Sampona

=Sampona=

The sampona (zampoña) also known as the siku is a traditional Andean panpipe. The siku is the main instrument in the music genre sikuri. The pan flute is associated with music around Lake Titicaca.

The siku would typically be played by a women as she is coming down from the top of the mountain. Due to the size of the pan flute it would be too big for one women to carry and play it so typically its split in half and two women become musically bonded with each other and can't play their flute unless the other one is around.

The instrument is made from bamboo shoots but has been made from other materials. The pipes are held together from a type of cane. They come in different sizes, the sampled is the ika the next is called the malta, and the largest is zanka.