Making Gourd Musical Instruments: Over 60 String, Wind & Percussion Instruments & How to Play Them [Paperback]

Ginger Summit (Author), Jim Widess (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2007

Pluck them, bang them, shake them, and blow into them! These instruments—from wood temple gongs to water drums and stamping tubes—produce every type of joyful noise. Make a fun “gourd orchestra” of rattles, like a Mesoamerican Indian rain stick and African shekere; a Caribbean guiro; a gorgeous mbira or thumb piano; and friction drums that wail or roar. There are instruments from near and far, from the unusual to the familiar banjo and guitar. Tips on choosing, cleaning, and sealing a gourd, and decorating and playing the finished instrument, help to create beautiful music.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Historically, ethnic groups in many countries have used a great number of musical instruments made from gourds. In North America these instruments are used mainly by percussionists. Most of the step-by-step projects in this book by gourd artists Summit and Widess (The Complete Book of Gourd Craft) are for percussion or stringed instruments such as the Latin American guiro (gourd scraper) or the spike fiddle. There are also a few from the wind family, such as the fipple flute. These are legitimate musical instruments made from traditional materials, and they are fully playable as well as being beautifully crafted. Highly recommended for general crafts as well as ethnomusicology collections.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

The authors introduce readers to make-it-yourself musical instruments. There is an amazing wealth of information here, covering not only how-to's and history but also extending into the social sciences and even science. We learn that pigeon flutes (crafted gourds attached to the birds' tails) were first mentioned about A.D. 1041 A.D. and that drummers are highly respected in India. Actual instructions on gourd transformations into spike fiddles, water drums, and even xylophones are included, along with a few photographs. But all the erudition tends to drown out the craft aspect, since instructions are sandwiched within the narrative text, and photographs are less than optimal. Nonetheless, a book that patient crafters will appreciate. Barbara Jacobs --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Sterling (March 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402745036
• ISBN-13: 978-1402745034
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 8.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #390,900 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars incomplete directions and materials lists, December 8, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Making Gourd Musical Instruments: Over 60 String, Wind & Percussion Instruments & How to Play Them (Hardcover)

This book does not compare to Ginger Summit's previous books on gourd crafts. The material lists are incomplete and the instructions are poorly written. It was extremely frustrating, particularly to construct the thumb piano, to have incomplete parts list and the book assumes that the user has a fairly extensive knowledge of tools. I do NOT recommend this book to anyone who wants a quality folk type instrument. I have constructed four instruments and found the general directions poor. It was interesting from a historical folk instrument aspect but was not functional for helping one learn to create gourd instruments.

22 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not much for quality instruments, September 5, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Making Gourd Musical Instruments: Over 60 String, Wind & Percussion Instruments & How to Play Them (Hardcover)

This book gives wonderful history and inspiration to anyone interested in crafting musical instruments from gourds. Having crafted several instruments myself, I found the real, usable information in this book rather limited, especially if you're looking to build a quality instrument. I would suggest the gourd crafter check out the book "Making Wood Folk Instruments" by Dennis Waring. The instructions are much better and in many cases can be altered to use gourds rather than wood.

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Making Gourd Musical Instruments, March 26, 2000

By 

gourder (State of Jefferson) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Making Gourd Musical Instruments: Over 60 String, Wind & Percussion Instruments & How to Play Them (Hardcover)

A fantastic companion to "The Complete Book of Gourd Craft" (by the same authors). The history lesson on each type of instrument is wonderful for both adults and children. The photos of both ancient and new instruments are a pleasure to look at and an inspiration to get going on a project while the instructions for making the instruments are basic enough to get started and then let your imagination run wild. If you need more help with basic gourd craft, just refer to "The Complete Book of Gourd Craft" Happy Gourding!