MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS OF

AFRICA
 Idiophones
• Balafon
The balafon
is a
West African
xylophone.
• Rattles

Rattles are
vessels made of
seashells, tin,
basketry, animal
hoofs, horn,
metal, cocoons,
palms kernels,
or tortoise
shells.
• Agogo
The agogo may
be called “the
oldest samba
instrument
based on West
African Yoruba
single or
double bells.”
 • Atingting kon
The atingting kon
are slit gongs used
as communication
between two
villages
• Slit Drum

A slit drum is
a
hollow percus
sion
instrument
• Djembe

The West
African djembe
is (pronounced
zhembay) is
ome of the best-
known African
drums.
• Shekere
Shekere is a
type of
gourd and
shell
megaphone
from West
Africa,
consisting of
a dried
gourd with
beads
woven onto
a net
covering the
gourd.
• Rasp

A rasp, or
scraper, is a
hand percussion
instrument
whose sound is
produced by
scraping the
notches on a
piece of wood.
B.Membranophones
• 1 Body Percussion

African people
use their body
as instruments.
• 2 Talking Drum
The talking drum is
used to send
messages to
announce births,
deaths, marriages,
sporting events,
dances, initiatio, or
war.
C. Lamellaphone
• The mbira

A thumb xylophone
D. Chordophones
• Musical bow
3 principal Types
*The mouth bow
*Resonator bow
*Earth bow
• Lute

The lute,
originating
from the
Arabic states,
is shaped
like the
modern
guitar and
played in
similar
fashion.
• Kora

The kora is one of

Africa’s
sophisticated harp,
while also having
features similar to
a lute.
• Zither
The zither is a
stringed
instrument with
varying sizes and
shapes whose
strings are
stretched along its
bod
 • Zeze

The zeze is a
stringed
instrument[clarificati
on needed] from Sub-

Saharan Africa.
Aerophones
• 1 Flutes

Flutes are widely

used in Africa.
• Fulani pipes
• Panpipes

Consits of cane
pipes of diffirent
lengths tied in a row
or in a bundle held
together by wax or a
cord, and generally
closed at the
bottom.
• Horns
 • Reed pipes

A reed pipe (also

referred to as a
lingual pipe) is an
organ pipe that is
sounded by a
vibrating brass
strip known as
a reed
• Whistles
. Whistle,
short flute
having a
stopped lower
end and a flue
that directs
the player's
breath from
the mouth
hole at the
upper end
against the
edge of
• Trumpets
A trumpet is a brass
instrument commonly
used
in classical and jazz en
sembles