Dec. 15, 2011 Vol. 6, Num. 6

Kalimba Magic Christmas News In This Issue How I Almost Got Punched in Fry's 12 Great Kalimba Gift Ideas Magical Music Box Storybook and CD New! Heavenly A Sansula Songbook New! JBH Four Octave Chromatic Interview with Mark Holdaway Carol of the Bells Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring Fifties Christmas Medley on the Bb Treble Sarah Plays the Left-handed Catania 6-Note

Twelve Great Kalimba Gift Ideas
One for Each Day of Christmas

Kalimba Magic is happy to help you select the perfect kalimba or kalimba-related gift for almost anyone and everyone in your family. From our CDs and stories - great for children and people who don't play the kalimba - to kalimba instructional books or kalimba cases for someone who already has a kalimba - to beginner through advanced kalimbas for the musicians in your family or circle of friends - Kalimba Magic is THE PLACE TO GO for kalimbas, kalimba instructional materials and accessories!

Most of these items don't have a special sale going on for them right now, but coupon code CAT11 will always get you 11% off of your Kalimba Magic order.

1) On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

The Magical Music Box: A Musical Christmas Story, 20 minute CD included, available for $16.

An absolutely fantastic story for children 5 and up, adults and elders love it too! A great way to brighten up someone's holiday season.

Another story book offered by Kalimba Magic is Hugh Tracey's book of stories collected from around Africa, The Lion on the Path. Or even better, you can hear Hugh Tracey's voice recordings from his original radio broadcasts of these stories from the 1950s on the The Lion on the Path Two CD set.

2) On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

A beautiful African mahogany deluxe kalimba case for the Hugh Tracey Alto Kalimba - deluxe case will be available by late December, preorder now for $120. The plain wood case for the Alto is available right now for $95.

3) On the third day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

Beautiful kalimba music CDs from some of the best kalimba players in the world. You may be interested in Mark Holdaway's Chritmas Kalimba CD, or you can find Mark's YouTube hit single "First Look Inside" on his CD Two Thumbs Up.

4) On the fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

A kalimba instructional book! The books make an inexpensive gift for the kalimba lover in your life, but can open up new doors of understanding and transform that special someone's kalimba playing. Kalimba Magic has books for almost every kind of kalimba we sell. Find out what kind of kalimba your gift recipient has, and if you can't figure out the right book for her kalimba, contact me and we'll figure it out together. And use the coupon code BOOK25 before Christmas Day 2011 to get 25% off of any books from the Kalimba Magic Shop.

5) On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

A Catania 6-Note Kalimba - or if someone was really good this Christmas, maybe even a Catania 8-Note Kalimba. There are lots of materials for these instruments: There are two 8-Note kalimba books, a free 20 song download for the 6-Note Kalimba and as a free 7 song Christmas download for the 8-Note Kalimba.

The 6-Note and 8-Note Catanias are both wonderful ways to introduce music to someone. They are decent instruments, but they are so inexpensive that you can actually buy one or four for friends at the drop of a hat. The Catanias are very robust instruments, and can actually stand being dropped on the floor a time or two - they can be used in the classroom. One customer mounted a 6-Note on their refrigerator with double sided tape, and everyone in the family plays a ditty before they snack. Another customer mounted one on their front door, and they can tell who is at the door by each guest's unique door ringing song!

6) On the sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me:...

A Goshen 8-Note Box Kalimba or perhaps his big sister, the Goshen 11-Note Box Kalimba. These are really great kalimbas - beautiful, sweet sounding, soft, easy to play. Not recommended for careless kids who might drop them! Use the coupon code GOSHEN15 before Christmas Day 2011 to get 15% off of any Goshen kalimbas from the Kalimba Magic Shop.

7) On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

Custom instructional material for your very special kalimba! Mark Holdaway can write music like a tiger with its tail on fire. Do you or your gift recipient have a specialty kalimba in a unique tuning (such as the Thomas Bothe 2B kalimba or a Sansula)? Do you have a kalimba we don't sell instructional material for? Or do you just need an arrangement for a song or two that you can't find in any of the books or downloads? Mark Holdaway can probably get you what you need in 30-60 minutes. We are now offering special holiday rates of $15 for 30 minutes of work or $25 for 60 minutes of work. In the end, you will get one or more PDF files with tablature for your kalimba, one or more KTabS files, and one or more MP3 files that show you how the songs are supposed to go. Contact me to discuss how I might serve your particular kalimba instructional needs.

8) On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

Hugh Tracey Box Alto Kalimba or the Hugh Tracey Box Alto Kalimba with pickup.

Our best selling kalimbas, both are currently out of stock, but we expect them in about Dec 20-25, that is, they will probably not make it in time for Christmas. But to make it up to you, we are providing discount pricing on the box alto and box alto with pickup - 20% off with the coupon code ALTO20 in the Kalimba Magic Shop while they are out of stock. We will ship them to you as fast as we can when they arrive, but you can expect them in late December or early January.

9) On the ninth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

A Hugh Tracey TM Alto or a Hugh Tracey TM Alto with pickup. Yes, the box altos are out of stock, but the TM Altos are a good alternative that are still in stock. They are less expensive as the board models are easier to make. They are not as loud as the box altos, but have a soft, sweet sound.

10) On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

Bb Treble Kalimbas or the D Treble Kalimbas. These are treble kalimbas set up like the alto kalimbas, with the root in the bass, offered in a variety of keys. It just happens that these are my favorite style of kalimba. These great kalimbas are gaining on the altos in popularity, they are currently available and cost significantly less than the regular Alto or Treble kalimba.

11) On the eleventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

A 2B Kalimba or a Sansula... a very special gift. These are not so much the kalimbas to learn songs on, but these ARE the kalimbas to inscribe the songs of your heart with. They are truly beautiful instruments that seem to speak to our souls in a secret language. Very intimate, charming and beautiful. Or you might want to prefer the pocket sansula at the bargain price of only $69. Add the beautiful Sansula book for only $12 more.

12) On the twelvth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

An appointment with the Kalimba Doctor! Does your friend have a kalimba that has seen better days? When they go out of tune or start to buzz and sound bad, many people assume that their kalimba is history - but over and over again, the Kalimba Doctor has been able to surprise even the most cynical kalimba owner - we really do bring new life to your tired old kalimba. If you know of a kalimba that needs help, we can help.

Questions? Feel free to contact me!
- Mark Holdaway

 

Top of page