Mbira Dzavadzimu
The mbira dzavadzimu is the lamellophone of the Shona people of Zimbabwe, a wooden soundboard fitted with rows of metal keys and placed over a gourd resonator that buzzes with shells, bottle caps, or other rattling matter. Its name means 'mbira of the ancestor spirits', and it is played at the bira ceremonies where the spirits of the departed are called to advise the living. The interlocking patterns of the mbira weave around the singing and clapping of the assembly, and the buzzing, layered sound is thought to attract the spirits so that they can speak through a medium. The instrument is lear