The Kora: Western Africa's Stringed Jewel

Welcome back to another week of musical exploration! After getting to learn a little bit about the cultural and musical phenomenon in Iran, we continue our journey to the southwest, to Africa. The beautiful instrument that we are looking at today is called the kora. The kora is similar to a harp and has around twenty-one strings. It has been unclear as to where exactly this instrument originated from, but it is said to have originated around the 16^th century. The kora is most well-known to be played by the Mandinka in Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Senegal, Burkina Faso, and Gambia. Traditional players call the kora a jail, as seen from the areas French colonization.

What does the kora look like? When we picture a harp we normally picture Cupid or some type of goddess that tries to lure what they call the love of their life. The kora on the other hand looks more like a fusion of a chello and the harp. As you can see in the lovely picture, the kora has a pretty large base. This base is made out of a large calabash that is cut in half and normally covered in cow skin, forming the gourd resonator. Attached to this is a long hardwood neck that passes through the calabash gourd resonator. There are two planes that separate the twenty-one strings in a traditional kora, 11 strings on one and 10 strings on the other, running in notches at the sides of the vertically mounted bridge.

How is it played? The playing style of the kora is rather similar to the harp. The musician only needs to use the thumb and index finger of both of their hands to pluck the strings in what is known as polyrhythmic patterns. The other remaining fingers and the palm is used to keep the instrument in place.



Gravi-Kord

Modern uses or adaptations of the kora? With electronic music gaining ground within the past few years, it was only a matter of time that traditional instruments like the kora would have a electronic variation to it. The electronic version of this instrument was developed in the late twentieth century by a man named Robert Grawl. The difference that this instrument has with the traditional kora aside from the sound that is makes is the number of strings that it has. With 24 strings as opposed to the original 21, this “gravikord” that it is named is able to produce higher octave sounds than the traditional kora. Another variation of this Instrument is the Gravi-kora which could be deemed the successor to the gravikord. With 21 strings it is able to give traditional kora musicians an instrument that is made out of much more durable material while offering them a wider range of sounds.

Though I have never actually seen one of these in person, just taking a look at the available YouTube videos gets you hooked. If you ever venture into the areas of Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Senegal, Burkina Faso, and Gambia be sure to check the kora out! You definitely won’t regret it.