The Basque Txalaparta, looks something like a crossover between a xylophone and a shipping pallet is and perhaps one of the most peculiar musical instruments in the world.
The origins of this instrument are quite obscure, but according to one theory, it most likely developed from the skill competitions held during the celebrations at the end of the apple harvest.
The vertically held clubs which are used to strike the wooden beams are very much similar to the ones used for mashing apples to produce cider. A txalaparta is typically played by two musicians, each one holding two clubs while facing each other. Interlocking rhythms are produced as one musician plays the first and third beat while the other player does the second and fourth, and so on.
Because most txalapartas aren’t tuned alike, they produce various mixtures of sounds, for this reason, it is best suitable as a solo instrument. And, also since it is accustomed to be performed in front of an audience in order to display the virtuosity demanded to produce all those complex rhythmic patterns, few txalaparta duos were able to make a CD recording.
Harkaitz Martinez and Igor Otxoa, who for more than a decade have been performing as the Oreka TX duo. They surmounted these limitations with their Nomadak TX project. They were able to tune their txalapartas to a regular scale, they also filmed the trip they did as they played with musicians from other cultures. The Basque natives region were from the northern region of Spain. Some have migrated to Mongolia via India, others to northern Scandinavia and Morocco.