October 9, 2010
Volume 5, Number 7
Kalimba Magic NEWS
In This Issue
Three years ago, Kalimba Magic started its YouTube channel, with little fanfare
and a trickle of about 40 views per day. But in the time since then, we have
attracted almost 1000 subscribers and added 74 videos, so that we are now averaging
well over 1200 views per day. While most of these videos are not explicitly
instructional in nature, we try to shoot videos so you can see exactly what is
going on - and some people watch these videos dozens of times to learn songs...
Kalimba Magic is introducing a new holiday to replace Columbus Day: KALIMBAS Day! In this article we give you a brief history of how the kalimba got to the New World. Plus, we offer the perfect way to celebrate Kalimbas Day weekend: a 20% off sale, today through Monday (Oct 9-11). Just use the coupon code KalimbasDay when you order online. If your order is more than $400, you can get 25% off with the coupon code KalimbasDay400.
Are you ready to step up to the next level in your kalimba playing?
Is there a song you would love to learn on the kalimba but just can't seem to get it?
Would you like to come together with other kalimbas players and make a joyful noise?
We are having a kalimba and music workshop at Essence of Tranquility Hot Springs Spa! Come, relax in the hot springs, have a great time, and learn!
"I'm very much enjoying my 2B. It's a joy to play, so much so that it seems to just play itself. I've been playing it a couple days a week for a dance class I accompany at the University of Memphis and the class seems to melt into the sound. I'm also being pulled into the concept behind the layout and beginning to understand it on more of an intellectual level as well as a simple aesthetic level. The kalimba is a very interesting thing indeed."
—Sean Murphy
Check out Sean playing the 2B/14L on his very first day with it!
Check out Sean playing the 2B/14L on his very first day with it!
It is little known that Dr. Hugh Tracey, the inventor of the Hugh Tracey kalimba, lived and worked from a beautiful 36 hectare property near Johannesburg, which he named Saronde after a character in a Zimbabwean folktale. This property nurtured the beginnings of projects which positively affected, and continue to affect the lives of many people. Now Saronde stands in jeopardy...
One of the best resources available to help you with a sing-along is the book
Rise Up Singing, which includes the words and chord progressions for
1200 songs. I would bet that you are familiar with a good chunk of these songs,
say between 100 and 300 - or maybe more. However, there is a lot you
need to learn about music and the kalimba before you can use this book - fortunately,
we are giving that information away for free in the Tips of the Day.
I have been struggling to come up with Kalimba Magic's core message. After a lot of pondering, I finally had a major revelation while playing kalimba in the middle of a really stressful day. I realized our message should simply be this: Playing Kalimba Makes You Feel Good! Because it does for me and a lot of other folks out there. And this just led naturally to my idea for a 2-part contest...
This month's video shows me playing the song in Beautiful E tuning from the Sansula book,
with bass and mandola backup. Beautiful E tuning was the first alternative tuning
I made for the Sansula, and Rick Tarquinio's Heavenly A tuning was his answer to this tuning.
This charming song shows how the Sansula can work in a band setting, supporting the mandola
in a solo at the end of the song.
We are pleased to offer this new 10 page PDF instructional download for the Catania 6-Note Pentatonic kalimba, aka, the Cat-6. This is a great little kalimba for children or for adults who could use a dose of simplicity in their approach to the kalimba. This download is the perfect resource to help you get started on this simple kalimba.
- Gerhard Kubik's Book: Theory of African Music
- Dan DeBruler on Therapeutic Kalimbas & more
- Anne's Ostrich Shell Kalimba
- Bob Danziger's Bass Kalimba
- Great Kalimba Video, including Chromatic
- Lucinda Ellison, Artistic Kalimba Maker
- Music of Greg McClure
- Eric Freeman - more Bass Kalimba
- Music of Tim Sterling
- Scott Holt on the Electric Kalimba
The Kalimba Magic Newsletter Archives
Discover the world of kalimbas at http://www.kalimbamagic.com
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