July 3, 2006
Let the Kalimba Play You

An old Grateful Dead song has the lyric "While the Music played the band". I like that idea, that the band doesn't play the music, but the band is an instrument of the Music and is played by the Music.

When you depress a tine and release it to vibrate, the entire kalimba resonates. Play your kalimba notes one by one, and as you play each, imagine that your entire body and soul are the resonating chamber for your kalimba. You may want to place the kalimba on your body to make the connection more real. Now, your physical body doesn't work so well as a resonator, but you can feel the vibrations travel inside of you. Perhaps your soul is a better resonator with the kalimba.

When I play, I feel that the kalimba music is tickling my soul. I often get to this place where I am experiencing a fire of ecstacy, and the kalimba music is stoking that fire. I don't think it matters what you feel when you play kalimba music, as long as you feel it deeply. Be open to this instrument, know its when it plays upon your heart.

 

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