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Object Description
| Instrument name | kora |
| Instrument no. | 189 |
| Alternate image name | African harp 8 |
| Country/Area | The Gambia |
| Culture Area | Mandinka |
| K-S Classification No. | C41.22 |
| Short descriptive term | bridge harp |
| Description | The kora is a 21-string bridge harp (formerly harp lute). The bridge harp is a straight-neck variety of spike harp. It is made of a large half calabash covered in cowhide with the back exposed and the sides decorated with upholstery tacks. The long stout neck pierces the body parallel to the skin sound table, emerging at the base to form the tailpiece. The strings are separated into two planes nearly parallel to each other, but perpendicular to the face. They are held in this position by a tall wooden bridge standing upright on a cushion on the face. The strings, of monofilament nylon in graded strengths, are tied to an iron loop in the tailpiece, pass through notches on either side of the bridge (11 on the left, 10 on the right), and are secured to rawhide tuning collars, one for each string, woven in a pattern known in the West as a Turk's Head. The strings are mounted on the bridge according to their length. The longest (and heaviest) string is at the top of the bridge and reach highest on the neck. The shorter the string, the farther down the bridge and neck it is mounted. Two wooden sticks are pinned through the skin on either side of the neck and nearly parallel to it. Their long upper ends serve as handgrips. A third stick spans the calabash horizontally behind these. The player faces the sound table, holds the handgrips with three fingers, and plucks the strings with thumbs and forefingers. Red cushion; rust-colored scarf, chrome tacks in a fanning sunrise at center of back, calabash slightly flattened at this same location, aluminum protectors at hand grips. |
| Materials | calabash, cowhide, wood, nylon, iron |
| Dimensions | height 137 cm (54 in.); width of gourd 19 in. (48cm); height 19.5 in. (50 cm); depth 10 in. (25 cm); diameter of neck 1.75 in. (4.5 cm). |
| Accessories | A small, fan-shaped piece of metal with wire loops in holes around the edge may be fitted atop the bridge. This is the nyenyemo and it vibrates in sympathy with the strings (not present). |
| Condition | good |
| Page prepared by | Phillip Smith/RCK |
| Acquisition number | 1987.1 |
| Acquisition information | Purchased in The Gambia for Oberlin, with the assistance of Jali Nyama Suso, from famous kora maker Aliu Suso. Tack designs by RCK. |
| More about this instrument | http://rckorganology.blogspot.com/2010/03/oberlin-kora-collection.html |
| Digital Publisher | Oberlin College. Library |
| Repository | Oberlin College. Conservatory of Music |
| Copyright Statement | The images and text in this database may be copied, distributed and transmitted without express permission for personal and educational uses, providing the materials are cited as follows: From the Roderic C. Knight Musical Instrument Collection, Oberlin College ( http://www.oberlin.edu/library/digital/knight ). For all other uses, please write the author at rknight@oberlin.edu. |
| Collection Name | Roderic C. Knight Musical Instrument Collection |
| Type | CompoundObject |
| Format | cpd |
Description
| Instrument name | full view |
| Instrument no. | i189 |
| Digital Publisher | Oberlin College. Library |
| Repository | Oberlin College. Conservatory of Music. |
| Copyright Statement | The images and text in this database may be copied, distributed and transmitted without express permission for personal and educational uses, providing the materials are cited as follows: From the Roderic C. Knight Musical Instrument Collection, Oberlin College ( http://www.oberlin.edu/library/digital/knight ). For all other uses, please write the author at rknight@oberlin.edu. |
| Collection Name | Roderic C. Knight Musical Instrument Collection |
| Digital Master Filename | Knight_i189.tif |
| Type | Image |
| Format | tif |
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