Cabasas Views
The NINO® Cabasas are made from a wooden cylinder covered with a rippled metal plate, which is surrounded by a net of metal beads. Holding the handle with one hand and scratching the metal beads with the other hand on the metal plate creates the classic cabasa sound. The smaller 2“ model (NINO701) was especially designed for a child’s hand .
The NINO® Cabasas are made from a wooden cylinder covered with a rippled metal plate, which is surrounded by a net of metal beads. Holding the handle with one hand and scratching the metal beads with the other hand on the metal plate creates the classic cabasa sound. The smaller 2 inch model was especially designed for a child’s hand. Choose size - Small or Medium.
A cabasa is a percussion instrument that is composed of a round wheel or cylinder (usually made of wood) that is looped with steel ball chain. It normally has a handle, and the instrument is shaken to create a sound similar to that made by using brushes on a high hat cymbal. Cabasas are used in a number of different types of Latin American music and are best known for their easily distinguished sound in bossa nova, a Latin jazz style that derives from samba.
The inspiration for creating the cabasa is definitely the African instrument called the shekere. This was a hollowed out gourd over which beads were strung in a net. When shaken, the sound is very similar to the cabasa, although the latter instrument has a more metallic sound. Cabasas are also more likely to come in reasonably standard sizes. Since shekeres are traditionally made out of gourds, size, and length of the handle depends very much on how large the gourd grows.
Cabasas Images
