Caxirolas: The Vuvuzelas of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil

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Ueslei Marcelino / REUTERS

Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff holds the Caxirola, a musical instrument to be used at the 2014 Brazil World Cup created by artist Carlinhos Brown, during the opening of Brown's "O Olhar Que Ouve" exhibition at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia on April 23, 2013.

The sound of vuvuzelas blaring became an instrumental part of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. And now, the caxirola is going to be the noisemaker of choice for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

What is a caxirola, you ask? Well, it is a yellow and green percussion instrument that sounds like the traditional South American “rainstick” when shaken, according to The Independent.

Fortunately for those whose ears are still ringing, the designers “Brazilian musician Carlinhos Brown and the country’s ministry of sports” took into account the grumbles that made vuvuzelas kind of enervating, so they made this contraption “considerably less grating,” reported The Independent.

Complaints about the vuvuzela’s ability to drown out all other sounds caused UEFA and FIFA to ban them, despite protests from South Africans.

A FIFA spokesman promises that the instrument will enhance the experience by creating a “unique Brazilian atmosphere in the stadiums.” The caxirolas will be handed out to fans during the Confederations Cup in June, the country’s unofficial dress rehearsal.

Here’s what those vuvuzelas sound like, in case you forgot:

[youtube=http://youtu.be/bKCIFXqhLzo]