Bass kalimba aka. Marimbula aka. Rhumba box

Posted by Mark on September 25, 2010 at 4:06am

I recently saw the Jamaican mento band The Jolly Boys and noticed they feature a sort of giant kalimba-type instrument as a bass. I thought people here might be interested. Apparently these things are known as Marimbulas or Rhumba boxes and were a common feature of mento bands and are also used in Cuban music. I reckon they could work nicely in a cigar box type of band too.

Here's a couple of pictures to illustrate

For more info on The Jolly Boys see,

http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/665c

http://jollyboysmusic.com

You need to be a member of Cigar Box Nation to add comments!

Join Cigar Box Nation

Boys, Jolly, box, marimbula, mento, rhumba

Email me when people reply –

Replies

Conrad September 26, 2010 at 6:15pm

If you watch Kenny Chesney's video " Everybody wants to go to heaven" right near the beginning a gent is playing a marimbula.
Alan Roberts September 25, 2010 at 10:00am

Josh Humphrey does amazing work, and is my sensei here in Oregon. Here's a link to his Bass Kalimba:
http://jbhguitars.com/site/index.php?page_id=9
Diane in Chicago September 25, 2010 at 8:27am

Dennis Havlena has plans on how to build one!

http://www.dennishavlena.com/bk.htm
Mark September 25, 2010 at 4:08am

Sorry, pics don't seem to show up. Here are links to them:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jollyboysmusic/4985488763/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jollyboysmusic/4864037850/

This reply was deleted.

#xg { position:relative;top:120px; } #xn_bar { top:120px; }

Hello, you need to enable JavaScript to use Cigar Box Nation.

Please check your browser settings or contact your system administrator.

CIGAR BOX KALIMBAS

Replies