Perfect gift for the mandolin fanatic...

[...and Master of None]

...who thinks he has everything!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ARMADILLO-8-STRI...item2eabf588fa

NFI

[jim simpson]

Put a set of Grovers on it and your ready to go!

[D C Blood]

That didn't exactly start the MAS juices flowing...

[allenhopkins]

It's a charango, from Bolivia not the "southern bayous." I have an armadillo-shell charango. Small, 10-string, 5-course instrument, closer to the ukulele than the mandolin.

My charango is the only instrument I own that has hair and ears.

[...and Master of None]

Well, I guess Allen does have everything!

[hank]

I find that repulsive. I guess you could hang it next to your shrunken heads and your last pet that you had stuffed. Mongo sing you little sick puppy song and give you good nose puke.

[allenhopkins]

I find that repulsive. I guess you could hang it next to your shrunken heads and your last pet that you had stuffed. Mongo sing you little sick puppy song and give you good nose puke.

Well, I hate to think how many calves died to donate their hides to drum and banjo heads, or how many sheep went to their reward to string up "gut strung" guitars and violins in past centuries. And those tortoise-shell picks that some mandolinists still covet -- many a sea turtle carapace got chopped into plectra, not to mention ladies' combs and costume jewelry. Why do you think blown instruments are called "horns"? The original ones came off the heads of animals; maybe they were shed naturally, maybe they were the byproducts of slaughter. Maybe your mandolin has a bone nut; the bone didn't grow on a "bone tree."

Armadillo shells were the original basis for charango bodies; whether the armadillos were killed for that purpose, or for food (yes, armadillos are eaten), or succumbed to old age, I don't know. Nowadays, the bodies are mostly carved out of wood, in the armadillo-shell shape. I happen to have acquired one of the older ones, with the a-shell body. Acoustically, probably little difference between wood and shell. The top's wood, in either case.

A Druid would probably lament the slaughter of spruce and maple trees to produce the mandolins we play. If you find the traditional-style charango "repulsive," Hank, don't buy one. Hope no cows or pigs died to make your belts or shoes -- or mandolin strap, for that matter. I make no apologies for owning a charango made in the "old style."

[Mike Snyder]

Ever seen a gut string fiddle or bass?

[billkilpatrick]

as allen says, it's a charango - 5c. vihuela brought by the spanish to the new world - a late renaissance/baroque "travel" instrument. subsequent developments in spain made it redundent but it thrived in south america. here are some european relatives:





... and here's me playing mine:



they're wonderful little instruments and - yes - perfect for the mandolin player who has everything.

[billkilpatrick]

don't know what happened to the images - try again: http://www.flickr.com/photos/7738680@N05/2501611152/

[Mandolin Mick]

Bill-

What are you playing that with, a pen???

[billkilpatrick]

it's called a risha or mizrab - a thin, narrow strip of horn (in this case) - medieval musicians used quill. primarily used for playing oud.

here's another diminutive european ancestor of the charango:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7738680@N05/458506229/



with my delicate sensibilities, the armadillo shell is ghoulish for me as well but it wasn't intended to be. armadillos get eaten in southamerica and indian luthiers used what was at hand - call it a handy, prudential use of what would otherwise be waste material.

[Dan Hoover]

oh,the stories that thing could tell....reminds me? note to self...self,pick up razor blades at store today...

[Jim Garber]

The seller can't count. As noted above, not a mandolin and not 8 strings.

[hank]

I think it's the hair that gave me that warm fuzzy feeling. I guess with some pickups and electricity you could feel that hairy back purring against you. No offence meant Allen. A hairy back instrument just kind of weirded me out. Maybe I could grow to love it over time?

[allenhopkins]

... No offence meant Allen. A hairy back instrument just kind of weirded me out. Maybe I could grow to love it over time?

Actually, it's the ears that I find weird. What I really like is the traditional aspect -- that this was how the Bolivians adapted a European instrument, using "local materials" i.e. armadillo shells. Just another musical oddity.

[Eric F.]

Personally, I like the "inlaid parka."

[mculliton123]

I think it's an 1880's Ovation Tiple.

[fred d]

I have one and if you think geting 8 strings is tough try 10 got strings from Elderly and I think it sounds more like a Uke than a mandolin

[Perry Babasin]

Where is the tone-gard when you need it? That hairy back could be downright uncomfortable...

[Eddie Sheehy]

A set of strings and a shave and ....voila

[Peter Kurtze]

The charango is increasingly popular in Iceland [!!!!!!], thanks to the music of Olof Arnalds:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/s...ryId=124771829

[hank]

Olof makes it sound pretty darn good. I'm guessing Klara is charango but Englar Og Darar is guitar. Do you have armadillos in Iceland? Are you within sight of the volcano?