Day 71: Musical Instruments Around the World in 80 Days.

332 W. 63rd Street, Kansas City, MO 64113 PH 816-361-2500

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Stories from the global community

Come along on the journey!

Day 71: A Sampling of Musical Instruments

from around the World

" Music is the universal language of mankind"

--- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Destination: Burkina Faso, Kenya, Peru, Bali and Thailand

Welcome back travelers! We are heading out on a brief excursion to five places that share a deep love of music. As diverse as these places are, each has a long musical tradition that conveys a heartfelt connection to the place they call home, their history and their communities.

Fun Facts:

Although these countries are located on separate continents or islands today, during the early Mesozoic Era, long before humans were around, they were joined in a massive continent called Pangaea. Over millions of years this huge continent drifted apart shaping the world we know today. We humans live everywhere now but we have much in common, including the love and appreciation of music.

Art Form: Naturally occurring forms from which to make instruments and music.

Come along and explore some of the musical instruments we have in the store. Consider all the different materials used in making music in various cultures.

This gourd rattle from Kenya is made from a gourd with a whittled stick handle and lovely patina. The fill material of these rattles varies from seeds to small stones making each one unique.

Maracas are rattles used in Latin-American music. They are shaken, one in each hand, with the rhythm of the music.

H ere is another style

of maraca called the "egg" maraca. This one is from Peru.

The Kalimba or Mbira or Thumb Piano is an instrument originally from Africa that is usually played

as an accompaniment to vocals, although it can be played on its own as well. It is very easy to play by plucking the keys with both thumbs. This one can be tuned. Kalimbas have been continually developed over the centuries.

Listen to this much more elaborate kalimba:

Somewhere over the rainbow

Appearing throughout Africa made out of whatever material

or shape is available and strikes the musician's fancy, the thumb piano has tines made of any springy material from metal to rattan and can range in size from hand to lap. This one is made of an old tin can and some left-over wood. Simple thumb pianos are often tuned to a 5-note pentatonic scale rather than the 7-note scale we usually hear.

Panpipes are another examples of a musical instrument made from local materials. The panpipe is a pre-Colombian instrument from high in the Andes mountains. Panpipes are called Antara in Quechuan and called Siku in Aymara as different groups developed their own particular style of panpipe. They are made by joining graduated lengths of reed, bamboo pipe or cane ranging in size from 3 to 32 registers.

One very interesting instrument at World's Window is this large Shekere from Burkina Faso. It is made of a hollowed gourd and surrounded by a woven net with beads. When moved or shaken it makes a wide range of sounds from loud to very soft.

We currently have several "guitars" from Kenya that are somewhat tuneable but mostly usable as very interesting decor for a home or office. Here are pictures of three guitars, each made with a gourd, curved sticks and stretched leather.

Probably the smallest instrument we have in store is the

simple, pure ocarina. An ocarina is a ceramic flute from the Andean Altiplano of South America. Clay is formed, glazed & baked in primitive wood fired kilns. Often shaped like animals, clay ocarinas were thought to be played during ritualistic ceremonies of the ancient Americas. It is possible to play a simple tune on them.

Here is a video of a ocarina virtuoso:

The Companies:

We have brought together three companies that honor the value of place, history and community and who work to connect our worlds; From Peru - Inter-American Trading Company, from Bali and Thailand - Global Village Imports, and from Africa - East Meets West.

Each company is a family run business and has imported folk art of all kinds for many years. They are dedicated to supporting indigenous people and buying directly from the artisans who make their living with their hands through hard work, ingenuity and in an environmentally sound manner. The artisans depend on these small companies who have access to global markets and are willing to pay a fair price.

Shopping . . .

Are you ready to explore

what we have in our store?

Whether you want to have an instrument you can play or an interesting decor piece, these traditional instruments are perfect for both. Click on the picture above or the link below to see all the instruments including "croaking" frogs and thunder makers.

www.worldswindowkc.store

Don't forget to stamp your Passport!

Click on the "stamp" to add to your "passport."

We keep track of your stamps for you!

"Collect" at least 12 different "country" stamps during the fourth 20 days of our around-the-world trip to be entered into the drawing for a $25 gift card.

Only 9 more days to complete your 12 stamps

between days 60 and 80!

At the end of our 80-day Around the World excursion, all eligible travelers (minimum of 48 country stamps) will be entered into a drawing for . . .

a Grand Prize $100 shopping spree gift card!

Thanks for traveling with us today.

Where to next? Stay tuned!

I hope you enjoyed "Wanderlust Week" as much as I did while I was all the way on the west coast being a supportive grandma during these past days. A hearty "THANK YOU" and cheers to our intrepid team who kept finding exciting close-to-home adventures for you to explore. Now we're back exploring our larger world and glad you are along for journey. But, really. Five locations in one day? Watch out for those time changes and jet lag!

Our online store is, of course, open 24 hours a day. Our Brookside store is closed today (Tuesday). We will be back open Wednesday through Sunday and our current hours are posted below my signature. We look forward to seeing you!

For those of you who cannot or choose not to shop in our Brookside store right now, we thank you for your continued online shopping support.

And I can't say it enough times - YOU are an important part of what makes World's Window so special! THANK YOU!

World's Window

"Nobody can define you like you."

P.S. We are glad to be on this around-the-world virtual journey with you and delighted that you are traveling with us. We hope you are learning some new information as we travel along. If you haven't already done so, invite some friends to come along! There's still room on this journey! Send an invite

P.P.S. We're keeping our trip "log" up to date. If you think you've missed a day or are new to our journey, click here to review where we've visited the last 70 days.

For our Brookside Store:

CLOSED Monday and Tuesday

OPEN Wed through Sat, 11 am to 5 pm

Sunday, 12 noon to 5 pm

SHOP our on-line store:

www.worldswindowkc.store

As always we are "sharing the world" through clothing, jewelry, folk art, textiles and hand-selected gifts -

and

buying locally-owned is a gift to your community!