Rainstick
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 |
This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2010) |
 Sound of a rainstick |
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| Classification | Percussion instrument |
|---|---|
| Hornbostel–Sachs classification | 112.13 (vessel rattle) |
| Inventor(s) | uncertain, some theories include: Peru, Aztecs, enslavened African slaves in North America |
| Related instruments | |
| HoshoMaracasRainstickVibraslap | |
Many traditional cultures believed the sound of falling rain that rainsticks made could produce a storm. Although that belief has faded from contemporary society, rainsticks are still used to this day. The instrument is usually made from a long, hollow tube filled with pebbles or beads. Walls of the tube are stick with iron nails, cactus needles or something similar. When the stick is turned over, it produces the sound of falling rain.
Rainsticks may also be made with other common materials like paper towel rolls instead of cactus, and nails or toothpicks instead of thorns and are often sold to tourists visiting parts of Latin America, including the Southern United States.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Exploratorium Article Make your own rainstick
- There is an article in a Peruvian journal, Quepo (Roque & Ramirez 2005. Palos de lluvia y Cactaceas), which describes the Peruvian species of cacti used to make these instruments.
- "The Rain Stick" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Sb7OfXGhUE
- Moseley, Christine, and Carmen Fies. "Rainsticks: Integrating Culture, Folklore, and the Physics of Sound." Science Activities 44.1 (2007): 2-5. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 27 Sept. 2011.
