Modern Washboarder Magazine

Robbert is the excellent harmonica player and multi-percussionist with George Cutter and Friends. Here he shares a pic and thoughts about his many and varied rigs:

Convocation of Instruments. Two are family size, one is pail size. They all follow a certain design that I eventually settled on, and all boards and accoutrements were acquired at thrift stores and yard sales. All accoutrements are screwed or bolted in place, often using brackets from old mechano sets and the like. A mix of antique and less antique components, depending on what the search yielded. I’ve used thimbles, brushes and even spoons as playing implements, depending on the situation. Thimbles are probably the all around best, for articulation and control. I prefer the cross strap to a neck strap even though the board can tilt a little. Of course, the primary playing surface is the board itself(think snare drum in a drum kit)with the various other elements acting as tom toms or mostly brass(ie: cymbals). I usually have two toy cymbals mounted together so they hit one another as a kind of manual hi hat, and then various other odds and ends that have pleasing tones. I try to put things on the board that sound good together and arrange them in a way that makes access easy and flowing. I generally try to find old squarish or oblong tea tins, and think of that as my bass drum, if I can find one with a deep enough tone. Even though washboard is not my main instrument, it is a very useful and valuable percussion component to one musical duo I perform in, and it always perks up an audience’s attention when it appears.