For generations, the cucu has been a cherished symbol of health and peace in Southern Italy, functioning as both signage and instrument. During a residency hosted by Materahub, I was able to reverse engineer it and develop a working prototype of the instrument. And now, cucu orchestra is available for free.
Similar to a recorder and ocarina, cucu is part of the wind instrument family (aerophone). While there is no learning curve, use the two-tone limitation to your advantage and find a couple of friends to play in polyphony and polyrhythmically, tone bending is also available in your arsenal.
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Huge shoutout to Materahub 🇮🇹, Bianca Streich, and Dalio Di Cuia on the first prototype, and Creative Spark 🇮🇪 on supporting its full potential.
Developed by Jeremy Leung (@defectedunit)
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How to hold it: With your left hand, thumb rest on the comb, use your index and middle finger to cover the tone holes.