Mbira
David Hahn
About this work:
The mbira is the classic instrument of Zimbabwe, with an entire musical genre developed around it. It consists of approximately 20-24 flattened metal prongs which are fastened at one end to a bridge--usually some sort of box shape. The mbira sits in a calabash, a gourd, which acts as a resonator. The free ends of the metal prongs are plucked with the thumb of the left hand and the thumb and index finger of the right hand. The most important feature of mbira music is its chiming, cyclical nature, with each new repetition varying slightly from the last.
Premiere: University of Washington Percussion Ensemble directed by Tom Collier, Seattle, WA, 2004.
Year composed: 2000
Duration: 00:06:00
Ensemble type: Chamber or Jazz Ensemble, Without Voice:Percussion Ensembles
Instrumentation: 3 Marimba, 3 Other Percussion Instrument(s)
Instrumentation notes: 1. The piece should stay in the groove from the beginning afuche solo to the end.
2. The afuche and the cowbell part are to be played by 1 player. I have notated these on 1 staff. The afuche uses an "x" notehead while the low-high sounds of the cowbell are notated with regular noteheads on the 1st and 3rd spaces respectively.
3. The Hand Drums part can be played by a variety of instruments including 2 differently pitched conga drums. The arrow pointing upward in the part (cf. ms. 49-50 and 910-214) calls for a slight upward bending of the drum's pitch.
4. The Sekere part can be played by a cabaça.
The Kick Drum with Tambourine part can be played with a tambourine attached to the beater so that when the drum is played the tambourine sounds simultaneously or by the player holding the tambourine and playing it normally.