Instrument of the week

Rainstick

A rainstick is a long, hollow tube which is filled with small baubles such as beads or beans and has small pins or thorns arranged helicaly 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. They have become very popular in the last 30 years, and are often sold to tourists.

The rainstick is generally considered to have been invented in Chile, and was played in the belief that it could bring about rainstorms. Rainsticks are usually made from any of several species of cactus. The cacti, which are hollow, are dried by the sun. The spines are removed, and driven back into the cactus, like nails. Pebbles or other small objects are placed inside the rainstick, and the ends are sealed off. A sound like falling water is made when the rainstick is inverted.

Rainsticks may be made with other common materials like paper towel rolls instead of cactus, and nails or toothpicks instead of thorns. The rainstick can be held at a 45 degrees angle, allowing the beads to fall gradually, and creating an atmospheric effect like the sound of rainfall. It can also be tapped to make a more controlled sound, or it can be used to create percussive rhythms as a shaker. If the rainstick is turned upside down slowly it will last longer and make a better sound.