Xalam

Small Ngoni, is also called a Xalam or Halam or Djeli n'Goni. It occurs in West Africa, in Mali and other neighboring regions/countries such as Senegal, Burkina Faso, Gambia, Niger. The instrument, like the kora, is used by griots. Thanks to its very original sound, it has gained recognition all over the world. Construction of the music instrument consists of a of an elongated piece of wood resembling a kayak, which is tense the skin (goat or cow) so that it hid the hole in the wood.

The taut skin has holes through which the stuck a stick on one end is mounted the bridge where the strings are based, at the other end to tune strings can be used leather straps and wooden pegs or keys for the guitar (keys for the guitar facilitate tuning).

Right image shows Ngoni of about 70 inches long, 4 strings tuned by moving the rings from the line.

Although 4 strings are tuned in a fixed way, only two of them have the possibility of changing their pitch/sound during play, similarly to a guitar, with the difference that the stick is smooth and has no frets. Ngoni can also have 7 strings (available in galeria), such a variant is an extension of the 4-string instrument. It is worth remembering that Ngoni, seemingly having only four strings in the hands of an experienced musician, offers enormous possibilities, which can be seen by listening carefully to numerous recordings available, for example, on the YouTube channel, e.g.: https://youtu.be/KA0ErTCqUPo?list=PL0E3B059631F58A38&t=76

The instrument has several options for tuning. One of them is an option when the Ngoni has mounted four strings, containing the following sounds:

d ', g', c'', d''

Ngoni version with seven strings contains the following sounds:

c', c'', d', g', d'', e'', f''

In an instrument with seven strings, the 4 highest sounds are fixed. In the remaining three, it is possible to change the pitch sounds during playing.

 

 

I create resonators both from wood and composite. And here it is actually difficult to indicate which are better. The composite has the advantage that it is very durable and has interesting acoustic properties. Probably in the future I will be tempted to test and describe my observations in detail.

I also create ngoni in a version for left-handed people. In that case, the strings are mounted like this that the player holds the fretboard with his right hand and changes the sound of the strings with that hand. And with his left hand he is plucking the strings. In this arrangement, the lowest note is at the top and the highest note starts at the bottom.

Below is a photo of a custom-made ngonias for a left-handed person.

For all those who don't animal products and therefore would like to have an instrument on which the diaphragm is not stretched animal skin, I make instruments where leather is replaced with synthetic material. Let me mention here that it is neither rubber nor plastic but a mixture of something that perfectly fulfills its function and replaces the skin. The membrane is adequately durable, resilient and durable.

 [powrót]