Metal Kalimba tuning hammer

The more you tune instruments such as kalimbas, the more you will definitely become aware of this process.

The most important thing you can do to get a good sound is to keep your kalimba in tune. If someone tells you that kalimba tuning doesn't matter, don't believe them! In African villages, tuning is handed down from generation to generation. Of course, it's easier if you use an electronic tuner!

Kalimba tuning can be considered a noun and a verb at the same time. Tuning a Kalimba, which you'll do with a tuning hammer, refers to the placement of the notes and how they sound together. Tuning a kalimba involves adjusting the tines so that they have the exact sound they're supposed to have, according to the note a tine is supposed to play.

The act of tuning a kalimba with a hammer may involve putting a slightly out-of-tune kalimba back into its previous tuning (i.e. the notes will usually be just a little off), and it's usually obvious which note each tooth is supposed to be tuned to. On the other hand, the act of tuning (or retuning) could be to transform the kalimba into a totally new and different tuning. The mechanics of these two acts of tuning (restoring an old tuning or transforming into a new tuning) are largely the same. Each time you refine your tuning (a conservative act) you acquire the skills you'll need when you decide to transform your tuning.

Please keep in mind these two important things: First, an electronic tuner is important for accuracy. Secondly, some people find that using their fingers gives them the best control when tuning, but others can use pliers or another tool to help themselves.

You can find a video showing the principles of kalimba tuning, and the difference that alternative tuning can make to the sound of the kalimba.

Most Hugh Tracey kalimbas retain their tuning for several months. If you play very loudly, you may need to re-tune every week. If you drop your kalimba, or if the teeth get caught in a bag or on your shirt sleeve, you risk damaging the tuning. A tuning touch-up can take just a few minutes. While a tuning change can take 5 to 10 minutes, you can allow 30 to 40 minutes for your first attempt.

Keeping your Kalimba in tune is the most important thing you can do to continue enjoying your instrument and to maintain motivation...

There may be more than one reason why you need to tune or retune your kalimba with a hammer. You may have a dead or stiff tooth that needs adjusting, or a wrong-sounding tooth that needs a little tweaking to get back to normal.

Let's forget about tuning to various scales for the moment, and concentrate on the scale to which your Kalimba has been tuned. Very often, new kalimbas are tuned to the key of C, and the keys are marked with the letters of each note.

Whether you think your Kalimba is out of tune or not, it's a good idea to check the tuning of each tooth every week. It may be that one or two teeth played more frequently are slightly out of tune, but not enough for your ear to perceive them accurately. If you leave your Kalimba untuned for any length of time, more and more notes will go out of tune and your Kalimba will start to sound out of tune.

The easiest way to check the tuning accuracy of each key on your Kalimba is to use a tuning tool. This can be an electronic tuner or a tuning app on your cell phone.

There are free apps available on IOS and Android that are very good, but it's worth spending a few euros to stay ad-free while you try to tune your kalimba.

Using a basic guitar tuning app will provide you with what you need to check the tuning of your Kalimba to guide you towards the adjustments you need to make to get it back in tune, or to retune the thumb piano to a completely different scale.

Choose this tuning hammer for optimum precision when tuning your musical instrument. The handle is made of wood, giving you a better grip.

The wood makes the tuning hammer more aesthetically pleasing. This tuning hammer is a must-have if you own a kalimba, as it will help you keep your percussion in tune to produce a better sound. Its small size means you can take it with you wherever you go.

Learn to play Camila Cabello's "Havana" on the kalimba with our tutorial !