A percussion instrument of
african descent and then culturized by the
latin peoples.
It is a
gourd filled with seeds or beads, and then shaken rhythmically.
Davy Jones could be seen playing up to four at a time when he was singing with
The Monkees back in the day.
There are several different techniques used for playing maraca. A
percussionist may
manipulate the beads inside the gourd by shaking it back, forth, up and down
simultaneously. Also, a "
stir" may be acheived by holding the maraca gourd-side down and slowly rotating it in a circular
manner. This creates a sound not unlike
ocean waves or
wind.