This rhythm that we're going to do is called Kuku. Kuku is played in West Africa primarily in the Ivory Coast region and Guinea. The rhythm is traditionally played for celebrations and full moon ceremonies. Here in America it is primarily played for celebration, good times and to meet new people.
Need help deciding? Call toll-free 1-800-771-9645. The fact that we only specialize in hand drums means you get a fantastic selection, great prices and expert advice!
In this lesson, we will cover the traditional African djembe rhythm called Sunu so that when you are out there doing drum circles and dance classes, you know exactly what you should be doing.
As always, we recommend that if you have the opportunity to hook up with a djembe teacher, please do so. You can never replace a human being. It's the best thing and it is the tradition of how the art of playing the instrument has been taught through the ages.
Before, you may have seen some djembe demonstrations where I have been 'riffing'. In these demonstrations I was riffing on the clave of a particular rhythm.
What I want to do now is give you an idea of the rhythm itself and the djembe parts.
Learn how to play the traditional African rhythm Mediani on Djembe with drum instructor and drum circle facilitator, Dion Rivers.
Before you begin, a quick note to our viewers:
In past videos, traditional African djembe rhythms have been demonstrated in a relaxed, freestyle environment. This is often times called "riffing" on the rhythm. If you're not familiar with the term "riff", it means to improvise on the clave of the rhythm while the player is singing the rhythm in their head.
So in previous videos if you have seen that a rhythm is titled "Mendiani" or "Kokoba" for example, you may say "That's not what I was taught or that's not what I heard". That's because the player is singing it in his head while he "riffs" on top of it.
In addressing that, what we are doing in this video is literally breaking down the Mendiani Rhythm part by part so that when you play again in your drum circles, dance classes or drum classes, you have an clear understanding of the parts.
Please note that while we enjoy providing this free djembe lesson online, we strongly believe that a real instructor is always the best thing when you are trying to learn djembe or any type of drumming, especially djembe because the instrument has a long tradition and mastering the timing can be difficult for beginners. We welcome you to play along here as long as you like and when you are ready, seek out a real live instructor who can teach you both the traditions and the rhythms of the djembe.
Now, let's play a rhythm called Mendiani. Mendiani is a rhythm for young ladies. It's played all over West Africa, Ghana, Guinea, Senegal, and Gambia. There are different styles so if you go to a Senegalese class, it may not be played the same. What we are demonstrating here is the Guinea style.
Claves are a traditional Afro-Cuban percussive instrument that provides repeating time in many different kinds of cultural music.
Claves are played by striking the two pieces of wood together, in order to create a sharp cracking sound. Modern claves are amplified as a consequence of their hollowness. One clave strikes the other, causing the stick to create a resonance.
How to Play the Claves
The way the claves are played is just by striking them together. The resonation of the wood in each hand will create the sound.
Your technique can optimize the clave sound. Often we see participants at drum circles playing the instrument with a full grip on each clave. This is poor technique and will kill your sound.
The proper technique is to cup the clave with your hand to open up some space so the clave can breathe and you get some resonance. The striker should also be held with a relaxed grip allowing it to resonate as well.
Once you have the technique down, try some Clave at your next djembe drum circle or add it to your Afro-Cuban ensemble!
Producing hand-carved, hand-decorated djembe drums is not only a tradition, it's an art form that is over a thousand years old!
Yet maybe you have wondered precisely how a djembe drum is made? How it goes from a individual piece of plantation grown mahogany hardwood to the beautiful hand drum shown here?
The job can demand the collective skills of 4 to 6 different artisans, each one providing their very own unique talents and skills at the crafting process.
And because excellence can't be in haste, finishing just one djembe drum may take somewhere from several hours to a few weeks to complete.
To gain a better understanding of exactly how a djembe is made, take a look at the building of our popular Endeavor Series Celtic Labyrinth drum.
As soon as the logwood is shaped and sanded smooth, the carver lightly traces the basic Celtic Labyrinth design with a pencil so he is able to follow the bands while he carves. Employing a bent-tipped chisel along with mallet, he begins to patiently nick away at the wood and define out the distinctive design.
Notice how the carver uses his feet like a brace to stop the drum base from rolling as he chisels.
The Celtic Labyrinth pattern he's working on is among the more easy carvings for an artisan and will take him about 30 minutes to finish. Yet, more intricate and refined carvings can take several weeks to complete depending on the pattern and complexity.
