Chipendani Mouth Bow
The chipendani is a mouth bow of the Shona of Zimbabwe, a curved wooden stave with a single fibre or wire string, held against the open mouth and plucked so that the mouth shapes the tone. Because the cavity of the mouth acts as a resonator, the player can vary pitch and timbre while the string keeps up a light, rhythmic pattern. It is above all an instrument of herders and young men, who play it alone in the fields to pass the hours, to court, and to accompany themselves while singing. The chipendani is small and portable, carried in the hand or tucked in the belt, and its soft sound suits th