Cajon

[songright]

Last spring I became interested in the Afro-Peruvian-Cuban influenced percussive instrument known as a Cajon. It has two distinct sounds that are comparable to a bass and snare drum. It has a variety of sounds based on how you play it. It's like drumming your hands on a desk. It's basically a box with a thin front that you play with your hands, or in some cases, brushes. Attached to the inside of the box is a guitar string that is stretched across the inside of the 1/8" wood that is the playing surface. Depending on how loose or tight these strings are adjusted, you can get a nice balance between a full and thumpy bass drum sound and a sharp, snappy snare drum sound. It has a resonance hole in the back that is about 5" in diameter. I purchased my first one for $70 from MF. I still use this one to record. I also bought a model that has a B-Band pickup mounted to the inside with a quarter inch jack and volume control on the back. My Cajon player, who is a phenominal guitarist/teacher/repairman, uses the model with the pickup in it to play out on. I also bought a choir condensor mic to place in front of the Cajon to capture the snare drum-like snap, as well as other percussive instruments, tambourines and shakers. This thing has a great sound that is perfect for my edgy-acoustic sound. People cannot believe the sounds that come out of the box that that dude is sitting on and beating it with his hands. Very cool instrument! Take a look at the pic.

[Elton Bear]

I came across my first Cajun a couple of years ago - they're cool, but they're so expensive for a wooden box with a metal sheet attached to one side!

[songright]

My bass player built one with scrap wood, and it sounds great. You just need to tweak them to get them to sound right...as with anything.