Moon & Stars Foundation/Kutandara

Building Community Through Music

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You are here: Home / Our Instruments

Our Instruments

Marimbas are wooden-keyed, xylophone-like instruments that are played by striking individual keys with mallets. For performances, individual resonators hang beneath each wooden note to amplify the sound. Zimbabwean music on marimbas is easy to play (yet difficult to master!), and students in a group are playing a song after only one workshop together.

Tamba! playing marimbas at Boulder Creek Festival in 2007. Photo Credit: Alison Picher.

Hosho are shakers made from the dried shells of Zimbabwean wild fruits. Deceptively difficult to play, hosho are filled with hota seeds, stones, pebbles, or other types of seeds. Hosho are played in pairs, one in each hand, and often accompany mbira and marimba music.

Maggie playing hosho with Shamwari in 2012. Photo Credit: Amy Gosch.

The mbira is one of the Shona peoples’ traditional instruments. It is a set of 22 – 28 carefully shaped and sized metal keys that are mounted on a rectangular, wooden sound board and are plucked with the fingers. Often, two mbira are played together to create interlocking melodies and rhythms. One musician plays a kushaura part, while the second musician plays a kutsinhira part. The mbira is mounted inside a large, dried, hollowed gourd that looks like a bowl. This resonating chamber is called deze. Bottle caps or snail shells are attached to the mouth of the deze to create a characteristic buzzing.

Randy McIntosh and Jacob Mafuleni playing mbira in deze. Photo Credit: Alison Picher.

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Land Acknowledgment

We at Kutandara acknowledge with respect (as non-Native people) that the land on which we stand, live, learn, teach, and perform is the traditional territory of the Ute, Cheyenne, and Arapaho Peoples. We also recognize the 48 contemporary tribal nations that are historically tied to the lands that make up the state of Colorado. We honor Elders past, present, and future, and those who have … Read More

CONTACT US

5401 Western Avenue, Suite B
Boulder, Colorado 80301
(303) 443-2969

info@kutandara.com

Classes

We have something for everyone! We offer on-going marimba, drumming, and mbira classes for kids, teens, and adults, as well as custom one-time music … Read More

Concerts

We are BACK! And excited to play some live, in-person, outdoor shows this summer! Can't make it to a scheduled event?  Subscribe to and explore … Read More

Collaborations

We collaborate with individuals, groups, and nonprofit organizations at every opportunity to bring special projects to our community and beyond. This … Read More

Moon & Stars is a 501c3 Non-Profit Organization registered with the State of Colorado, FEIN 82–1129217.

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5401 Western Avenue, Suite B, Boulder, Colorado 80301
(303) 443-2969   info@kutandara.com
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