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Theory, experiments and exercises
Playing the Djembe may look easy, and of course it is possible for a beginner to just sit behind the
drum and play. But playing properly is certainly as difficult as mastering any other more well known
instrument: it will take years of study, practice and dedication!
Contrary to most western musical instruments like the guitar, the violin or piano, there is no teaching
method for djembe that I know of.
The most common way of teaching is that the teacher will show you how the bass, tone and slap are
produced by playing these sounds, and letting you hear what they are supposed to sound like. It is up
to the student to start praticing and experimenting in order to try and create the same sound. Without
any help in the form of theory or precise instructions, it is extremely difficult to figure out what you are
supposed to do! Or worse, when you happen to make a proper tone or slap, knowing why it was
correct, and why the next time it doesn't seem to work anymore!
To me, a teaching method consists a series of concepts and exercises that will gradually lead the
student towards developing the motoric, muscular and musical skills necessary to become a proficient
player. A gradual increase in the difficulty of the actual music that is being played is only one aspect of
such a teaching method. The Djembe is notoriously hard to master if you want to produce the three
tones, bass, tone and slap, properly. So a teaching method should also contain experiments,
exercises, theory and practices that will clearly outline to the student what they must practice in order
to take the next step towards producing a clear tone, or a clear slap.
I have been down that path myself. However, I am used to learning a new instrument by myself, so I
may have been more methodical than others. I have had lessons, attended workshops and weekends,
but I also have read as much as I could find about djembe acoustics, drum acoustics and skin
behaviour, and I tried to develop exercises which would lead to the muscle power and dexterity that
should produce the desired sounds. I then practiced my own exercises, in order to try and find out if I
was right. In some cases I was, in other cases I wasn't. I have had the opportunity to teach a few
beginners during drum circles, and I have observed both students, teachers and good players.
Over the years I have developed a few concepts, and related exercises, that may help others in
learning to play the djembe. I present them here. But please remember that I myself am not a djembe
master, but just another student amongst the many. So as with all djembe information the usual
caveat applies: if you have a teacher, then by all means follow his or her advice! However, I hope that
people will find the explanations, concepts and exercises helpful, and that they will actually aid them in
learning to play properly.
Happy drumming!
Dennis
Posture
Theory, experiments and exercises
Playing position
Sit on the edge of a chair and stand the djembe on the floor between your legs. Tilt the djembe
forward, away from you. Hook one leg behind the djembe, so it loosely rests between both your knees
and one lower leg behind the djembe. The tilted position (about 20-30 degrees) allows the bass sound
to come out of the bottom opening.
Imagine the skin on top of the djembe forming a plane into infinity. Your arms and hands should be
above this plane and not below it. So don't tilt the djembe too far, sit up straight or use a cushion if
necessary.
The elbows
Your elbows should be above the plane of the skin. So stick them out until
they are above this plane. Keep your shoulders down and relaxed. Why is
this important? Because the movement of hitting the djembe uses your
elbows as a pivotal point. If that point is above the plane of the skin, your
hands will travel in an arc that goes towards yourself, in the direction of your
stomach, which is the correct way to hit the djembe skin. The picture illustrates the correct elbow and
arm position relative to the skin surface.
If the elbow is below the plane of the skin, your hands will travel in an arc
away from your body, and you will hit the wood of the djembe first. Wood has
no sound and it does not give - so it will cause pain and injury, not sound.
The picture illustrates the wrong elbow position, below the skin surface
plane.
Please note that sitting on a chair, especially if you don't sit straight up, will favour the wrong elbow
position - the elbows will be far too low to play properly. Standing up with the djembe strapped on, will
favour the right elbow position. There is nothing wrong with sitting on a stool or chair, but take good
care that you have elbow room and your elbows are up!
The hands
Rest your hands on the djembe edge, with all fingers flat on the skin, and the knuckles where the
fingers join the palm exactly on the djembe edge. The tip of the thumb rests lightly on/against the edge
of the djembe. The fleshy mounds on the palm, underneath the knuckles, rest on the edge of the skin.
The wrists are in line with the plane of the skin. Your arms and hands will make a 90 degree angle
between them, and point to the centre of the djembe skin.
The wrist
The general playing movement is initiated by the wrist. Bring the wrist up slowly. The hand follows.
Bring the wrist down slowly. The hand follows. It is a wave-like movement which will develop into a
whip-like movement later. Do not "lock" the arm and wrist into position and move the fingers up and
down only, but involve your whole hand, wrist, arm and even your body. Your "consciousness" for the
movement is in the wrist, not in the fingers!
It is important that your hand does not move sideways, forward or backward whilst playing the bass!
Any sliding of the hand or fingers across the skin will result in blisters after prolonged play. Sliding also
dampens the bass again.
