Instrument Gallery

Senegal - Griot playing a Kora

Senegal - seated Griot playing a Kora, a 21-stringed harp lute that originated in the Gambia River valley with the Mandinko but is one of the most popular instruments in Senegal. Griots from most Mande groups in Senegal, Gambia, Mali, Guinea, and Guinea Bissau play the kora, which has featured on a number of western recordings in recent years. A Griot is a West African historian, storyteller, praise singer, poet and/or musician. The griot is a repository of oral tradition, and is also often seen as something of a societal leader due to his traditional position as an adviser to royal personages. Date: circa 1910s

© Mary Evans / Grenville Collins Postcard Collection

Quiet music practice / W H Robinson

When practicing ones musical instrument, there is only one person who wants to hear it - the aspiring performer. A simple adjustment (as here depicted to the horn, but applicable to most instruments of totrure) assures that only the budding musician will hear. Please note: Credit must appear as (c) Courtesy of the estate of Mrs J.C.Robinson/Pollinger Ltd/Mary Evans Picture Library

© Courtesy of the estate of Mrs J.C.Robinson/Pollinger Ltd/Mary Evans Picture Library

Horn Lesson in a Wine Cellar

A group of gentlemen and a small boy congregate in a wine cellar to practice playing the horn whilst enjoying a drink or two (non-alcoholic for the small boy of course)

© Mary Evans Picture Library

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