News and Announcements

A Legacy Stolen? Here’s a story: in 2020, I discovered that some fraudster was publishing their own versions of my tablature-based kalimba books, and claiming that HE had invented Kalimba Tablature. (I invented graphical Kalimba Tablature in 2004.) This prompted me to publish my own kalimba books on Amazon. I got Amazon to take down most of the fraudster’s books, but there are still a few up. And there are many other people who write kalimba books, use my tablature, and do not credit me in any way. Which begs the question: whatever will happen to my legacy after Kalimba Magic is gone? A Wikipedia Article I could write a

We are starting a list of where in the USA we would like to travel in 2024 and beyond, to share the joys of music and kalimba. Would you like to be a stop along the way? Just to chat over coffee, or get a kalimba lesson? Or would you like to host a kalimba workshop, kalimba history presentation, or a house concert? If you would like to get on the bus with us (so to speak), please Contact Us. Tell us your name, city or town, phone number, email, and what sort of musical or kalimba adventure you have in mind. We are starting to think of trips to

The most important part of my life’s work is the body of limited edition kalimba books that I leave behind. But I am really leaving them behind, because once I sell out of them, I will not be reprinting them. And as far as I can see, nobody else will either. So, if you want a piece of kalimba history, take home one of my Kalimba Tablature-based Kalimba Books! On the other hand, I have five book titles with enough inventory to convince me that I will be holding on to a bunch of these at  the end of the game… which is why I have slashed the prices on

I am retiring soon, and I have not found a buyer for Kalimba Magic, in part because the inventory to income ratio is too high. So, I am selling off said inventory in as orderly a way as I can think of. A number of people have asked me: So, when you close Kalimba Magic’s doors, will the website disappear? Will the support recordings for the kalimba instructional downloads go away? The Current Plan I am selling off all Kalimba Magic inventory, all kalimbas, all hard copy books, and all CDs. It will take several months to sell off all the inventory. But at some point in the spring of

This new instructional download takes you from simple to amazing in 46 pages! Catania Decorative Afroharp The Afroharp is a legendary 13-note, two level kalimba created and manufactured for a short period in late 1960s Chicago.  Because we feel that the Afroharp is a valuable and compelling instrument, Kalimba Magic has been selling new instruments in the Afroharp tuning for several months.  Vintage Afroharps are virtually impossible to acquire. I feel incredibly lucky to have recently had one come into my possession. Read on to learn how this vintage Afroharp came to me, what’s special about the Afroharp, how this modern kalimba looks and sounds in a video, and more about

This is part of what “Available Only At Kalimba Magic” really means When they get an order, most of the world’s kalimba purveyors just pull an instrument off the shelf, pack it in a box, and put a label on it. At Kalimba Magic, we do so much more. We fine-tune the instrument. We paint the tines for guidance. Sometimes we retune the instrument to a different tuning. And sometimes we just take the whole thing apart, rearrange the kalimba, and rebuild it as a totally different beast. That is how we make the Celtic D Kalimba, SaReGaMa karimbas, and a whole host of custom-tuned instruments. Follow along as I work

Get the Celtic-D Karimba. Get the Celtic-D Karimba Download. The Celtic-D is a specialty karimba designed to play Celtic music in the key of D. It covers two octaves of the D major scale, plus a lower C# just below the two octaves, and a higher E just above the two octaves.   Swallowtail Jig on Celtic-D Karimba

This will help you learn this challenging karimba solo CLick to Download 8-page PDF of Freygish Tablature Do you know SaReGaMa’s story? He received a Hugh Tracey Karimba as a gift, but it was out of tune, so he started inventing his own tunings. Every few weeks, he would change the notes on the karimba, until it played the kind of music he wanted to play just then. He would play the karimba in its new tuning for a few days and become comfortable with it. Then, he would record and videotape an improvisation on that new karimba tuning. That is how we got SaReGaMa Lotus, Air, and Freygish tunings.

OK, I’m an advanced kalimba player, and yes, I do love playing the 17-Note Kalimba because it offers so many musical possibilities and can play hundreds of thousands of songs. (People also ask me about the 21 note. I do have a 21-Note kalimba, but I have not bonded with it. Partly because it has SO many notes, and partly because I don’t like the “sound and feel” of the lowest notes.) But I also love the freedom and simplicity that is available from the 10-Note Kalimba. The tines are smoother. The tines are wider. There is more space between each tine. And with only 10 tines, the music is