So, today is all about this instrument. Now,
I reckon you might recognize this because I see them all the time holding open
storeroom cupboard doors at schools or sitting under the lost property box or at people's
houses on windowsills, their parents bought them before on a holiday they went before you
were born, so they're around quite a bit. The thing is when we see them, we still think:
oh it's a bongo drum. It is not a bongo drum: this is called a djembe. Spelt d j e m b e
or der et me bu. I've been practicing that one. And the djembe is from Africa, and more
commonly West Africa and it's made of wood. It's hollow, so the sound can come out of it.
Look, I can put my arm in it, there we go, so the sound can come out of it. And the top is
made of goat skin. Now I like the djembe for quite a few reasons. One is: you can just pick it up and
throw it in the back of the van.
The next one is: it's not that difficult to play to an okay
standard. There's my disclaimer to an okay standard, because there aren't that many
sounds that you can create on it. If you want to watch some people playing it to a very
high standard after you've watched this video, go on YouTube and google Ewe drumming or just
Ghanaian drumming or Senegalese drumming and you'll see some amazing people playing these
instruments of a higher quality than I'm about to show you. But I'm going to show you the basics
nonetheless. Okay, so first thing we need to do is hold the instrument correctly like any musical
instrument really, so we're going to make sure that we tilt it so the sound can come out the
bottom, otherwise it sounds even worse if it's flat. Listen, sounds rubbish, so we have to tilt
it. Hopefully it'll sound different. Here we go we tilt it so the sound come out the bottom. Now
there are three main sounds. Here's the first sound: it's the bass sound, so we've got to hit
it right in the middle of the drum and bounce off. Like that, there we go, we
should try again.
That's it. And next up is the tone on the edge here, we
just gently strike it like that with no malice, about there, if you want something a bit higher
some people go a bit lower I'm going there. Okay and then the last sound is the slap.
That's it, three sounds and then when you combine them together, you can play some
little grooves so if you start nice and easy. Yeah, I think we could manage that. Okay,
and then you can add a few more notes. And then, if you want to go a bit faster, a bit
crazier, you can as well put all three sounds. Not bad for first thing in the morning. Now, I think this is a good time to put a
good message out there and that is: if you see a djembe, looking lonely and unused,
and think it's a good time to bring it back to life, make sure you ask permission of the people
who own it, but bring it back to life, get it out of the store cover, get it off the window sill,
put it on the floor, tilt it away from you, try the three sounds and play along to some
music you might like and I think you'll probably enjoy it.
So, I hope you've learned
a few things about this drum most importantly that it's not a bongo drum, it is a djembe. So
thanks for listening – see you tomorrow, bye-bye! Bye!.