The xalam is a traditional stringed instrument from West Africa that has 1 to 5 strings. It is played in many countries, including Mali, Gambia, Senegal, Niger, Northern Nigeria, Northern Ghana, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, and Western Sahara. The xalam and its different forms are called by many names in other languages, such as bappe, diassare, hoddu (Pulaar), koliko (Gurunsi), kologo (Frafra), komsa, kontigi, gurmi, garaya (Hausa), koni, konting (Mandinka), molo (Songhay/Zarma), ndere, ngoni (Bambara), and tidinit (Hassaniyya and Berber).

In Wolof, a person who plays the xalam is called a xalamkat. This name comes from the word for "to play the xalam" and a suffix that means "one who does something." In Mande, the term is ngonifola or konting fola. In Hausa, it is called mai gurmi or mai kontigi.

Construction and tuning

The xalam is a simple string instrument with one to five strings. Its wooden body, which helps produce sound, is oval-shaped and covered with the hide of cattle. The strings are usually made of thin nylon fishing line, twisted together tightly. These strings are attached to the instrument’s wooden neck using long, narrow leather strips and to the wooden bridge with cotton strings. By adjusting the position of the leather strips, the instrument’s pitch can be changed. The xalam typically has two main strings that are played with the left hand, like the strings of a guitar or banjo, and two to three additional strings that are fixed in pitch. Most xalam players build their own instruments, though they often ask skilled woodworkers (called lawbe) to carve the body, neck, and bridge.

In areas of Senegal where the Wolof language is spoken, the xalam is usually tuned in three main ways. In the first tuning (ci suuf or low), the two main strings are set a perfect fourth apart, with the lower string tuned to the first note of a major scale (1) and the higher string to the fourth note (4). Three additional strings are tuned an octave higher to match the notes 1´, 2´, and 3´. In the second tuning (ci kow or high), the same interval is used, but the lower string is shifted a minor second above the higher string. This makes the open main strings act as the third and sixth notes of the scale, with the supplementary strings matching 3´ and 4#. The highest supplementary string is often not used. In the third tuning (ardin), the lower main string is a minor third above the lowest note, and the main strings are tuned to the sixth and second notes. The supplementary strings are tuned to the fifth and first note an octave higher. The third supplementary string may be ignored or tuned to the sixth or second note an octave higher. When played in a group, the ardin xalam’s main strings are tuned a minor third lower than the ci suuf xalam, and the ci kow xalam’s main strings are tuned a major third higher than the ci suuf xalam. This ensures that the fundamental notes of each xalam match. For example, if the ci suuf xalam’s lowest note is C, the ardin xalam’s lowest note would be A, and the ci kow xalam’s lowest note would be E.

Players

In many places, the xalam is played by male griots, who are praise singers and are born into this job. It is used as a solo or two-person instrument to go along with praise songs and stories about history. In some regions, it might be part of a bigger group that includes kora, drums, and calabashes. Traditionally, it is played at weddings and ceremonies where babies are named. With the help of amplifiers, it is now often found in folklore groups, mbalax music groups, and ndaga shows.