becky Birk; and at AMI in Africa: Louise Fuller-Sloman, James Fourie, Mark Komsana, and Christian Carver. Of course, I'm looking forward to bigger successes in the coming year. You can bet I'll keep you posted as we journey deeper together into the evolving traditions of the kalimba.
--Mark
New Kalimba Magic Web Site
I'd also like to thank my friend Susan Taunton for doing such a fine job at building the non-ecommerce side of my web site. I'm not a partcularly organized person, but Susan is, and now so is my web site. So, I invite you to come and see what we've got going here.
Two web pages that should be of great interest to you are the Tip of the Day web page and the Kalimba Community web page. I have five different Tip of the Day threads running, one for each workday of the week. Monday's tips will deal with Mind/Body/Spirit aspects of the kalimba. Tuesday's tips will have elementary level information, usually focusing on the Alto and Treble kalimbas. Wednesday's tips will have advanced information, again focusing on the Alto and Treble. Thursday's tips will be on the Kalimba of the Month, which will be the African Tuned Karimba for now. And Friday's tips will deal with the Physics of the Kalimba.
On the Kalimba Community page, I open up the floor to YOU, the Kalimba Players of the World! I've been posting a list of comments from people like you who have been amazed by the Hugh Tracey Kalimba or who have been touched by my music or books. Now, I am asking for YOU to send me your recordings of what YOU are doing with the kalimba. When you get something that you would like to share, send it off to me as an MP3 along with a photo of you (or, if you are shy, a photo of your kalimba, cat, or thumbs), and a brief writeup of who you are and what your music is about. I'll even link to your web page or email if you like. Even if you don't have a recording you want to share, send me your stories about the kalimba, and we'll find a suitable way to share them with the rest of the kalimba community. And while I am partial to Hugh Tracey kalimbas, this page is WIDE OPEN to any kind of kalimba.
Needless to say, I am excited about these new developments at Kalimba Magic. If you are excited too, share it with a friend.
New! The Best Ever Book of 8-Note Kalimba Music
44p, 50 songs, b/w illustrations, instructional CD included
A sample page from the 8-note book. 
If you don't have an 8-note kalimba, we now carry a good 8-note kalimba made
by Catania Folk Instruments. The book can be purchased for $20, or the book
and an 8-note kalimba can be purchased together for $50.
Buy the Catania 8-Note Kalimba
New! The Hugh Tracey Box Pentatonic Kalimba
The Treble Kalimba also comes in a flat board model, the Celeste Treble. The Alto Kalimba's flat board model is the TM Alto. But what about flat board-mounted Celeste Pentatonic? Shouldn't it come also as a box-mounted instrument like the Treble and the Alto?Well, now it DOES come that way.
Kalimba Magic is happy to offer you the Box Pentatonic. I've heard of people who have made this instrument from the Alto and a Pentatonic. Now, that's dedication and concentration of kalimba goodness, to turn two kalimbas into one. Now, AMI saves you the trouble by bringing it to you just that way.
The wide tines, widely-spaced like the 11-note Celeste Pentatonic, are now mounted on an ALTO box. This instrument is a New Age Delight. To some people in the Kalimba Klub, this kalimba has become their favorite!
Listen to the box pentatonic with guitar backing.
Learn about the pentatonic scale.
The box pentatonic Hugh Tracey Kalimba can be purchased for $80.
New! Wood Kalimba Cases, made by Craftsman Frank Gacon
When you play guitar, the rule of thumb is that you should be prepared to pay up to 50% of the price of your guitar for a case to protect it in. The kalimba, it turns out, is a remarkably cheap instrument. I've made my CD's using a $999 Martin Guitar, a $999 Gibson Mandolin, and a $100 kalimba. So, what can you get to protect your kalimba for 50% of $100 that is stylish and fitting of your kalimba?
My friend Frank Gacon is at work on this issue. He recently finished his second round of kalimba cases, and there are only four left. He just bought the wood for the next batch of 25 cases, but they won't be available for a few months. The remaining cases each fit an Alto Hugh Tracey Kalimba, two kalimba books, a tuner, and a short stack of CD's. Right now, the cost of these kalimba cases is $70. We're getting smarter about making them, and we hope the next batch is a little cheaper. But I KNOW there are four people out there who have the money but not the time to wait.