The full force to create a loud bass is in fact in the lower part of your palm. This transfers the full mass
and weight of you wrist and forearm into the skin. The fingers have no real "weight" or "mass" to drive
a loud bass. The palm, wrist and forearm do!
The height of the bass note itself depends mainly on the height of the djembe, not really on the skin
and how tight that is.
Bass amplification
The bass is amplified by the djembe stem shape, which flares out slightly or can even be a true
trumpet shape. You can amplify the bass even further by creating an extension to this trumpet shape
of the stem of the djembe. The trumpet shape does not need to continue in the same direction as the
instrument either. In fact, you can reverse the direction of the shape completely, without losing any of
its amplification properties. This is common knowledge in the field of acoustics and loud speaker
development, notably bass reflex speaker development.
Experiment
Create an extension of the trumpet shape by using any angled surfaces behind
you, for example a floor and a wall (the grey lines in the picture to the left).
Stand with your djembe in the position as drawn here, with the wall behind you,
and aim the center of the foot at the edge where wall and floor meet. Play a
bass, and enjoy the full WWWWHHHOOOOMMM that results!
If you listen carefully, you may notice a few things. First, since the bass
vibration is long in distance (a 70Hz note uses almost 5 meters for 1 cycle!) it takes distance from the
instrument to hear the bass properly. By standing as shown in the picture, you put yourself more
inside the bass note, and hear it louder.
Secondly, since distance is important for low notes, they do not develop their full power at the moment
you play, but slightly later. You must play at the "W" of the WWWWHHHOOOOMMM sound, but you
will fully hear it at the "O" of the WWWWHHHOOOOMMM sound. So playing the bass just a touch on
the early side will prevent the bass notes feeling "sluggish". like they are slowing down the music.
Bass notes can travel enormous distances. Their long wavelength makes walls, houses, cars and so
on "invisible" to them, and they continue without much interference from whatever is between the
source of the note and the listener. Everyone instinctively knows this - as soon as you leave the disco,
the music is reduced to a low boom - boom. All the high notes have gone, only the bass notes are left.
So carpets, curtains and drapes will not dampen bass notes very much!
Elephants communicate with subsonic sounds (very low notes below human hearing, in the 5-30 Hz
range) over tens of kilometers. Trees, grassland, hills and so on do not change these notes very
much. For comparison, the Djembe bass note, which depends mainly on the hight of the instrument, is
between 50 and 70 Hz.
You can use all this knowledge to your advantage in stage presentations. Be aware that the public will
hear the bass louder than you do. They will hear less of the high contact sound of your hands with the
skin, and more of the low boom of the bass. This applies also to the light bass component in tones and
slaps! If you accidentally amplify the bass part in your tones and slaps by standing as shown in the
picture, your music will not sound as intended, but it will sound muddy! The vertical of the "trumpet
shape" behind you does not need to be a wall either: a large crate or box or the front of a stage edge
will work just as well.
Experiment
Hit the djembe softly with only the tip of the stick, at a point about halfway
between the centre of the skin and the djembe edge. You will hear a fairly
low and soft sound with a definite tone to it. This is comparable to the
djembe tone.
Note that the stick in this picture represents the correct arm and elbow position for playing the djembe properly the elbow is above the plane of the djembe head.
Hit the djembe softly with the stick hitting the edge of the djembe, without
hitting the skin at all. This will not produce any sound that is worth having. It
would be a fairly useless exercise, except to point out that many people try to
play a slap like this, by hitting the wood instead of the skin. Simple advice:
don't! Hitting the wood causes pain and injuries, not a slap sound!
Note that the stick in this picture represents the wrong arm and elbow position for playing the djembe!
Hold the stick very carefully so that it is almost level with the skin. The bit that
is over the skin when the stick rests on the edge is only a fraction of a
millimeter higher than the skin, no more! Now hit the djembe softly. You will
hear a very loud, hard, sharp and high note. This is comparable to the
djembe slap. Remember this!!
Final experiment: hit the skin with the point of the stick (like the top picture), but now in the centre of
the skin. You will not hear a bass note at all!! Instead, you will hear a dead plop, not even a tone.
Some sounds like the bass are not "in the skin" - they depend on your hands and/or
the djembe itself.
To produce a sound, you really should hit the skin, not the wood edge... ;-)
The loud slap sound is really there in your djembe, even when you yourself cannot
make it yet. You may have noticed that it is difficult to make that slap-like sound
consistently every time with a stick. With your hands, it is even more difficult.
However, you know that it is possible, and practice and perseverance will do the rest.
The Wrist
The wrist is crucial to playing the djembe, whether you play tone, bass or slap. I have found that using
the wrist is extremely important. A concept that you can use is the whip. Think of your forearm as the
whip handle, and your hand and fingers as the strings of the whip. Now move your forearm up and
down, and try (don't try this too hard!!) to make your hand and fingers make a "crack" like a whip can.