A lot of drum carvings involve recognizable African designs, ceremonial tribal art, even imagery that tell stories and fables handed down from the ages. And, since each design is carved by hand, no two are ever quite the same.
Modern machinery could possibly do the carvings faster, but it’s the hand crafting, pride and skilled focus on the details that offer the djembe its one-of-a-kind uniqueness and distinct sound.
After carving out the rings around the base, the artisan begins to chisel through the intriguing Celtic Labyrinth design. For wider cuts, he firmly holds the bent chisel, gradually decreasing on the pressure while he moves along to create slimmer and more pointed ends.
He carver then changes to a flat chisel to complete cutting out the wider bands at the base.
Demonstrating a delicate touch and skilled hand, he delicately finesses the design, at times using the mallet, sometimes nudging the chisel with just his hand, chipping out the last of the labyrinth pattern and working out any flaws in the carving until he gets it to the ideal state.
As soon as design is carved, the drum is passed on to a different artisan for sanding. She first moves an orbital sander across the entire drum body, vigilantly removing out any rough spots and blemishes in the wood.
For additional precise sanding, she makes use of a standard power block sander which gives the drum its eventual level of smoothness. Once the drum is completely sanded and dusted, it is ready to be hand painted.
Various artists are skilled in hand-painting distinct designs, and it is not uncommon for more than one artist to paint the very same drum. Right after each section is complete, unwanted paint is wiped away and evened out with a cloth or sponge.
After the carved labyrinth design is painted, the artist lightly brushes again over it for color contrast, careful not to paint into the carved out areas. To accomplish the ultimate look, this drum gets somewhere between four and six coats of paint. A final coat of clear lacquer delivers the djembe its lustrous finish.
So now you've witness the making of a beautiful hand-carved, hand-painted djembe!
There is certainly a lot of work and time required to create a djembe drum, but for the artists that dedicate their time and talent into each djembe, it becomes less like work. It's closer to a "labor of love".
Do you play the djembe? If you don't, you will want to! Having and playing an authentic handcrafted djembe, or introducing one to your own collection, is great fun!
At X8 Drums and Percussion, hand drums are our passion! Each environmentally-friendly, handcrafted djembe drum we build is a genuine masterpiece of design and makes an exciting conversation subject!
Originating in West Africa over a 1,000 years ago, the djembe is played by hand using your fingers and palms. This hand drum was first used in ritual dances and tribal ceremonies. In addition, long before cellular phones and text messages, the djembe even functioned as a way to communicate between tribes with great distances between them.
Just like djembes of historic times, the present day djembes resemble a goblet or chalice having a flared bottom. The drumhead is covered in stretched African goat skin and secured by rope.
And since we're talking trees, special care for the environment is essential. Each drum is meticulously hand-carved from a piece of lawfully collected, plantation cultivated mahogany hardwood. This indicates we don't make use of more trees than the forest can naturally yield, and we systematically replant the timber used to produce our djembes.
So, as you can see, we not only make high-quality hand drums, we make djembes that are good for the environment. Additionally the surplus wood and material are recycled and purchased by members of the community so there is very little waste!
Here on our naturally eco friendly mahogany wood plantation, trees are selected for hardiness and level of quality, then labeled for felling.
Once the wood is sorted and chopped into drum size logs, a craftsman takes a single piece of hardwood to the lathing table, where he forms and sculpts the wood.
Working with just a curved chisel and techniques passed down from master to apprentice, the craftsman patiently and methodically shaves off the bark and then cuts the wood into shape from the exterior in, deftly switching the chisel head from side to side.
This distinguishing goblet form gives the drum its strong bass note, therefore it is important that the artist craftsman gets it perfect. Too small, then the bass is too high-pitched. Too big and it will be extremely hard to hear distinctions in tone.
At this point once the exterior is sanded clean, the craftsman grouts the inside as well as thins the walls employing an long, gouge. Djembe drums are not completely smooth inside of the shell, yet possess particular patterning or grooves carved in to the inside to improve the tonal quality of the djembe and decrease unpleasant overtones.
Now that you know more about the djembe, you'll certainly want to get started drumming!
Posted by
X8 DRUMS
Thursday, April 29, 2010
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The following review was submitted by an X8 Drums customer. While we feel the information is helpful, it does not solely represent the views and opinions of all staff members.