You can buy one of the remaining Alto cases now
Not New Anymore, but still of great interest!
The Amazing Electric Kalimba!
 |
Have you ever tried playing kalimba with a band? If so, you know how difficult it is for the rest of the band to hear the kalimba (or even for YOU to hear yourself). Even if you are going through a microphone, it just doesn't work all that well, unless your band always plays soft and sweet. |
Now there is a cool and exciting solution to "The Band" problem. The Hugh Tracey Kalimbas now come with an optional pickup. You just plug a quarter inch guitar chord into the sturdy jack, and the other end into an amplifier, DI box, PA system, or effects processor, and you are off to the races! Going directly into a PA is not the best, I recommend the DI box or effects processor before the PA. And IF you are going with the effects processor, I assure you you are going to have some fun.
Of course, having an insane amount of fun playing through a digital effects processor, pretending to be a Heavy Metal Kalimba Superstar has nothing to do with why AMI made this wonderful improvement on their instruments. You know, I never even liked heavy metal until I heard myself making these bizarre sounds!
Listen to the TM Alto Kalimba with Pickup and FX
Listen to the Treble Kalimba with Pickup and FX
Listen to the Pentatonic Kalimba with Pickup and FX
Most kalimba models are now available with the built in pickups: Alto, TM Alto, Treble, Celeste Treble, Celeste Pentatonic, and Karimba. The pickups add a very modest $10 - $15 to the price of the kalimba, and they do not affect the acoustic sound at all, so if you are even remotely interested in going electric at some point in the future, it is a good investment.
The pickups have good natural EQ now, and their jacks are quite sturdy now -- they really have a good product. (By the way, if you bought a Kalimba with Pickup from me between Dec 2005 and March 2006 and are not happy with the connection the jack makes with the guitar chord plug, please contact me.
You can buy a Hugh Tracey Kalimba with Pickup now!
A New and Magical Band Performing June 23
Spiritual Enrichment Center 9745 W. Peoria Ave Peoria, AZ 85345
Tickets are
$10, call 623-972-3205 for more information
 |
 |
 |
An amazing thing happened last month when I went to the Mesa Bookman's Store to perform on the kalimba. When I arrived, I found out that I had never been formally booked, and Michael, the manager on duty, wasn't going to let me play. After I produced an email online that said "Yes, come up and play on May 21", the manager said he had no money for me, but that I could play at his store. Good thing, too, because I was being joined by three strangers and the audience they brought with them. Well, they weren't really strangers: Eric Zang is a percusionist who had bought two kalimbas from my web shop, and Scott Schaefer is a Native American Flute player who had come to the Kalimba Klub meeting in Phoenix the previous day. But the Native American Flute player Sagio was a complete stranger. I did know each was a good musician. They all volunteered their musical services to me, and now that we were all there, we had nothing to lose.
A world percusionist, two Native American Flute players, and a kalimba player. No rehearsals. No songs. Basically, no common musical traditions. But each a master at his own instrument, and each with open ears, an open heart and an open mind. We started out simple, each with a solo. I could tell right away that this was going to be great. Then we began building duets, and then we were a trio, and intermitently a quartet. I can't really say what happened that night, just that it was 100% magical and 100% great. We grabbed people's attention, and they totally dug it. After the concert, the manager came up and shook my hand and appologized for giving me a hard time. "Well, this New Age thing isn't really my sort of music, but this is the best music we've ever had here at Bookmans! No complaints at all from staff or customers -- and all the parts just fit together perfectly, and I could hear the energy flow from one instrument to another! Well done!" So, I let the cat out of the bag. "Thanks. But you know, we've never played together before. It was all improvised. We don't even have a name." His jaw dropped in an expression I'll remember the rest of my life. What do you expect from Kalimba Magic?
