GALA is a wooden electronic musical instrument that lets you play the sounds of traditional instruments from around the world simply by shaking it. Its smooth body is carved from solid wood, while an internal sensor detects your movements and produces sounds in response.
GALA features more than 100 sounds from 12 instruments from around the world. No musical training is needed—just shake it to discover music and cultures.
Ways to enjoy GALA
1. With children
A child who tried to ring while taking a rhythm, a child who keeps swinging around in a row and out, a child who seems to be treating importantly and occasionally makes a ring. The child finds how to play more and more.
GALA has a passport-style booklet that explains the history and culture of instruments. Let's open it whenever interested. That will increase the appeal of GALA.
"This sound I like is Indonesian instruments!"
"I want to go and listen to real steel bread!"
While enjoying with your child you can broaden your interest in intercultural interests.
Next family travel destination may be found!
2. Of course for adults
Music has no age barrier. GALA is made by sticking to the sound quality and sound material, and adults are also made to enjoy enough.
A high texture of wood and a gentle and sophisticated design harmonize in any space up to the living room, study room, bedroom, and children's room.
For presents to music lover lovers. It is also a celebration to a friend who likes to travel.
If you bring it to a picnic or BBQ, you will definitely gather the attention of everyone!
Instruments in GALA
GALA features sounds from traditional instruments around the world. Enjoy different sounds as you shake it.
Click the play icon to hear an audio sample where available.
Balalaika (Russia)
Balafon (West Africa)
Bagpipes (Scotland)
Sitar (India)
Harpsichord (Europe)
Conga (Cuba)
Qanun (Arab world)
Steelpan (Trinidad and Tobago)
Gamelan (Indonesia)
Guiro and maracas (Latin America)
Sanshin (Okinawa)
The story behind GALA
We are hoping that children who use GALA will travel and touch each other in the future with concern to various countries, cultures and people in the future.
Children are hard to take overseas trips, do they? It was a pity for members who liked traveling and wanted children to be able to easily feel like traveling in other countries. That was the reason we made GALA.
The attraction of travel is to meet unfamiliar cultures.
By placing various ethnic musical instruments where the culture of the country closely packed, it is possible to capture the sense of traveling even in everyday life. We thought so. It may be close to the sense that putting the globe at hand and making imagination in an unknown country.
Playing GALA will give you experience rather than knowledge. This is similar to traveling itself.
GALA with sounds from various countries is infinite depending on how you shake it and how it sounds in what kind of rhythm. The sounds of the world are waiting for you to meet you in GALA.
It is very difficult to take a child on a journey, pre-school babies can not enter a concert, the important time will pass while thinking that they would like to have a real experience. This GALA was created by parents who wanted to manage such a situation.
The shape with the rattle as a motif can easily shake the baby, and it is made easy for an adult to hold. It is designed to be safe even if the child licks with wooden exterior.
Design is friendly to children, and even if adults have it is stylish. As time goes by, it increases gloss and grows up to be yours alone.
The origin of the name GALA comes from the traditional toy rattle glass and the word GALA which means "festival" in French. It is the same as the "Gala Concert" used in the meaning of special performance etc. GALA is perfect for celebrations and gifts .
Based on the music experience at GALA, you will experience a journey on a journey and experience different cultures. If you feel GALA in existence like a bridge to the unknown world, there is nothing more pleasing for us.
Three features of GALA
1. Authentic instrument sounds
GALA sticks to sound quality and sound material, and adults are also made to enjoy enough. The sound material is raw recording (excluding some tone) of one sound each professional player plays, and is optimized for pronunciation by GALA speaker.
Also, GALA does not sound randomly. Analyzes the way sounds and the scale (for example, the Okinawa Sanshin is 5 scale) unique to the instrument are tuned, including how the sound engineer sounds.
That is why, even when you simply shake GALA, the sounds can resemble an experienced player improvising on a real instrument.
2. Easy and intuitive to play
GALA, like ethnic instruments, begins to sound when it shakes without turning the power on / off. If you leave it alone, the power will turn off without permission. With the intuitive interface , even a 1 year old child can ring without a parent's help.
People who actually experienced "I did not think that batteries were indeed contained" , but surprisingly, they are finished in a natural and analogy feeling that I can not think of as electronic products. It is a commitment of the foothills company that we want to cherish the feeling of "Want to play now".
3. A design made to last
Wood is a popular material for interior goods and furniture, but using it as the exterior of an electronic appliance is no easy task. Wood is exposed to the risk of shrinkage and warpage caused by changes in the season as well as the surroundings. This makes it rather unsuitable for housing electronic components such as circuit boards for which accuracy of size is a must. (For example, pushing a button lowers it by just 0.2mm, while a piece of wood 10cm in size would shrink or expand 0.5mm depending on the season.)
That is why we rarely see electronic appliances with a wooden exterior.
But we just couldn't let go of the idea.
We want to cherish the touch because it is used by hand, because children use it, we want to stick to safety, we want to cherish the sound of the sound produced by the wooden casing, by making it a material that increases the taste due to secular change than anything else we want to make it a long-lasting product.
It is like a craftwork that sculptures natural maple used for guitar and violin etc., to be finished by craftsmen.
Even if it is placed on a shelf as an interior, it does not feel uncomfortable , finished in a soft and sophisticated design.
Designed with children in mind, GALA emphasizes the feel of natural wood, thoughtful safety considerations and changing ways to enjoy it as users grow. We wanted it to be something people keep close for years.
How GALA is made
GALA 's exterior timber cooperates with a woodworking maker in Aichi prefecture to produce innocuous maple material. Maple is excellent in strength and durability, it is characterized by beautiful grain. It is also said that the acoustic characteristics are very good, it is wood used old for guitar, violin, piano and so on.
How to play and specifications
How to play
Power on
Turn the power on by tapping the main body gently or shaking it strongly.
Switch sound
Press the button once to change to the next sound.
Restore sound
Press the button twice in succession to return to the previous sound.
Play
Just shake it.
Volume adjustment
You can switch the volume (3 steps) by pressing the button quickly twice and long-pressing the second time.
Power off
If you leave it alone, the power will turn off. Please press and hold the button to cut immediately.
Specification
* Specifications reflect the product information at the time of manufacture.
Size
Length: 130 mm, diameter 39 mm
Weight
106g(Batteries included)
Batteries
Two AAA batteries (alkaline batteries recommended)
Continuous use time
3.5 hours (when using alkaline batteries)
Continuous standby time
1 year (when using alkaline batteries)
Maker Faire 2016 and visitor impressions
Photos, video and reactions from visitors who tried GALA at Maker Faire 2016.
“I never imagined there were electronics inside!” (Woman in her 20s)
“Every instrument has a sound that really resonates with me.” (Woman in her 30s)
“The gentle vibration through the wood feels wonderful in my hands.” (Woman in her 30s)
Try the GALA simulator
We prepared a simulator that plays several instruments on the screen. Please try experiencing the fun of GALA.
* This content is not faithfully reproduced GALA, it is a pseudo experience to experience
