In the musical traditions of Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...

, a twin island republic in the Lesser Antilles

Lesser Antilles

The Lesser Antilles are a long, partly volcanic island arc in the Western Hemisphere. Most of its islands form the eastern boundary of the Caribbean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean, with the remainder located in the southern Caribbean just north of South America...

, a scratcher is a percussion instrument. It is a descendant of the guiro

Güiro

The güiro is a Latin-American percussion instrument consisting of an open-ended, hollow gourd with parallel notches cut in one side. It is played by rubbing a stick or tines along the notches to produce a ratchet-like sound. The güiro is commonly used in Latin-American music, and plays a key role...

, and is played in a similar fashion. It is most commonly found in the rhythm section of a steelband.

Construction

Scratchers are generally made by punching hundreds of nail holes in a sheet of aluminum, creating a texture. The sheet is then rolled into a cylinder shape with the textured side facing out. A handle is then added to the side. Scratchers vary in length in diameter but a common size consists of a length of 30 inches and a diameter of 4 inches. The pattern and density of nail holes can also vary, which can have an effect on the sound of the instrument.

Use

A comb with metal teeth (sometimes a fan-style afro pick) is scraped along the texture in a set, syncopated rhythm. This pattern is meant to interlock with those of the other instruments of the rhythm section, such as congas, iron

Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...

, and cowbell.