Kalimba is a music instrument,
on which everyone can learn how to play
The body of kalimba
The base of kalimba is a precious piece of wood, whis resonates and carries the tones into the surrounding space. Abraded rims not only carry the sound better, but they also enable a better grip.
Tuning
We make the precise sound by individually polishing the ends of the lamellas. Each kalimba is tuned differently. Have a look which type of tuning suits you.
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Tuning
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Body of instrument
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Electroacoustic version available
Electroacoustics
For the professionals, we also offer electroacoustic kalimbas, which you can connect to an amplifier or to all sorts of effects, thanks to the built-in electronics.
Masterful hand work
We don’t produce kalimbas machinely, but crafty by hand. Take a look how we work.
We will teach everyone how to play
We know how demanding it is to start learning to play a new instrument. It’s a piece of cake with our songbooks and the ever helping “C’s”.
Acoustic kalimbas
Acoustic kalimbas in different tunings and scales
Masterful craftsmanship, high quality tuning and a lifetime warranty.
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Tuning that sticks
Just after a couple of minutes of playing on a kalimba, one can tune into the inner peace and harmony. We tune the kalimbas to pentatonic, diatonic and hexatonic scales. We offer custom tuning for the more demanding players.
Listen to samples:
Pentatonic
Pentatonic tuning is easier and you really don’t have to think that hard while playing so. It’s ideal for kalimba beginners, or for the kids. This tuning, which indicates five tones, brings joy to people who don’t have much experience with a musical instrument. The tuning is in an octave of G A B D E.
Diatonic
Maybe you remember the “do re mi fa so la si do” exercise from the music classes at your elementary school. It’s an indication of the seven tones in a diatonic scale. If you’ve just hummed this in your mind, you sang one octave. We can tune these kalimbas both to G major or to D major. Compared with a pentatonic kalimba this one has two more extra tones, which allow you to play known melodies, which will make you think harder. Chromatic tuning has the tones of G A B C D E F# and the second layer tones of C D E F G A B. This is recommended for the more experienced or braver players 😀
Chromatic
Best compared to the tuning of a piano, where there are whole tones and semitones available. Here you have 21 tones at your disposal, which allow the most difficult parts to be played on a kalimba. It’s meant for people who don’t want to limit themselves and who want to learn a new fingering technique at the same time. Pro pianists also appreciate the xy. The tuning is in C major, beginning with a G note.
You can get good sound with high quality wood only.
All kalimbas are made of a wood, which has been dried for several years. That is the main reason they sound so good. We never use industrially harvested wood. Our kalimbas are mostly made of walnut tree wood, which is characteristic with its soft and warm tone. Not only the perennial process of drying is standing behind the sound qualities of the instrument. It’s also the process of carefully picking the trees with which we then work.
We passionately use and also equally take care of other types of wood, besides the walnut tree wood. We can produce them when making a custom made instrument.
Masterful hand work
It all begins with picking a good piece of wood. The tree used for the kalimba making process can’t grow in a wetland and it has to be a several years old trunk, in order to fit the instrument in. Handling of the wood means skinning the tree and cutting it to slabs. Only after five years the story of making the instrument begins – as we finally start plane them. Our work is based on a pure craft. That’s why we do all of the steps of sawing, sanding, surface treatments, tuning and painting the packaging boxes by hand.
More than 10 years of searching for the right sound
I’ve got my first stanley knife when I was four. I accidentally cut myself and my grandma threw the knife into a river. The scar remained, but I never gave up on my dream and under the leadership of master Baláž, my teacher in Kremnica, I learned how to professionally shape and feel the wood. Ten years ago I made my first kalimba, because of my longing to bring the music back amongst the people. From that moment on, thousands of kalimbas came and went through my hands into the hands of satisfied customers from around the world.
A tablet that helps to concentrate
Kalimba is an useful assistant in a world full of distractions. Kids can escape the phones and tablets thanks to it. It is the simplest musical instrument on which the children can begin to learn how to play. Kalimba is therefore suitable for the first musical education. Kids can use kalimba to learn the basics of musical knowledge, but also to work with intuition and playfulness.
Kalimbas for kids
Limited edition
Wood dried for 5 years, carefully chosen, sanded by hand, all in an instrument produced with a precision of a surgeon. Limited edition accomplished craft work accomplishes musical experience for the most demanding musicians. Every single kalimba body has a unique drawing and shape, which will appreciate your ears, but the eyes too.
Therapeutic kalimbas
Kalimba not only utilises its musical side, but it also overlaps into the therapeutical realms. You can engage in a pleasant massage by letting the vibrations and resonance penetrate the body by playing on it. The therapeutic kalimbas are tuned into 432 Hz, they are made by hand and their surface is hollowed out. The sound comes out of the many edges of the instrument so you can go through totally new experience by touch.
We will make your first steps easier with the songbook
You don’t need to know any musical theory. Colourful stripes – the C’s – will help you mark individual lamellas and tones which you need to play, by simply slipping them on to the mechanics constriction. If you would like to play with the other members of your family, the note staff will enable the whole band to join in.
For musicians and professionals
The pure sound and quality of the electroacoustic edition is provided by three sound sensors and a high quality jack. With that kind of instrument you can be a musician on a big stage. The gaining of a sound is well balanced and precise, thanks to the three piezo sensors. Professional musicians and all other fans of a good sound, who want to play kalimba with all sorts of effects and loops can appreciate this.
Electroacoustic kalimbas
Workshops
Imagine that! There is a way, how to become a musician without the years of practicing on an instrument. The way how to discover your inner rhythm is through motion, playfulness and through the pure joy, without the need of evaluating your skills. We have been organising such workshops for years now. We teach how to make your own kalimbas, how to play on therapeutic kalimbas and how to draw from many different parts of musicotherapy.
Depending on a group we work with, the workshop can be aimed at motion, sound, rhythm, human contact or at relaxing and resting.
Interested?
Contact us and we will create a tailor-made workshop for you. Subscribe to our newsletter for more info about our next events.
I want to recieve musical newsletter from Bolf.
Mail where we inform about our products, what’s new with our cat Fluffy and every news about kalimbas.,
We send it only 4 times per year.
We’re a family, that fulfils their dream about the music
Years ago we have decided to bring the music back amongst the people. That’s why we procude kalimba – a musical instrument for non-musicians. We crafted it the way, so really everybody can have a go and play on it.
