| Bongos: Cuban
name for a pair of small, single headed hand drums. The two drums
are joined together, and usually held between the knees when
played in a sitting position. |
 Brekete:
West African drum with two snared heads, played with sticks. |
  Casaba:
A hand-held instrument made from a gourd. Beads are strung over
the body of the gourd so that a rattling sound is produced. |
| Caxixi: A small
wooden grass shaker |
| Claves: Two
cylindrical pieces of hardwood. One is rested across the front of
a half-closed fist and struck with the other, producing a sharp
tick or clack. Origin: Latin. |
| Congas: A tall
narrow single-headed drum played with the hands. Originally from
Cuba, it is usually played in sets of two or three of different
sizes. Common sizes are the tumba (largest), the conga (medium)
and the quinta (smallest). |
| Cowbell: A
long, square bell that is struck with a mallet |
| Djembe Drum: A
large goblet shaped African drum from the Ivory Coast,
traditionally carved out of one log. It yields a resonant bass
tone when struck in the middle, and a high ringing tone when
struck on the rim. |
| Djun Djun Drum:
A large two-headed drum made of wood or possibly oilcans. Often
used with the djembe drum, playing the role of the bass drum. The
drum is probably the most widely used African instrument. |
| Gankogui: Iron
hand bell, consisting of two bells vibrating together on the same
handle, one low pitched, the other higher pitched. The gankogui is
held in one hand and struck with a stick. |
| Guiro: A gourd
that has been carved so that it is ribbed along most of its
length. It is played by rubbing a stick across the ribbing,
producing a "zipping" sound. |
| Gyil: A
seventeen key xylophone, five feet long. |
 Kpanlogo:
A well-known African peg drum, it is similar in shape and sound to
the conga drum. Antelope skin is stretched over the head,
producing a tender and resounding sound. |
| Log Drum: The
modern equivalent of the ancient hollow tree trunk. |
 Mbira:
An instrument of Zimbabwe, the mbira consists of 20-24
flattened metal prongs which are fastened to a wooden box shaped
resonator body. The mbira then sits in a gourd, called a calabash,
which acts as a resonator. The ends of the prongs are plucked. |
| Marimba: An
African keyboard percussion instrument consisting of tuned wooden
bars with a resonator below each bar. The notes usually span
several octaves. |
Rain Sticks: A
long hollow tube made of wood and filled with small beads. The
inside of the tube has a structure in it such that , when turned
end-on-end, the beads course along this structure making a
pitter-patter sound that sounds like rain. The structure is often
a sequence of thin rods, each inserted across a diameter of the
stick.
Educators rainsticks can be made simply in class by carefully
hammering nails through postal tubes. Experiment with different
small objects to see how each sounds falling through the tube.
When you find the "right" sound for your class, seal up
the ends of the tube with packing tape and cover the tube with a
decorative design. |
| Shekere: (or
sekere) A gourd covered with a woven, beaded webbing that is used
as a shaker. |
| Taiko Bass Drum:
A large drum from Japan made by stretching skin over a large
barrel. |
| Talking Drum: A
drum used originally for communication between villages. Usually
an hourglass shaped two-headed drum where the heads are laced
together with thongs of gut or leather. The drum is typically held
between the arm and body so that varying pressure can be applied
to the thongs which alter the drums pitch, thus
"talking." Just as in some African languages, a change
in pitch can alter the meaning of the "words." |
| Tambourine: A
wooden circle equipped with tiny cymbals, covered with hide. |
| Timbales (Timbaletos): These
drums are of Latin origin, and are now made of a steel shell. |
| Triangle: A
metal triangle hit with a mallet that produces a metallic bell
sound. |
| Udu: A clay pot
drum based on those created by the Ibo and Hausa tribes in
Nigeria. This drum came about when some ancient village potters
struck a second opening a hole in the side in a clay water
vessel and discovered the beautiful sound it produced. The deep
haunting tones it produced were thought to be the "voices of
the ancestors." |
| Nutshell shakers:
Shakers, made of nutshells. |
| Zulu Cocoon Rattles:
Dance rattles of the Zulu peoples of South Africa. Three rows of
cocoons sewn onto calfskin bands. |
| Zambia rattles: Primitive
seed pod rattles. |
| Jungle rattles:
Wonderful rattles from Kenya. A metal body with natural skinheads
and lacing and a wooden handle. Shake these for a great and wild
sound. |
| Gourd rattles:
Made from a gourd with a natural wooden handle these African
rattles are a great percussion instrument for many purposes. |
| Gankoqui Double Bells:
These double bells are hand forged by the best Ewe blacksmiths and
are used for all of their traditional music. The Gankoqui is
created from iron that is heated to blistering temperature,
hammered and shaped to the proper size and set back in the fire
for tempering. Its clear and cutting tone demonstrates why it has
been the center of so much traditional African music. |
| Washboard: A
washboard that is struck and rubbed with a mallet.
|
