The Quilcom SIM-MBIRA is a synthesiser for simulating the sound of the African Mbira and the western-designed Kalimba, which is derived from the Mbira. The instrument is sometimes referred to as a “thumb piano” based on the way it’s held in the hands and played by flicking the tines with the thumb nails and sometimes an index finger.
Mbiras produce a rattling or buzzing sound generated by objects attached loosely to the sound board/box and mounted on a metal plate. These “rattlers” were traditionally shells but are now often bottle caps or beads. Sometimes the Mbira is wedged inside a large dried and hollowed gourd housing to act as a resonating chamber.
Kalimbas don’t use rattlers and feature either a solid sound board or a hollow box to amplify and sustain the sound.
The tines are made from steel and can be kept in tune by tapping them forward or backwards in the clamping bridge. The most common tuning is equal temperament diatonic, but they can also be pentatonic. Kalimbas are normally diatonic but so-called Array Kalimbas are made which cover a fully chromatic scheme.
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