July 17, 2010
Volume 5, Number 5
Kalimba Magic NEWS
In This Issue
Playing music in a hospice setting is not about you, it is about the person you are playing for.
You may find yourself learning songs for the dying person that you would not have chosen for yourself -
to give them something special to hold onto in those final days or hours. But these songs may end up
becoming a gift from that person to you. And that is how a gift should be - both giver and receiver end
up getting blessed.
Use the Coupon Code Fast25 at the Kalimba Magic Online Shop on July 17-18, 2010 to get 25% off your order of kalimbas, sansulas, books, CDs, downloads and more! This coupon is good for everything in the Kalimba Magic Shop except the Thomas Bothe 2B kalimbas and Bourne marimbas.
This past March I had the experience of being present with my mother as she relinquished her broken body and freed her light-filled spirit. I was honored to share these moments with her, attaining, perhaps, our most deeply shared intimacy. This experience was enhanced by the presence of live music on the kalimba.
I was excited to start playing right away so I skipped the first couple of pages and dove into
the tablature plan. To my surprise, familiar songs like "London Bridge" and "Over the River
and Through the Woods" could be heard throughout our house.
To be honest, there are no thoughts or ideas in my mind when I tune a new kalimba. I just
listen and continue tuning until I'm happy with the result. I determine the tuning as a
suggestion for the buyer, and I have always tried to craft my kalimbas in such a way
that the buyer can easily change the tuning to suit his or her requirement.
Thomas Bothe is an artist. Most artists cannot make a piece of art over
and over again, but must make something different. Thomas has made a limited edition
set of 14 note kalimbas and a set of 9 note kalimbas, and the instruments are remarkably
similar - except for the tunings. It is as if he has listened to the spirit of the kalimba
and asked it what tuning it wants to be, and brought that tuning into reality.
Last month we introduced a new instructional download, which includes the tablature for 30
pieces for the Alto kalimba called Kalimba Americana. Sunday, July 4, 2010, I was visiting
my parents in Longmont, Colorado, and I had the opportunity to play the Prelude at their
Church. I put together this medley of five of the songs from the Kalimba Americana download.
The Hugh Tracey Alto and Pentatonic kalimbas are closely related to each
other in that they have the same tine width and the same two octave range
from G below middle C to G above high C. Would you like to understand
how they are different? This article will instruct you in the ways of
the diatonic and pentatonic scales.
I am aiming to produce a series of music videos that will demonstrate for you
the four book tunings of the Hokema Sansula. This month's video shows me playing a
song that I wrote using Rick Tarquinio's Heavenly A tuning. I am playing the standard
Hokema Sansula in this video.
Some time ago, I posted YouTube videos to show people what each of the
kalimbas we sell sound and look like. A few people have requested the tablature for the Celeste
Pentatonic demo tune. I have written a new tune based on the improvisation in this video, and
I am giving away the tablature for it.
The Kalimba Magic Newsletter Archives
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