The stars of this series are the “tools” of music: its instruments. Children will get the chance to familiarise themselves with these instruments in the context of authentic live music and with the assistance of expert musicians. In this semester we return to the world at large, introducing children to the folk music and rarely seen or heard instruments of various parts of the globe at concerts and subsequent presentations of musical instruments.
The indispensable ingredient of Colombian music is the drum. The tambor alegre and the tambor llamador are cone-shaped drums of various sizes, with one end open and the other covered with a membrane made from the skin of a calf, deer or goat, or even alligator stomach, which is stretched with wooden wedges. The musician plays with his hands. The gaita is a wind instrument used by native Colombian Indians, the pipe of which is made from a hollow cactus stem, while the head is made from beeswax and duck feathers. There are two types: the female version (hembra) with five finger holes used to play the melody, and the two-hole male (macho) version, which is used for accompaniment. Originally the instrument was used for cult rituals, but with the cultural mixing of indigenous peoples with those of Spanish and African origin it has come to play an important role in numerous genres of music in the Caribbean region.

Our partner in producing this series is the Ethnosound world music instrument shop.

Age: 8-12 year

Presented by: Müpa Budapest