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Products of our workshop: Travel Koras,Travel N’gonis, Classical/traditional Koras
Amaranth wood Classical West African 21/22 String Harp - Kora
Amaranth wood Classical West African 21/22 String Harp - Kora
Traditional/folk West African 21/22 string harp made from Amaranth wood. The body is made of calabash gourd covered with calfskin. Tuning is done with guitar tuning pegs. Comes with a set of spare strings and a handy carry bag. Traditional tuning F major diatonic.
Some cultural and historical context
Kora is a traditional/folk musical instrument that is an integral part of the griot culture in central and western Africa.
It took shape in the 14th century during the heyday of the Mali empire. And it has remained virtually unchanged to this day.
Kora has a very important function in the culture, life and religion of the griots and has been an integral part of a living uninterrupted tradition for many centuries.
Griots are a special people in central and western Africa with a special function in society.
Traditionally, griots were itinerant musicians, sages, shamans and storytellers. Stored and broadcast wisdom, legends and stories.
Kora is a stunning and unique musical instrument that is the pinnacle of the musical tradition of central and western Africa.
The wood from which the harp neck is made.
The neck of this kora is made from an extremely dense Amaranth wood, also known as Koroboreli, Saka (Guyana), Purperhart (Suriname), Pau Roxo, Amarante (Brazil).
Botanical name "Peltogyne spp". The density of wood varies, but the average is 880 kg/m3 dry. The color is grayish-purple on a fresh cut, in the process of oxidation it becomes purple - crimson or deep purple.
The fibers are usually straight, rarely serrated, but always uneven, disordered, which, combined with the variability of gloss and coloring, creates a beautiful striped pattern on radial cuts.
Body and membrane of a traditional African harp
This kora body is мade from high quality calabash gourd imported from Burkien Faso, specially selected for making traditional African harps.
The edge of the gourd is smooth and rounded, the inner surface is coated with anti-mould, the outer surface is coated with polyurethane varnish to protect it from dirt.
The calabash is upholstered in natural well-dressed calfskin imported from Pakistan.
The leather is fastened with bright chrome-plated furniture nails in two rows for maximum reliability
A specially designed device allows me to achieve a very high tension of the skin when installing it on the calabash.
Tuning and strings
The strings are tuned using mechanical tuning pegs.
Nylon line of various diameters is used as strings. The harp comes with a set of spare strings.
The strings are attached to nylon rope leads. The diameter of the leads is 2 mm.
A durable chrome-plated anchor is used to firmly attach the leashes to the harp neck.
Production, packaging and delivery
After confirmation of the order production of kora takes from three to six weeks, depending on the availability of all components and the efficiency of the partners (tailoring a carrying bag).
Delivery is carried out in the most affordable way on the day of dispatch in a package made of durable seven-layer cardboard crate.
