Imperial washboard
Imperial washboard
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
The first recorded use of washboards for laundry was in 18th century Scandinavia, and it was likely Swedish and Norwegian immigrants who first brought their wooden washboards to the United States. The first metal washboards were patented in 1833, and glass washboards (used for delicate garments) are known to have existed around 1877. The basic concept of the washboard is quite simple: wet clothes are rubbed against the grooves or ridges of the washboard to force water and soap through them and scour undesirable materials from the cloth. Although washboards have mostly fallen out of favor in industrialized countries since washing machines became common in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, they are still in use today in less industrialized parts of the world, and anywhere electricity might be scarce or expensive.
The washboard's potential alternative role as a percussion instrument was probably realized while people were actually doing laundry. The ridges make interesting noises as different objects are rubbed or struck against them. In a household where those with musical desire or proficiency outnumbered the instruments available, it was pretty easy to look around the house and find objects to outfit a whole makeshift band: a washboard; a glass or stoneware jug; a pair of spoons; a bass fashioned from a washtub, a broom handle and some string. This basic setup can be found in some form in Cajun, Zydeco, Creole, Dixieland, Appalachian, and even English skiffle music.
I've seen players hold washboards in any number of ways: with a strap or string over their neck so the washboard hangs over the chest (great for two-handed playing), stood upright over one knee, or on the shoulder as you see me playing here. A player can produce sounds from the washboard by striking on the metal ridges or any of the wooden surfaces; by strumming back and forth on the ridges like a guitar; or by dragging an object across the ridges like a guiro (a ribbed, ratchet-sounding Latin instrument, traditionally made from a hollow gourd). Some washboardists will attach other objects to their board for accent percussion: a bicycle bell, a cowbell, tambourine jangles, a woodblock, a small splash cymbal, or just about anything else you could attach to the frame for visual or acoustic effect.
Imperial Products, or Productos Mejorados Imperial, is based in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. They make many types of galvanized products like pails, washtubs, washboards, and cooking utensils. (One product they're particularly proud of is their tamale steam cooker.) Imperial sells its products within Mexico, and also exports to retailers in the United States, particularly Hispanic retailers who focus on Latino immigrant families.
I found and purchased my washboard at La Tapatia, a Mexican grocery store here in Des Moines. I paid just $7 for it, far less than I'd expect to pay in an antique store or on eBay. (Unfortunately, La Tapatia no longer carries washboards in any of its Des Moines locations. I've checked all three.)
I tightened the ridges into the wooden frame by stuffing strips of felt behind the playing surface with a putty knife. Then I started playing around with different objects to strike, strum or drag across the washboard, seeing what different types and colors of sounds I could create. So far, I've liked the sounds from bare fingers, fingernails, a guitar pick, the blunt end of a broken drumstick, plastic and metal thimbles, an old spoon, and an aluminum door hinge pin. I'm interested to try some other objects too, including a toothbrush (for quick switching between stick and brush textures), a nylon or corn-fiber whisk broom, a leather strap, maybe even an egg shaker.
I've been so excited about the possibilities of this instrument that I bought washboards for three of my friends this Christmas. I'm looking forward to using it in acoustic performances and recordings to add a little color to the arrangements.
Photo by Donna Jo Wallace