It’s impossible to backpack around with a piano attached to your bag, but luckily there are many small musical instruments out there that are portable enough for roaming souls.
It might sound like a cliché, but it’s entirely true: music connects people. This fact gains additional value for travellers. Wherever you go, music can make it easier for you to meet people and share very special moments with them. Here’s a list of 16 suggestions of small musical instruments. We also include some links to videos, so that you could easily understand how the listed small musical instruments look and sound like.
Ukulele
In addition to being small, light, and portable, the charming ukulele lends the sounds of the Hawaiian Islands to your summer travels. Guitarists and students of other stringed instruments will find much of what you already know applies to how to play the ukulele, but there is still enough difference to add interest to your travelling practice sessions.
Harmonica
No matter where you’re going, you can always fit a harmonica in your pocket and play a song right on the spot. This bluesy little instrument sometimes called the “mouth harp” is great for travellers who love blues and folk music. Guitarists especially might be interested in learning harmonica to accompany themselves on guitar, like the legendary Bob Dylan.
Melodica
This quirky instrument looks like a tiny piano and is played by blowing into the reed while pressing down its keys. Although the melodica’s range is somewhat limited, piano students will enjoy hearing familiar pieces transformed by this small instrument, and it can provide a great, portable aid to practice reading music.
Flute
Most flutes are lightweight, thin instruments that can easily fit in a backpack. Students interested in classical music will love learning to read music and playing tunes on this clear-toned wind instrument.
Bongo Drums
Okay, so this one doesn’t quite fit in your carry-on bag but compared to lugging a full-sized drum set around, a couple of bongo drums look incredibly portable. Drummers can easily practice keeping time and learn more complex rhythms on these comparatively tiny drums.
Guitar
The guitar isn’t exactly a small instrument, but it’s still relatively portable. It’s one of the most popular music instruments, so wherever you go, you’ll find some fellow guitarists to jam with, exchange tips and discuss techniques. Guitar producers understood it, and right now there are a few unique models available on the market. If standard-sized guitars are too big for your luggage, you may consider getting one of those designed particularly for travellers. Here you can see one of them, the Martin Backpacker.
Guitalele
Can’t decide whether to get the uke or guitar? Guitalele is your thing then. It’s as small as the Ukulele but has six strings and bigger chord possibilities. Some of the musical instruments have a built-in microphone, thanks to which you can either use them as an acoustic guitar or increase their power with an amplifier.
Violin
Sophisticated and difficult to play, the violin is an instrument for patient musicians who are ready to commit many hours to learn. It also requires a lot of care in maintenance. Nevertheless, the violin is pure magic. This somewhat elegant instrument is usually associated with fancy venues and theatres, but it sounds equally amazing on the streets, just like in this case. Once you learn how to play it and take care of it, the violin can turn out to be a perfect instrument for travelling.
Clarinet
One of the most elegant of woodwind instruments, the clarinet can often be heard in classical music. It was popular during the jazz age and is still being used to play this genre as well. It sounds amazing in venues, bars and on the streets, like in this video for instance. As you can see, the performance takes place in New Orleans – that’s where jazz musicians for the first time started using the instrument.
Ocarina
The ocarina is so tiny and light you can easily fit it in your pocket or even wear it as an extravagant necklace. It’s not hard to play (at least on a basic level), so it’s a perfect instrument for inpatient aspiring musicians who want to learn as soon as possible. The sound of ocarina is quite mystical, so it goes extremely well with atmospheric folk songs.
Djembe
The best thing about the djembe is its ability to bring people together. As soon as you start playing, wherever it’ll be, there’s going to be some folks joining you, either to watch, dance, listen or play along. The Bambara people from Mali say the djembe’s name comes from a saying that translates to “everyone gathers together in peace.” Just look at this lovely street performance. Wouldn’t it be great to be a part of this team? Another good thing about the djembe – you can play a bit even if you don’t know what exactly you’re doing, just grab the thing and hit away as you please. As long as have a bit of an ear, it shouldn’t be a complete disaster. Size and weight can be a problem though, some of the drums are quite big and heavy, but you can look for smaller ones.
Spoons
We have some inconspicuous musical instruments on this list, but the spoons win in this category. They don’t look like an instrument at all. If you see someone with the spoons, you’d rather expect them to start eating a bowl of soup than playing music. Nevertheless, with a bit of imagination and creativity, the spoons can be useful, even more so since nobody expects them to be an impressive instrument. Imagine you take out a couple of spoons from your bag and start playing Michael Jackson’s pieces like this guy. Shocked audience guaranteed.
Want to play one of these small musical instruments on your next backpacking adventure? Rent one now!
Also published on Medium.