You won't be able to do it, but you will get an idea for the concept. All moves are initiated by the wrist.
You can also think of your forearm and hand being like a flail (two wooden sticks connected with a
leather hinge, used for threshing grain). If you measure the length of your hand from the wrist line to
your middle finger tip, you will find that it is almost as long as your whole forearm!
Exercise 2
This exercise will teach you to "play" a rhythm completely from the wrist, using the same position for
tone and slap.
Take a simple rhythm, for example | s . . s s . t t | which is a very common rhythm, or any other simple
rhythm without bass, that you know well. Play it slowly on your thighs with your wrists. Keep the hands
relaxed, the fingertips stay in contact with the legs at all times, and do not move the wrist forward or
sideways to distinguish between slaps and tone, just play all notes in the same position.
For variety as well as because you will benefit from it later reverse your hands and play the rhythm
as if you were left-handed. Again wrists only. Make sure your hand does not tense up when you need
to concentrate on an unfamiliar rhythm or handing!!!
Exercise 3 * Angular movement
This exercise will teach you to cancel out minimal sliding of the fingers. It also is the basis of good
tones.
Sit comfortably, and rest your hands on the top of your legs. Really relax your hands so they feel very
heavy and sleepy. Lift your wrists, keeping your hands very very relaxed. Lift your wrists so high that
the fingertips no longer are in contact with your thighs. Without stiffening or tensioning the hand or the
fingers at all, bring the wrist down on your leg slowly. You will notice that the fingertips come into
contact with the leg first, then the wrist, and the rest of the fingers and the palm do not touch the leg.
Instead, they remain slightly curved and very relaxed.
Now take special note of the following. As you lift your wrist, the fingers will move or slide backwards a
bit along the leg before the are lifted clear. And as you bring down your wrist, the fingers will move
forward a bit as the hand goes from a fairly vertical position to a horizontal position again. If you do not
observe this, then fake it, by moving the wrists towards yourself as you lift them, and away from your
body as you bring them down, so you can see and feel the fingers sliding along your legs.
The actual exercise is to cancel out this movement of the fingers along the legs when the wrist is lifted
or put down. In order to do this, the wrist must be lifted using a motion away from your body, towards
your knees, and put down using a motion towards your body. The angle is about 20-30 degrees off the
vertical.
This exercise is important because the direction in which you hit the djembe does contribute to the
quality of the sound. You can help yourself by using the correct posture and especially by making sure
your elbows are above the plane of the djembe head.
One lesson my teacher gave me, after I learned to play something loud that came close to a slap,
was: "Try and play a soft slap! If you can master the slap quality without being overly loud, you
have truly mastered the slap!"
Overview
The tone and slap are each others opposites in virtually everything. But there are two things that do
not differ:
Hand position: Both tone and slap are played using the exact same position of the
hand relative to the djembe
Volume: How hard you hit controls the volume, not the sound, although slaps are
easier to learn if you put some force into them.
First exercises
We start with the first exercises towards learning a tone and a slap. The aim of these exercises is not
yet to produce a tone and a slap, but to maximise the difference between these two sounds. The
djembe skin only has one sound, which consists of a basic tone with many high harmonics. The aim is
to play the basic tone only when you want to play a tone, and to play the main harmonics only when
you want to play the slap. So the position of your fingers, and how you hit the skin, determine what the
sound will be like!
Since your whole wrist and hand were travelling downwards, the wrist will travel
further downwards after the fingers have hit the skin and are pushing down. This
movement will now help to roll the fingers off the skin again, so the tone can
finally sound. Picture 2 shows (in blue) which parts are on the skin.
The purpose of the tone is to hit the djembe skin in such a way that all high
overtones will be dampened by your fingers and only the basic note will be left to
sound.
The final position is when the hand lightly rests with just the palm on the edge of
the skin and the skin is free to vibrate. The high harmonics are very small
vibrations, so you dampen those during the rolling-off movement when your
fingers are in full contact with the edge of the vibrating skin, but most of the skin is
free to vibrate.
Summary: Hit - push down - roll off.
Practice
Practice this very soft slap exercise, and a very soft accompanying tone, with a few rhythms that you
know. Your main aim is to create two very different sounds! So don't worry if the high note does not
sound like a slap, because that is not what you want yet. You want a high and clear note on the one
hand, and a low and dull note on the other hand.
