Let's Play The Kalimba!
The Kalimba, also called a thumb piano, is a percussion instrument that originated from Africa many years ago. Originally, it was made of wood (and called an mbira). Modern kalimbas are constructed with a wooden sound board and metal tines. Tines are flat bars that can be tuned to different pitches. The thumb piano is played by gently pressing down and releasing the tines with-you guessed it-your thumbs!
We used our kalimbas during the study of jazz pianist and activist Nina Simone as a way to play scales and other simple songs. Our study coincided with Black History Month so subscribers also received the sheet music for two songs that are important to the African American community, We Shall Overcome and Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing.
Thumb Piano (Kalimba) Tutorial Video
*The melodies have been changed ever so slightly to accommodate the 8-note range of the
mini kalimba that was included in the Nina Simone box.
How to tune a kalimba
To tune a mini kalimba you will need a screwdriver and object with a hard surface. A mini hammer may also work but you’ll need to press not tap in order to make your tuning adjustments.
We’ll tune our mini kalimba a little differently than normal. Usually, you would use a small hammer to tap on the tines, but our mini kalimba are constructed a bit differently. You will need a screwdriver and a small, hard object with a flat surface. The back of an Allen wrench worked well for me as did the flat side of a clothespin. It is also helpful to have a tuning device such as a pitch pipe or tuner app on your electronic device.
Start by loosening the screws slightly. One or two turns will be enough. You don’t want to loosen them too much or the tines will slide right out!
Then use the flat side of your Allen wrench to gently press on the tines. Compare the pitch to your tuner and adjust the tines as necessary. The more of the tine that is BELOW the horizontal bar (the vibrating part of the tine is longer) the LOWER the pitch will be. When you press on the bottom of the tine and put more of the tine ABOVE the horizontal bar, the pitch will be higher.
A little goes a long way! You don’t need to make big adjustments to change the pitch on your kalimba.
Your mini kalimba should tune to a C Major scale: C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C.
This is represented on the kalimba as 1(L)-2-3-4-5-6-7-1.