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The Balafon Musical
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Traditional |
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 The Balafon (Balafong, Balaphone)
is a kind of wooden xylophone or percussion idiophone which plays
melodic tunes and usually has between 16 to
27 keys which has been played in the region since the 1300s and
originated in Mali according to the
Manding history narrated by the
griots.
They call it "a gift from the devil" to the Kuyateh families. This was the period under the Manding
Empire's founder Sunjata
Keita and his Sosso rival Soumaoro Kante who was said to have been
given by Balafon by spirits. The instrument as well as the Karanyango
(bell) was incorporated into the
musical ensemble of the
griots to accompany the
Kora.
The tuning process is related to the language that is peculiar to each
ethnic group or to the scales of their songs. Many variations are to
be found within each tribal group.
The slats are generally made from a hardwood, and are carefully dried
over a low intensity fire to achieve their deep resonance. The ends of
each slat are burnt black with an iron to seal them. After the rough
cut, it is necessary to fine-tune the keys to the desired pitches. The
fine-tuning of the keys is accomplished by thinning the centre to
lower the key's pitch and by thinning the ends to raise the pitch.
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