Learn how to play African drums. Learn how to play African drums,play African drums

There are various types of drums common to different regions and countries in Africa, but the way they are made and used is almost the same. The most common type of African drum is the djembe drum(jem-bay) which was first made in West Africa in countries like Mali,Guinea and Senegal. It is a goblet shaped drum played in a group with other West African instruments.

The Djembe is now used in different parts of the world and is played to all kinds of music. The word Djem is a name of a tree with very dense wood. The word 'be' means goat which is the skin used on top of the drum.

The other common type of drum is the Ngoma which comes from the Eastern part of Africa used in countries like Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Burundi. The Ngoma is made of a soft wood and then covered all around with a cow skin but some times a goat skin can be used.

The Ngoma unlike the djembe is played in a group and you need at least 3 drums to make a full combination. Different sizes of the Ngoma drum are used to produce different sounds or tones like the bass, the open sound which is a loud sharp sound and the slap sound which is a dead but sharp sound too.

The Djembe can be used to produce the 3 major sounds with out using any other drums. That makes it easier to play and more convenient to transport.

Drums in Africa are used as sacred instruments and there is a lot of importance attached to them. They are used in healing ceremonies, in rites of passage, in naming ceremonies, in warrior rituals, on social occasions like engagement parties and weddings, on harvest parties and celebration of seasons like rain after a period of drought. Drums are also used as a tool for communication, for example in Uganda, you can hear different drum calls in the villages. The common drum calls are, call to community work normally hard in the mornings, an emergency call, sounded if any one was in danger and needed help and the call to worship which is sounded mainly on Sunday mornings.

Because of the importance of the drum in daily life, the Baganda are called children of the drum. The drum among the Baganda is also a symbol of authority and whenever a new king in installed he is given a drum.

Most drums are played by hand though some times sticks are used to play some few types of drums.

When you play the drums, you need to first of all relax your hands and fingers. Then hold your fingers close together and then strike the top of the drum. You must not hit the drum too hard because that will hurt your hands.

Once you have hit the drum you must let your hands bounce off the top of the drum head and allow the drum to resonate. If you do not bounce your hand off the drum, it will produce a dead sound.

When you hit the top of the drum you must try to produce 2 major sounds. The bass sound which is achieved by striking the drum in the middle, especially if it is a Djembe and an open sound which is achieved by striking the drum between the centre and the edge of the drum.

The other sound that can be obtained is the slap sound which takes a lot of practice to be produced. This is obtained by slightly cupping the hand and then striking the drum with the fingers. The slap sound can sometimes be obtained by resting your weaker hand in the middle of the drum and then striking the side or open sound position of the drum with your other hand.

You can have fun playing together in a group with as many people as possible. Choose a member of the group to play a rhythm which then must be passed around the group with one person playing the same rhythm at a time.

You can also have a chat using your drums. Get some one in the group to say some using the drum instead of their mouth, then have any one in the group respond in form of a conversation. Putting words into rhythms on the drum is one of the best ways to learn and memories particular drum patterns and rhythms.

You can also make different animal or bird sounds on the drum if you strike it in the right place. This could also be played as a game in a group where one person makes a sound of an animal and the rest of the group have to try and guess what animal it is.

You can also play a particular rhythm, starting slowly but then increasing the pace or speed every time. Almost like driving a car in different gears.