Cimboa: Cape Verde musical instrument

The cimboa is a musical instrument that is found in Cape Verde. The cimboa is a bowed chordophone that was originally used to be played with the ‘batuque’ dances of the country. Te cimboa is made up of the instrument and its bow. The musical instrument belongs to the lute instrument family and as such it has neck that is fixed to a sound box. The sound box consists of a calabash, and when a calabash is hard to find, it will be carved with the use of a coconut shell with a soundboard of stretched kid skin that is fixed with reed pieces. A neck that is produced of a flexible wood is fixed to the sound box and at the end of the neck, there is a tuning peg of mahogany used to tune the solo string of the musical instrument that is stretched between the nut set in the neck of the instrument and the bridge placed on the soundboard of the instrument. The bow is produced from a curved wood piece and strung with a mane of a horse.

source: en.wikipedia.org

Sound can be produce of the instrument by rubbing the bow on the strings of the instrument that is also made of horse mane. The pitch of the notes can be changed by pressing the string against several points on the neck of the instrument. The flexibility of the neck permits bending effects of the notes by bending the neck of the instrument.

The actual origin of the cimboa is yet to be uncovered, although it may be assumed to have come from African continent. Researchers have opined a similarity between the cimboa and several other African instruments like the ‘kiki’ of the Teda and the ‘daza’ of the Tibesti and Borku and also the ‘nini’ of Zaghawa.

The usage of this musical instrument is believed to have died out. In spite having renewals of its construction, today it is often used as a decorative piece instead of as a musical instrument.