Costa Rica has many instruments that many of us may find unusual compared to what you're used to hearing. These instruments is part of what makes Costa Rican music so unique compared to the rest of the world. Some of the more unusual and more traditional instruments would be the Quijongo, the Ocarina and the Carraca. At first sight the instruments probably would even look like instruments to you!
The Quijongo is a flexible wooden stick, held in the form of an arch by a string of hemp. A pot in the center serves as a sound box. It is played by beating on the tuned string; by changing up how you cover the mouth of the pot with your fingers, it produces an oscillating sound like the wind whistling in the trees, to me this instrument looked more like a fancy bow and arrow. Scroll down for a look at the Quijongo, see what you think!
The Ocarina is much different from the Quijongo, it fits in your palm and has two to six holes, producing scales of three, four, five, six and seven sounds, not to mention the sounds obtained covering half of the holes when you blow into it, take a look below!
Possibly the most unusual of all these instruments is the Carraca, also called “Quijada de Burro” (jaw of the donkey). The jaw is not necessarily that of a donkey; it could also be from a horse. It is named “carraca” (rattle) because the sound it emits when played is similar to the sound produced by a female duck (“carraca”). It is also an instrument of great sound-richness. As the jaw of any beast that is dry, its loose jawbones make a singular sound. Scroll down to see what the carraca looks like!
The Quijongo is a flexible wooden stick, held in the form of an arch by a string of hemp. A pot in the center serves as a sound box. It is played by beating on the tuned string; by changing up how you cover the mouth of the pot with your fingers, it produces an oscillating sound like the wind whistling in the trees, to me this instrument looked more like a fancy bow and arrow. Scroll down for a look at the Quijongo, see what you think!
The Ocarina is much different from the Quijongo, it fits in your palm and has two to six holes, producing scales of three, four, five, six and seven sounds, not to mention the sounds obtained covering half of the holes when you blow into it, take a look below!
Possibly the most unusual of all these instruments is the Carraca, also called “Quijada de Burro” (jaw of the donkey). The jaw is not necessarily that of a donkey; it could also be from a horse. It is named “carraca” (rattle) because the sound it emits when played is similar to the sound produced by a female duck (“carraca”). It is also an instrument of great sound-richness. As the jaw of any beast that is dry, its loose jawbones make a singular sound. Scroll down to see what the carraca looks like!
More Typical Instruments
The instruments above aren't really your typical instruments, here are some that may be more familiar to you. The marimba is used most frequently in Costa Rica to produce a very upbeat sort of sound and if you don't know, is pretty well a piano but instead of pushing keys down to produce a sound, the marimba uses mallets to hit hallow wooden blocks to produce a sound, the size of the block will determine the pitch achieved when the block is hit. Another instrument used in Costa Rica that you most definitely will know of is the spanish guitar, pretty well the same as any acoustic guitar. Maracas are often times used for accompaniment along with wooden calves that are played on the off-beat to produce a catchy groove.
The instruments above aren't really your typical instruments, here are some that may be more familiar to you. The marimba is used most frequently in Costa Rica to produce a very upbeat sort of sound and if you don't know, is pretty well a piano but instead of pushing keys down to produce a sound, the marimba uses mallets to hit hallow wooden blocks to produce a sound, the size of the block will determine the pitch achieved when the block is hit. Another instrument used in Costa Rica that you most definitely will know of is the spanish guitar, pretty well the same as any acoustic guitar. Maracas are often times used for accompaniment along with wooden calves that are played on the off-beat to produce a catchy groove.