National Kazoo Days

 Sunday, Jan.25-Wednesday, January 28:Get ready for a celebration of minuscule proportions. That’s right. We’re honoring the invention of the kazoo. Also known as a hummophone or merliton, this simple instrument has been used since ancient times in Africa. Traditionally it was made from a cow horn with the shell of a spider egg as the vibrating membrane. The American history of kazoos picks up in the 1840’s when, legend has it, an African-American man by the name of Alabama Vest shared his hand crafted version with a German-American clock maker named Thaddeus von Glegg. By 1914 the tin kazoo was in mass production. The Original American Kazoo Factory, Museum and Gift Shop is still in operation in Eden, New York. Kazoo-making materials and instruction will be on hand at CCM for 4 days, 10 am - 4 pm. Free with admission.