Talking Drum

General information:

Talking drums are part of a family of hourglass shaped pressure drums; in the Yoruba language of west Africa, these include "gan gan" (the smallest member of this drum family) or "dun dun" (the largest of the talking drums.) The drum heads at either end of the drum's wooden body are made from hide, fish-skin or other membranes which are wrapped around a wooden hoop. Leather cords or thongs run the length of the drum's body and are wrapped around both hoops; when you squeeze these cords under your arm, the drum heads tighten, changing the instrument's pitch.

Drums have often symbolized the power of a traditional political leader, and skilled drummers ("onigangan" in Yoruba) have held considerable status in these west African communities.

One of the unique features of the instruments is their ability to closely imitate the rhythms and intonations of spoken language. In the hands of skilled performers, they can reproduce the sounds of proverbs or praise songs through a specialized "drum language" - their dialogue can be easily understood by a knowledgeable Yoruba audience. Whether accompanying dances or sending messages, the sound of these instruments can carry many miles. Specific talking drum patterns and rhythms are also closely linked with ogun, or spiritual beings associated with the traditional Yoruba belief system originally celebrated in Nigeria and parts of Ghana. This religion (and its instrumentation and rhythmic patterns) spread to South and Central America, regions of the Caribbean and the United States during the era of the slave trade. Because of the perceived potential of talking drums to "speak" in a tongue unknown to slave traders and thus to incite rebellion, these and other drums were once banned from use by African Americans in the United States.

In Ghana, West Africa, Akan communities also highly regard a drummer who play the "atumpan", or Akan form of the talking drum. As J.H. Kwabena Nketia explains;

Atumpan are similar structurally to the dun dun and gan gan, but Akan musicians use the tension drum heads primarily to create a descending or falling pitch on drum strokes rather to produce a wide tonal language.

This century, talking drums have become an important part of popular music in West Africa, especially in "juju", a genre which finds its roots in traditional Yoruba music, indigenous guitar bands and the British brassband heritage in Nigeria. Popular juju artists include King Sunny Ade, I.K. Dairo and Ebenezer Obey.

Hear the sound of a talking drum (AIFF, 348K, 16 sec.)


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