Jatta, 55, is from Gambia, a member of the Jola people. He's holding an akonting: a three-stringed instrument with a long neck and a body made from a calabash gourd with a goat skin stretched over it.

The gourd is plucked, dried, and boiled, and then ants are allowed to eat the insides. Balls are made of the gourd, and rosary seeds (abrus precatorius) are filled inside, with a string attached.

String beads or seeds into a network of cabling that is wrapped around the exterior of the gourd and attached there. Read, ...

This week, we highlight the Indian sitar, a stringed, gourd-shaped instrument. Rahul Neuman’s parents, aunt, grandparents and brother performed, studied and loved the Indian sitar.

In “Throw Down Your Heart,” American banjo virtuoso Béla Fleck traces the connection with a musical tour through Uganda, Tanzania, Gambia and Mali, soaking up traditional sounds and styles ...

Paul Ruta is a writer, stringed instrument junkie, and curator of @guitarsofcanada on Instagram. A recent pre-COVID pilgrimage to the Mississippi Delta inspired this story. He lives in Hong Kong.

Bottle Gourd Shells, Used To Make Traditional Musical Instruments Like Sitar And Tanpura, Are No Longer Grown By The Farmers In Howrah, ... “The gourd used in making tanpura, sitar and other stringed ...

Enslaved Africans seeking to reconnect with their lost cultural traditions brought African concepts to instruments in the American musical mainstream, creating popular new American music genres tha… ...

In "Texas Hold 'Em," the singer is accompanied by a banjo. It's often thought of as a quintessential Americana instrument. But the history of the banjo tells a different story.

From the earliest playable musical instruments to their roles in a modern four-section orchestra, Chinese traditional instruments and their 8,000-year history explained. 20 Aug, 2024 Advertisement ...