I bought this for my nine-year old niece who after playing around with my Hugh Tracey kalimbas expressed an interest. As with other reviewers I was quite pleasantly surprised. The quality of this instrument is quite comparable to the Hugh Tracey treble at less than 13 the cost.You can find cheaper kalimbas in the 10-30 range but most of them are poorly made and little better than toys.This on the other hand is a real musical instrument. The build is solid the wood smooth and nicely finished and the tines are well-shaped and chrome finished. The hardware is basically the same as that used on Hugh Tracey instruments. The tone is bright and rich and the expression holes on the back side make special effects easy. This is one of those instruments that is quite appropriate for everyone from beginners to pros. A newbie can easily be picking out a tune on one of these in a few minutes but with some dedication advanced players will find the instrument lends itself to complexities limited only by their imagination.Especially nice with this package are the little extras that come with it a hardshell case these can be hard to find separately a tuning hammer polishing cloth and note-indicator stickers for the tines if you are so inclined. Really youre not going to find better for this price.Recommended.