African Thumb Piano - Mbira

This African version of the kalimba reminds me of a Russian joke: "Can you play the piano?" "Have no idea, I never tried." The truth is even though you have probably never tried to play the African thumb piano, you can. No musical background required! The thumb piano, also called mbira, sansa, marimba, karimba, or kalimba, is made in Tanzania out of mukwa, a dark-red hardwood, and can be tuned by moving the metal keys to different positions. We put a few pianos on the tables in our cafe. Everyone who comes to eat becomes a virtuoso in no time. School music teachers have been known to buy several at a time. Concert pianists finally get an instrument they can carry with them. Everybody's piano.

Kalimba