The composition of a group for playing the "coladeira" is not rigid. A medium-sized band may include besides a guitar (popularly called “"violão"” in Cape Verde) a "cavaquinho" (that plays the chords rhythmically), a solo instrument besides the singer’s voice and some percussion. A bigger band may include another guitar, an acoustic bass guitar, more than one solo instrument (a violin — popularly called “"rabeca"” in Cape Verde —, a clarinet, a trumpet, etc.) and several percussion instruments (a shaker, a güiro, a cowbell, congas, etc.).