Rainstick

Traditional Style Cactus Rainstick

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A rain stick is a long, hollow tube which is filled with small baubles such as beads or beans and has small pins arranged helically on its inside surface. When the stick is upended, the beads fall to the other end of the tube, making a sound reminiscent of a rainstorm as they bounce off the pins. The rainstick is generally used to create atmospheric sound effects or as a percussion instrument.

The rainstick is generally considered to have been invented in South America's Chile, and was played in the belief that it could bring about rainstorms.

Construction

The materials used to create a rainstick vary depending on cultural traditions and the plants and materials available locally, and also the cost of production in bulk manufactured rainsticks.

Traditionally, a rainstick is made from the dried stem of a cactus, the spines of which are pulled out, reversed and then pushed back in. Rainstick makers don't use live plants any more. They always use plants which have died naturally. Small pebbles or gravel fill the rainstick and strike the spines as they fall. Metal nails are also frequently used; however, natural cactus spines give a more tonal, musical sound.

Rainsticks may also be made from the stems of bamboo plants.

Bulk manufactured rainsticks – for example those often used for educational purposes – are often machined from plastic or metal, the beads also being made from synthetic materials. Most manufacturers give the machined rainsticks a soft wood brown color to emulate the real thing. The sound and appearance of manufactured rainsticks are very similar to natural rainsticks. This decreases the cost greatly.

Playing Technique

The rainstick can either be tilted at a 45 degrees, allowing the beads to fall, creating an atmospheric effect like the sound of rainfall – intensifying as the angle increases. It can also be tapped to make a more controlled sound, or it can be used to create percussive rhythms as a shaker.

External links

• 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.