🌸 -10% discount as a welcome offer from 50€ of purchase (cumulative with promotions) + discounts offered to professionals and for group purchases, contact us to find out more!
🎁 Ideal for giving as a gift or treating yourself!
👉 Tuned to a traditional scale. But you can change the tuning as you wish. We will provide you with at least 4 possible tunings.
Each instrument is individually handcrafted in Mali according to the rules of the art!
🎼 Instrument Features:
Element
Description
Origin
Mali (Wassoulou region), 1950s-60s
Kind
Harp-lute (similar to the kora)
Strings
12 nylon strings (often tuned pentatonically)
Body
A calabash (large dried gourd) covered with goatskin
Sleeve
A long wooden handle runs through the gourd and serves as a support for the strings
Game
Played with the thumbs and index fingers, the strings being plucked with both hands
🎶 Please note:
Here is comprehensive information about the kamalé n'goni (sometimes spelled kamélé ngoni or kamale n'goni) – a fascinating instrument at the crossroads of tradition and innovation.
The kamalé n'goni is a plucked string instrument originating from West Africa, more precisely from Mali, and particularly from the Bambara and Wassoulou regions.
It is a harp-lute traditionally associated with hunters' music and Wassoulou culture, but which evolved into a more modern and melodious form during the 20th century.
🪕 Differences with other instruments:
Donso N'goni: The traditional hunters' instrument, older, generally with 6 to 8 strings, reserved for rituals.
Kora: A much more complex 21-string harp, also from West Africa.
Kamalé n'goni literally means "n'goni of the young", because it has freed itself from the strict ritual customs of donso n'goni.
🔊 Sound:
The kamalé n'goni has a warm, soft and rhythmic sound, ideal for melodic and sung music.
Often used to accompany vocals in Afro-blues, Mandingo folk, world music, and even modern fusion styles (electro, reggae, etc.).
🎤 Famous artists:
Bassekou Kouyaté (rather traditional ngoni, but related)
Sekouba Traoré
Ablaye Cissoko (mainly kora, but close in style)
Many contemporary world music artists use the kamalé n'goni as their main instrument.
🌍 Modern usage:
Very popular in circles of meditative music, yoga, intuitive music, or African percussion.
An instrument accessible to beginners, especially with the pentatonic tuning which avoids false notes.
Used in music therapy and participatory music projects.
When you shop at Gem & Zen, part of your money goes to Nepal's artisans from the 'Help in Action' association. We value sustainable and responsible entrepreneurship, which we express, among other things, by making our business processes more sustainable. We therefore donate a percentage of our annual profits to charitable organizations.
Choosing a selection results in a full page refresh.
