Coconut Karimbu

Hand made Coconut Karimbu

This World Percussion USA kalimba (kuh-LIM-buh) is a very well built thumb piano that has seven tunable keys. Each one is made from a smooth, sanded coconut shell, topped with a piece of solid wood and a metal bridge.

Playable out of the box, but can also be tuned by gently loosening the screws, moving the tines in (higher pitch) or out (lower pitch), and tightening the screws. The tines can also be easily repositioned to give more or less room between them, for your playing comfort.

The kalimba is also known as a thumb piano, and is derived from the more complex South African mbira, and is played by plucking the keys with the thumbs of each hand whilst holding the coconut body in the palms. The sound created is very melodic and resonant, very "tribal" sounding.

Solid wood top mounted on a strong, smooth coconut gourd shell, which is 5.75" wide and 3.375" tall. Just right for small hands or adult hands to handle and play. 7 tunable metal keys securely mounted on a metal bridge - Tune to your preference

One hole in the top for amplification and resonance - Sounds louder than it looks

Each one is hand crafted by cultural artisans, so minor variations in design will exist. As each coconut is unique, the size and shape of the kalimba body will also have minor variations.