Bamboo Koto

Beautiful Sounds is excited to introduce the fantastic Bamboo Koto with incorporated pickup, handcrafted by instrument artisan Ben Ruch of Cascasdia Instruments in Portland, Oregon.  This lightweight and travel friendly stringed instrument with a bamboo and wood body is modeled after the traditional Japaneses Koto, and includes moveable bridges under each string.  These bridges allow you to bend the note by pressing your finger down on the left side of the bridge while plucking the note on the right side of the bringe.

A soothing and relaxing string instrument, you can play it on your lap, a table or the floor, and both vertically and horizontally in the hand.  The Bamboo Koto is softer sounding without amplification, so a speaker or amplifier is highly recommended to get the most out of this instrument for sound healing and performance.  Since it's electric though, you can also play it through various effects pedals to create some really amazing sounds beyond its natural string sound.

Bamboo Kotos come in either 20" or 32" lengths in the body.  The 20" Travel Bamboo Koto is the travel size and our favorite here at Beautiful Sounds because it's a great fit on the lap and super easy to transport.  The longer body of the 32" Bamboo Koto allows for longer strings, and therefore, many of the strings can have a lower sound compared to the Travel Bamboo Koto.  They are both great depending on your needs!