The Blacksmith would make an offering to the trees he cut down in order to make the instrument. It is believed they should come only from Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Sierra Leone, and the Ivory Coast as these locations contain the tree the djembe was originally carved from. Due to tourism, however, it has become popular in Ghana. Many tourists go to Ghana to train with drum masters and like to return home with the drum as a souvenir.
This dance company featured traditional African dance and drumming including the djembe and helped to popularize the instrument. Researchers from Europe and the US also spent time in Africa to learn about and master the art of the djembe. This was due to the expanding popularity of Les Ballet Africains, as well as the growing appreciation for world music. Today, the djembe continues to grow in popularity as can be seen with its use in popular music.
Musicians such as Paul Simon, Vampire Weekend, and U2 have all ingrained the drum in to their unique sounds. Drum circles and their connection with the spiritual aspect of the djembes has also aided in the popularity of in the US. The djembe has a distinct shape resembling a large drinking goblet; a large bowl on top that is covered with a leather skin or other synthetic material as the playing surface and a slender stem for the sound to resonate.
A standard size drum measures approximately inches in height with a drum head that has a diameter of inches. These sizes do vary considerably with the inclusion of kids drums, travel drums and oversized bass drums, but if you are planning to take a class, most instructors will require you to have a standard size so you can learn to play all of the notes properly. The playing surface requires tuning much like a guitar, snare drum or any other instrument.
On traditional drums, the tuning is accomplished using a rope tightening technique that is completed by hand. The distinctive shape of the djembe is designed not for aesthetics but for tone and resonance.
The interior of the bowl allows rich bass notes to develop before making its way down the stem where it is amplified. The inside of the shell also has grooves cut into the wood in a special way that also enriches the sound quality. Any alterations in dimensions and the size difference between the bowl and the stem will have a significant impact on the tone of the instrument. While the previous models are easy to tune, traditional djembes require a bit of practice in order to tune them.
With these, you can really just pick one based off which you think looks coolest. Providing it has good reviews of course. For traditional style djembes , these are the 2 main companies:. The Africa Heartwood Project is a non-profit organization whose goal is to fight poverty by selling handcrafted instruments and other traditional objects built by local artisans.
When buying from them you are guaranteed to get a genuine and unique handcrafted piece, and you also help families to develop their business. But before we wrap things up, I might as well leave you with one finally video on how to play a few basic rhtyhms. Skip to main content Skip to primary sidebar These days the djembe has gotten pretty damn popular.
However… Despite its apparent simplicity…the djembe can be quite a confusing instrument to play when first getting started. Ready to get started? The Wooden Shell The djembe has a body or shell carved of hardwood and the bass pitch is determined by the size and shape of the shell.
Traditionally, djembe shells are made from exotic woods found only in West Africa… However, since supplies of those woods are extremely limited, in the rest of the world, the most common woods used to make djembes are: African and regular mahogany Barwood African mesquite Iroko American ash The interior should ideally be textured with scallops or shallow grooves , in a spiral pattern that influence the sound of the instrument — smooth interiors are usually avoided as they produce too much sustain.
The Rawhide Skin Traditionally, djembe skins are made from goat skin… Or other commonly available animals in Africa such as: antelope cow horse As it turns out, the skin of poorly-fed animals from hot climates such as those in Africa make the best djembe skins because of their lower fat content.
Thicker skins : will produce a warmer sound more overtones in the slaps make it easier to play full tones… …but harder to play sharp slaps are harder on the hands Thinner skins will produce: A sharper sound with fewer overtones in the slaps A louder sound overall Factory-made djembes often use skins made from synthetic materials, such as FiberSkyn, which is essentially plastic that mimics the visuals of rawhide Next up… 3.
The Metal Rings The djembe head is trapped, or tucked between two rings on top and secured on one additional ring at the bottom. They then got replaces by metal. Next up… 4. The Ropes Although up until the s the most common mounting system was twisted strips of cowhide as rope… Modern djembes now exclusively use synthetic rope , generally of kernmantle construction. It uses a rope tuning system. Similar to the previous djembes, the rope tuning takes a while to used to.
However, it will become second nature eventually. In short, Africans invented Djembe drums, and a lot of African street performers play on these drums. Since the list of African native instruments is quite long, this may not be enough to clarify the issue. The sound of these drums can be described as exquisite, and somewhat sharp.
As for the Djembe drum playing techniques, we could talk about them for hours, literally. Plainly speaking, the most basic technique involves simple strikes on the surface while intermediate techniques range from sliding across the surface with fingers and hitting the sides.
Now, Djembe drums were invented a long time ago. Some sources indicate that these percussive instruments were first used somewhere around AD in Africa. Namely, all you have to do is simply a soft cloth. In some cases if your Djembe drum features a complex design, for example , you should use linseed oil, teak, or similar materials. Furthermore, there are some cases when the head of your Djembe drum is seriously neglected, so you should expect cuts and bumps in the surface.
As with all instruments, there are things you should do as much as possible, and there are things from which you should refrain from whenever possible.
Now, drum bags should be used with virtually all kinds of percussion instruments , including Djembe drums. Namely, drum bags protect your Djembe drums from dust particles, impact, heat, cold, moisture, and various other elements.
Needless to say, you should at least consider a drum bag if you want to prevent any and all damage to your Djembe drum. Well, this one is pretty self-explanatory. Tuning and detuning them manually is healthier, in a way. There are so many great djembe drums available on the market. Each one has strengths and weaknesses. So, it comes down to personal preference over which djembe is the best to buy. Most percussionists have more than just one djembe.
The bigger the drum is, the deeper it will sound. The smaller the drum is, the more high-pitched it will sound. If you need a loud bass tone, a bigger one will be the best option.
If you need an attacking tone, a smaller one will be better. Anything in that range will be a good choice. Drawbacks include heavy weight, poorer than average bass response, many cracks, and chunky not smooth interior. Senegal is facing a tree shortage and carvers are now using trees cut down a decade ago, which were discarded at that time for low quality. Watch out for a greater than average amount of cracks and patches repaired with glue and sawdust. Demba-Duki shells from southern Senegal Casamance , Gambia, and Guinea are the most consistent shells from this wood.
Very rarely used for djembes. Bois Blanc is just a fancy name for "white wood", the preferred wood for dununs dundun, jun-juns, dundunbas Open grain and soft wood absorbs the higher frequencies, while projecting the low end of the sound spectrum.
Light weights make them easier to transport. Be leery of white woods, and light-weight woods in general, being used for djembes Rubberwood is what the majority of stave constructed like congas djembes coming out of Thailand are made from. Generally factory made, these drums are very consistent, but lack the "mojo of the motherland".
Pro: The best sustainable choice because these are essentially obsolete latex trees that are given a second life in the form of drums. Also sustainable because it's milled into lumber staves and contributes virtually no waste.
Con: Poor sound differentiation. In the past decade, we've seen more lathe-turned machine made djembes coming from Indonesia. Pro: Grown using sustainable and often certified growth practices. Plantation Mahogany: Absolutely smooth and symmetrica l.
0コメント