Cabasas & Sand Blocks

Cabasas and sand blocks, two instruments that make their sound by friction rather than by being struck.

A cabasa is a cylinder wrapped in loops of steel bead chain, with a handle. Turning the cylinder against the palm drags the beads across the ridged surface, which gives a sharp, bright rattle with a definite start and stop. Shaking it instead gives a looser sound, so one instrument covers two quite different parts. GMP cabasas come in three sizes and the MEINL Turbo Cabasa in four.

Sand blocks are two wooden blocks faced with sandpaper, rubbed together. The sound is soft, dry and brushy, and it is one of the few classroom instruments quiet enough to play underneath singing without covering it. EMUS stocks two models.

Both reward control rather than force, which makes them useful for teaching dynamics. A cabasa played hard is an unpleasant noise and a cabasa played slowly is a lovely one, and students work that out for themselves quickly.