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MUSICMAKERS
A
quarter century ago,
while living in Ho Chi
Minh City, Vietnam,
I saw an old blind man sit-
ting in the middle of a busy
intersection. As a stream of
motorbikes and trucks spew-
ing black exhaust whirred
past, he plucked on an unusual
electric guitar that had strings
suspended above a carved-out
fretboard. The melody was
hauntingly beautiful. Spare
notes, emanating from a minia-
ture bullhorn, seemed to hang
midair like a hummingbird
before darting away. I had no
idea what kind of music it was.
But I’ve wanted one of those gui-
tars ever since.
This is how I approach sou-
venirs when I travel. Instead
of T-shirts, regional syrups, or
customized belts from fifth-
generation beltmakers, I buy
local instruments. Many have
found their way home with me:
an Ethiopian lyrelike krar, a
South African drum, an Indian
wood flute, a Vietnamese dan
bau zither, a Hong Kong gong,
even an archaic Soviet hand-clap
machine. This collection isn’tInstrumental
Exploits
How to bring global sounds
home—from Vietnamese guitars
to Russian accordions
By Robert Reid