Hi X8 Drums,
I thought I'd give you some unsolicited Cajon feedback. You guys are certainly the experts, so I likely will not be telling you anything you don't already know, but here's a novice's view in case it is of any value.
LP Soul Cajon
I'm pretty particular about my musical investments (as you already found out!), so I wanted to just be sure I had picked the right Cajon. I got a hold of an LP Soul Cajon, as I was really interested in that one as well and needed to do my due diligence. Bottom line, I stuck with the Toca for several reasons. Here's a brief comparison "review", in no particular order of importance.
Appearance: The finish on the Toca Bordeaux Cajon in my estimation is much nicer than the LP Soul Cajon. The LP was a bit "rougher" in feel, and the paint job just didn't do it for me. The edges where they had taped off the front for the black had a bit of paint bleed, and the LP sticker on the front cheapened the look. Considering the price, I expected a much better look and finish.
Toca Wood Cajon, Bordeaux
Comfort/Seating: The Toca's padded top really helps. Also, the larger surface of the Toca is better for finding a good position to play, and is much better when tilting backward. The angled back of the LP makes that more difficult. Also, I found the Toca to be a bit "softer" on the hands/fingers. I felt like it was easier to get the sounds I wanted without punishing my knuckles. I full recognize that may be a novice user issue, however.
Bass: This is where the LP has the Toca beat. The bass on the LP is much closer (in my mind) to an actual kick drum sound, and is deep and resonant. Every one I showed them to heard that right away, with and without mics.
Snare: Each instrument has a different sound here. I feel like I can get a more of a conga sound from the Toca, while the LP was more of a snare. Just depends on what you want. The LP was definitely crisper, and I probably like the string sound a bit better than the snare sound on the Toca.
Flexibility: This is where the Toca took the lead. While I liked the string sound on the LP, I didn't like the fact that I could not disengage them. The ability to turn off the snares on the Toca was a big plus for me. I don't want every song to sound the same, and taking the snares out of the picture opens up a whole new set of sounds for the Toca, and will allow me to play it on more songs in a gig.
Summing it up, the Toca looks and flexibility made the difference. And frankly, no one will notice any sound differences since they will only hear the Toca! And as you well know, when you add a mic and some good reverbs, the differences diminish greatly.
Posted by
X8 DRUMS
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
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Those who play and enjoy the didgeridoo know that creating the low, keening sounds on the instrument can relax and inspire you. The instrument, made from hollowed out wood or PVC pipe, is played using breathing techniques that improve as the user gets better through practice. What an avid player of the didgeridoo might not expect is that the instrument and the breathing techniques could help you get a better nights rest and solve the rising problem of sleep apnea.
Obstructive sleep apnea is an issue for over 18 million people worldwide, although the condition often goes undiagnosed and the number of people suffering from this problem could be as high as 30,000 million. Occurring when the soft palate collapses and the airway is blocked, the individual with apnea stops breathing. Other signs and symptoms of sleep apnea are snoring while sleeping and daytime sleepiness due to an inability to get adequate rest at night. It is a problem that often plagues those who are overweight or the aging population, but it is not known why some have sleep apnea and others do not.
To diagnose this condition, the individual must have a referral from a doctor for a night in a sleep lab. The sleep lab measures the times that breathing has stopped and rates it on a scale from mild to severe. Once the condition is officially diagnosed, there are few ways to treat this problem. The solution generally chosen is a sleep mask. The mask is connected to an air pump, which sends air through the patients nose and keeps air flowing all night. The result is fewer episodes where the individual stops breathing. The mask is bulky and similar to wearing a scuba mask, which results in patients tossing it aside due to how constricting it feels when on. Unfortunately for those who suffer from sleep apnea, the problem does not go away on it’s own. The patient is expected to wear the mask for the rest of their lives, as this has been the most modern and safe way to fix the issue.
A recent British study has focused on a new and non-invasive way of assisting those with sleep apnea, and the surprising alternative has been found to be the didgeridoo. The technique of circular breathing used by those who play the didgeridoo was put to the test by patients with sleep apnea.
The theory was that the breathing techniques strengthen the upper airway that collapses when apnea occurs. The result? Those who played for six days a week and 30 minutes per day reduced the amount of times they stopped breathing at night by a significant number. It was also found that their daytime drowsiness decreased.
If you are one of the millions that suffer from sleep apnea, grab yourself a didgeridoo and put it to the test. The instrument that you will come to love to play may just help you get a better nights rest.