Check out an article that appeared in today's (06/20/2006) West Valley View (a local Peoria paper):
So, we'll be in the studio later this month, and we'll be doing a concert in Peoria AZ on June 23, 7:00, at the Spiritual Enrichment Center in the West Valley. But we still don't have a name. You can help us on that one though: come and listen to our music and suggest names. The person who comes up with the name that we choose will get a whole host of prizes and surprises. Tickets are $10. If you want to go, contact me and I'll reserve a ticket for you. And, be on the lookout for the Upcoming CD frm the new band..., uh,,. well,... ok, just come to the concert, and then you'll know what the band is called.
Email Mark for more information.
More Upcoming Recordings!
"Rule of Thumb", Mark Holdaway's NEXT CD
OK, it isn't for sale yet, and this is VERY EARLY PRE-HYPE. But my next major CD, "Rule of Thumb", is in the works. I play many instruments in addition to the kalimba: guitar, mandolin, mandola, keyboards, recorder, bass, and a few others. And it turns out that the kalimba goes well with all of these instruments. In a way, this CD is my way of saying that the kalimba should be a mainstream instrument because it fits so well with everything.
While recording some of the tracks for Rule of Thumb, I had a revelation about my music. In a lot of music I hear, the goal seems to be to make a coherent musical sound with very distinct musical parts. I can appreciate that, and in the long run, that is probably an easier way to go. But when I play music, I seek to achieve an essential spiritual unity with the other people I play with. I cleave to the emotional and intelectual movements and output of the other musicians. Now, what happens when I am playing all the parts one at a time in the studio? I am just doing what I do -- seeking unity while thinking of the miracle of life and the majesty of the universe. But I tell you that this results in a peaceful and beautiful music which is unlike anything else out there.
In addition to the Magical Unnamed Band CD project, I am also working on another solo CD in the vein of "Two Thumbs Up". It will be called "Rule of Thumb", and here is a sample track from it.
And, I've got a great duo going: Jim Gates and Mark Holdaway, The Holdouts. Here is one of our sample recordings, a song Jim and I wrote together: Boulder Sunshine. This was actually the second song I wrote on the kalimba from 10 years back, and Jim did me the favor of putting words to it.
Upcoming Performances
Friday July 7, 8:00 - 10:00
Javalinas / 9138 E. Valencia,
#160 / 663-5282
I am playing with New Mexico Singer/Songwriter Wally
Lawder .
Sunday July 9, 10:30, I will make joyful music at Johrei Fellowship.
Monday July 10, 2006 Plush FREE!
Chris
Berry and Panjea are coming to Tucson. They play great funky dance music
with inspired lyrics and great harmonies. Their world beat music uses some
traditional Zimbabwe mbira (the mbira is the most evolved form of the traditional
African instrument which inspired the kalimba, which is why I'm writing about
this band.)
Aug 11th, 7-10pm
The Holdouts (Mark Holdaway and Jim
Gates)
Javalinas
/ 9138 E. Valencia, #160 / 663-5282
August 19
The SECOND Rise Up Singing Benefit Concert
The Quaker House
Aug 26th
The Holdouts (Mark Holdaway and Jim Gates)
Phil Borzillo's Big Benefit Concert
Nov 5, 7-9pm
The Holdouts (Mark Holdaway
and Jim Gates)
Green
Fire / FOP Lodge (the Lodge on Dodge) /
3445 N. Dodge Blvd.
All Levels Kalimba
Klub
I will be doing an "All Levels Kalimba Klub" at
my home in Tucson on Thursday, July 13, 7:00 - 9:00 pm. Call
me at 881-4666 if you don't know how to get here. If you
have a kalimba but haven't played much, check out the Tip
of the Day and Learn How to Play
the Kalimba. On the other
hand, if you don't have a kalimba but WANT one, come on over and we'll see
what fits best in your hands.
Look for these items in FUTURE Newsletters:
- New Karimba Book
- Advanced Alto Book
- More Kalimba CD's from the Kalimba Community
- Karimba for Kids
- Upcoming CD's by The Holdouts and by Mark Holdaway
- Software
If you have any questions, or if you have suggestions for future Newsletter Topics or Kalimba Instruction Ideas, please share them with me! -Mark
BACK HOME