One to Play; One for fun!

It's easy to play any musical instrument: all you have to do is touch the right key at the right time and the instrument will play itself.

Johann Sebastian Bach.

Hello there, full-time weekenders!

I'd like to start by debunking the previous quote. There isn't a thing as an easy-to-play musical instrument. They all have their own learning curve and tricks to discover or learn from others. It is a blast to do it even with the toughest ones. I have also seen people screw up playing a triangle off beat.

During my short life, I've learned to play musical instruments. Some of them, I have played for covers for the Hive Open Mic, Vibes, Hive Music Festival and others. There's no one I play better nowadays than the Venezuelan Cuatro. It is also the instrument I make more often. It's a guitar-like chordophone. It has four strings (hence the name, Cuatro, four in Spanish). And it's the usually a common feature of traditional Venezuelan Music. There are, of course, some exceptions for this.

The usual way of playing it is by string the strings while holding a note on the fretboard. And the original intention of the instrument is to work alongside others to create music or accompany a singer. A lot of this has changed during the years as the instrument has gone through some transformation both physically and in playstyle. Nowadays, we have Electric Cuatros, Cuatros with metal strings, Cuatros with weird shapes, and so on.

I learned my basic when I was 9 years old. I didn't continue even when I liked the instrument because I didn't like my teacher at that time. Then, I picked up the Mandolin and went into quite a run with it. Festivals, Recordings, and covers on Hive. I put it down to focus on luthierie and half-way through it decided to learn to play it even more since I was building the instrument itself. That was 3 years ago. Right now it is the instrument I play almost everyday and keep learning to make them better and play them in my own accord.

I make no attempt at becoming a professional musician. Music is a kind of hobby for me. So my only competition is with me yesterday self. I guess that's why going on with this particular instrument has been such as smooth ride. And don't get me wrong, there are lots of great Venezuelan Cuatro players scattered around the world. I don't want to be any of them. Maybe some day the best players will have an instrument made by my hands. Who knows?

Although I have a lot of fun playing this instrument, there are others within my grasp which are a lot of fun to use. And I like to show some of you who might not have seen a pair of Maracas before. These are percussion instruments from the idiophones family. They are made from a calabash or gourd which is stuffed with seeds. There many types in Venezuela. They changed from region to region according to the needs of specific genres on music. The most common kind are the ones I'm holding. These are from the plains. Its sound is an imitation of the galloping of a horse. I'm not the best at playing this instrument, but it is for sure a lot of fun whenever I do. Sometimes I'm listening to something and go pick them up to try to keep up with the rhythm of the music on play.

There are some other instruments in my house. Some made by myself; others, some I acquired during my life. It's always a lot of fun when I get the chance to show them.

In case you're wondering why I have 3 Venezuelan Cuatros, here's the answer. I have one to practice. I changed the tuning on another to practice a different style which is very similar to playing a Guitar. The third one is the instrument I use in the rare occasion when I have to perform in public. I don't think I'll have more than three at a time, but only time and space in the house will tell about that.