{"id":3924,"date":"2017-05-01T14:29:43","date_gmt":"2017-05-01T18:29:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.musikalessons.com\/blog\/?p=3924"},"modified":"2023-01-25T13:43:34","modified_gmt":"2023-01-25T18:43:34","slug":"hand-drums-goblet-shaped-drums","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.musikalessons.com\/blog\/2017\/05\/hand-drums-goblet-shaped-drums\/","title":{"rendered":"Introduction to Hand Drums: Goblet-Shaped Drums"},"content":{"rendered":"

In our previous installment<\/a>, we looked at my personal favorite group of hand drums, the frame drums. Now we will discuss the hugely popular family of goblet-shaped drums. This group of hand drums is natively widespread throughout North and West Africa, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe. We will close with Asian examples that are generally less well known in the West.<\/p>\n

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For the purposes of this article, I am going to include some drums such as the Nigerian (and later Cuban) bat\u00e1, which have traditionally been described as hourglass-shaped. I think the distinction is subtle, and as we\u2019ll see particularly in the next installment (where we\u2019ll discuss cone-, barrel-, bowl-, sphere-, and cylinder- shaped drums), these shapes are often not clear-cut. But without further ado, let\u2019s dive right into the goblet-shaped hand drum that is probably most familiar- at least to most here in the United States- the West African djembe.<\/p>\n

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The Djembe<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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A djembe player is known as a djembefola.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The djembe is a large, heavy hand drum carved from a log of hardwood, and has a single head, typically of goatskin, which is attached by an elaborate iron ring and rope system. It is believed to have originated in the Mali Empire, thus probably dating at least back to 1230 CE. The region of the Mali Empire covered parts of today\u2019s nations of Mali, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Guinea, Ivory Coast, and Gambia. This enormous distribution is perhaps the reason why- for many in the West- the djembe (and its music) is regarded as virtually synonymous with African music. (Of course, it should be pointed out that Africa is an enormous continent with an extraordinary diversity of culture, and therefore, music). The djembe was introduced to the rest of the world largely due to the efforts of the Guinean dancer, writer, musician, and politician Fod\u00e9ba Ke\u00efta who toured the world with the troupe he founded, Les Ballets Africains. Today the djembe is hugely popular, and has become a staple feature of beginning music programs and community centers.<\/p>\n

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Typical of goblet-shaped drums- as with most hand drums- the technique of djembe playing revolves around its ability to produce sharp contrasts of pitch: a very low tone from the center of the head, and various high pitches from the edge. In addition to a variety of decorations, the djembe may be augmented by one or more \u2018sege sege\u2019 (other names exist as well), essentially a fan-like piece of sheet metal affixed with metal rings that rattle or jingle with the strokes of the drum. In traditional practice, the djembe is usually played in an ensemble of one to several, along with one or more dunun (a cylindrical double-headed drum) players. Usually there is a lead, solo djembe player, and the others play a repetitive accompanying figure. The solo part may be quite rhythmically complex.<\/p>\n

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Here is a solo djembe performance by master Guinean drummer Bolakada Conde:<\/p>\n

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