The great thing about African Percussion is that it dates right back to the 13th century. They are used in African tribes, especially callings and communications between them. It has always been something I am very interested in, especially the fast rhythmic playing that almost talks to you. These drums have spoken a language in the Western Africa culture and moves on the celebrate events and religious festivities in the modern world. I want to know more about the drums that are used to create the music and how they provide such sound and resonance in their culture.
Djembe
I have always known the Djembe to be the most common known drum in the African family. It is a traditional rope tuned drum that originates from West Africa. The body is commonly hardwood with an untreated goatskin head. They range in sizes from 12” – 15” and produce a loud sound being played by your hands. The volume of the drum varies depending on how tight the skin tension is. There are 3 basic methods used when playing the Djembe, bass (low), tone (medium) and slap (high). They are played by varying the position and technique to create complex rhythms.
Interesting Facts:
Djembe is traditionally played by men and even today it is rarely played by woman.
Djembe was traditionally used to communicate between tribes over long distances.
A master Djembe player is called a “djembefola.”
DOUM DOUM
The Doum Doum is a double ended bass drum that originates from Guinea. It has unshaven calf skin head on both sides held together with rope on metal hoops called a voltage. The body is a round solid Iroca wood and comes in the common sizes of 13″ x 20.5″ and 16″ x 23″. They are traditionally played by 3 people and accompanied by the Djembe to make a polyrhythm. It is known as the ‘big drum’ within the ensembles. It is rested horizontally on a trestle and played using a wooden stick on the right and usually along with a bell attached onto the drum.
Interesting Facts:
A Doum Doum player is known as a “Dumdumfola”.
TALKING DRUM
The Talking Drum is one of the most common known communicators between African tribes. It has an hourglass shaped body that it tuned using strings from one skin to the other. They are used to ‘talk’ by varying the tension on the drum heads. The middle of the drum is placed under you arm, which you can squeeze to make the tone higher and release to bring the tone lower, playing with a curved stick on one side and the hand and fingers on the other. It was interesting to see that you can change the notes through out playing and capture the rhythm of the human speech without words. They tend to translate single words into phrases to send the message through a drum beat.
TALKING DRUMMER
SLIT DRUM
The Slit Drum is a hollow box shaped drum that has one or more slits on the top of it. They are thought to be the first drum that was created and are known to send messages through long distance communications as the sound can travel further. They are a resonating chamber because none of the sides except the slit are open. The slit (also known as the tongue) is hit using a mallet to project the pitch on the drum.
Interesting Facts:
Despite its name as a ‘split drum’ it is classed as an Idiophone which is an instrument that creates sound by vibrating without a membrane.
CONGA
The Conga is said to be named after the Congo region in Africa. It has a tall barrel like shape made from a hallow tree trunk. I have always know it to be used in Latin/Salsa/Reggae music which is where it has become the most popular over the years. Originally this drum was tuned using the traditional animal skin and the weave rope tuning technique. They are now a rounder shape and have tuning lugs and tension rods so that they can be pitched to suit all of the different styles of music they are played in. There are five techniques to playing the conga: open tone, muffled or mute tone, bass tone and touch tone. They have a mid-low tone used to create a carnival rhythm with one or more congas.
Interesting Facts:
Quinto, Conga & Tumbadora or Tumba are the three sizes.
The Quinto is the high pitched, small head solo and melody conga.
The Conga is the mid-range, medium head conga.
The Tumbadora is the low pitches, large head conga.
KPALONGO DRUMS
The Kpanlogo Drum is the key drum associated with kpanlogo music and originated from Ghana, West Africa. They are most commonly played in an ensemble with six or more drums along with Djembe’s and Doum Doum’s. It is a narrow barrel shaped drum with the drum skin held on by large pegs around the top. In order to get your desired tuning you need to tap the pegs in and out of the drum, tightening the skin until you get the pitch you are after. As well as its stunning image, I also love the sound of the drum as it is played lightly giving a beautiful mid range tone.
Interesting Facts:
It has been said that when you hear the kpanlogo drumming in the distance you think you’re in the jungle.
A small glimpse at these drums just shows how they have developed into modern drumming today.
The way they are used in the African culture is fascinating, making me want to try all these drums out myself!
BATA DRUMS
Famous African drums used by the Yoruba people of Nigeria. The bata drums essentially are made up of a combination of three or five drums, all of different sizes. These can be played either with a stick or with one's hand. The two ends of the drums are not of the same size with one end having a large head and the other end having a smaller head with the neck tapering down. The Yoruba people consider the deity Ana to be residing within these drums. The bata drums are also an integral part of Cuban culture. Though the bata drums are African in origin they were introduced to the Cuban people by the African slaves who brought these drums to Cuba as part of their religious practices. Since then these drums have been part of Cuban music, including the Cuban jazz and timba.
BOUGARABOU
Another African drum is the bougarabou. With its origin in Western Africa, this drum is still predominantly found in this part of Africa. Traditionally a single drum played with one hand or a stick, recent times have seen players using different sizes of bougarabou drums for increased percussion effect. The bougarabou drum is made of cow hide and is shaped like an hourglass. The bougarabou player also wears jangling bracelets to add another layer of percussion effect to their music.
ASHIKO DRUMS
Ashiko drums of Africa are largely used in the western world .The Ashiko drums are large in size with a cone-like shape and are covered with cow hide like the bougarabou drums. These drums are played by hand by keeping them in a upright position or by placing them on the side with the players straddling them.
BATA DRUMMERS
BOUGARABOU
Another African drum is the bougarabou. With its origin in Western Africa, this drum is still predominantly found in this part of Africa. Traditionally a single drum played with one hand or a stick, recent times have seen players using different sizes of bougarabou drums for increased percussion effect. The bougarabou drum is made of cow hide and is shaped like an hourglass. The bougarabou player also wears jangling bracelets to add another layer of percussion effect to their music.
ASHIKO DRUMS
Ashiko drums of Africa are largely used in the western world .The Ashiko drums are large in size with a cone-like shape and are covered with cow hide like the bougarabou drums. These drums are played by hand by keeping them in a upright position or by placing them on the side with the players straddling them.
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