The important thing in exercises is that it gives you the opportunity to really exercise. Some people try
an exercise a few times, oh yeah, that works, lets do the next exercise. But your muscles, hands and
fingers need developing. The movement needs to become natural. This takes time and practice. So
just do the exercise like 5 minutes at a time, a few times during the day, for a few weeks. You
can practice on your legs or a table top, but this will exercise your finger positions only. To practice for
the sound, you need the djembe. Practice practice practice until your fingers will know "slap" from
"tone" by automatically taking the positions and hitting the djembe skin correctly. Practice on the
djembe so you will maximise the difference in sound between tone and slap. Low and dull versus high
and clear.
Remember: you are practicing the first stage, it won't sound like a slap yet. Do it softly, aim for
clarity.
If you have not read the previous page, please do so! That information is necessary to continue here.
The tone
For the tone, all information was given on the previous page. From there onwards it is just a question
of practicing until the hit - push down - roll off movement, which is like Michael Jackson's moonwalk
technique, becomes natural and smooth. Once it is smooth you can start adding real force into the
tone by starting to use your wrist more so the fingers will be whipped onto the skin, adding extra speed
and force.
You will really need to put a lot of time into the practice, because the movement is exactly the opposite
of what people do naturally, which is hit the djembe edge first and then let the fingers hit the skin.
Practice
This second slap exercise is one where you can start to put some force into it, once you have
mastered it to the extent that you can create a clear note. Again, use your wrist, play from the wrist,
don't hit the djembe edge first. Don't try to make this very loud yet, but aim for the same loudness with
both the tone and the slap. You will now come to realise that although the tone is easier to create, that
making it loud is a lot harder than making a loud slap! So practice to make both as loud as the other,
and if that means playing a softer slap, then do so. At all times keep aiming for a difference in note
and quality, not a difference in loudness, between tone and slap!! Try to pull the quality of tone and
slap as far apart as you can.
If you have trouble doing the second exercise physically, you may now come to realise why a slap is
easier if you do it loudly: because the force will actually force your fingers to bend down in the middle
so the finger knuckles hit the skin too. But as soon as you do it softly, your fingers won't bend enough.
You can remedy this with exercises, but it takes time and practice.
The final complete slap movement is a combination of the slap exercise 1 and exercise 2 which come
to a third resting position. Below is the full movement described.
First, your finger tips hit the skin. The fingers should be supple enough, and the
actual distance between the fingers and the skin should be chosen in such a way,
that the central knuckles of your fingers can actually hit the skin as well, in step 2.
So your hand will be almost flat over the skin with maybe 1 mm between the skin
and the central knuckles on your fingers..
In step 2 the central knuckles of your fingers hit the skin as well. The
finger tips are at this point still on the skin too, so in effect the whole top
section of your fingers hits the skin. It is very important that the edge of
the skin remains clear at this point. So don't rest your palm on the edge. When practicing,
you will find that if you keep your palm and wrist higher, you will get a clearer slap. Also
don't forget the sequential hitting of the fingers that is part of the slap. The tiny sequential
difference builds up a high harmonic as well.
There is a third step in the whole movement, and that is the final resting
position. Since you are trying to let the harmonics sound, this resting position
must be determined by trial and error because it depends on skin diameter, the
size of your hands etc. The idea is to let one or two finger tips rest very lightly on
the skin so that you dampen the low notes and create the harmonics, similar to
playing harmonics on a guitar. My own resting position is shown in picture 3. The
fingers only stay there briefly of course, the idea is not to dampen the sound, just
to emphasise the high harmonics.
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From this point onwards you can experiment and practice in order to start perfecting your tone and
slap. The djembe is a beautiful and extremely expressive instrument with a huge range in volume.
Trying to play a soft slap is a real challenge, and how soft you can play it, is determined by how supple
or loose your fingers are, as well as by how accurate you can position them each time.
Also remember that as soon as you can play loud, you are becoming more responsible for the music
you make in a group! Loudness is not an end in itself or a way to dominate a group and use it for
egotistical purposes! Instead, it is a support function so you can play beautiful music!
Wrist exercises
The emphasis when playing is on the wrist. Becoming comfortable with "playing from the wrist" helps
you to loosen up quickly. Take any rhythm you need to practice, and play it on your legs with your
wrists only, keeping the fingers as relaxed as possible. The fingers are allowed to follow the wrist,
never to lead the wrist! See also the wrist page and the posture page.
Nothing to do?
If you have nothing to do for a minute, practice any rhythm you can think of left-handed (if you are right
handed of course). Even-handedness is very important during solo play, because often you will end up
on the wrong hand after a roll. The sooner you learn to play left-handed, the better your playing will be.
Speeding up
Many people have a natural tendency to speed up rhythms, as soon as the rhythm has a pause in it
somewhere. They make the pauses too short. Practice these rhythms when you are walking or
cycling, and keep in time with your paces. Learn to "hear" the unplayed beats. Here is an example,
with a left and right step indicator:
| s . . s | s . t t |
| r . l . | r . l . |
Learn to "hear" the first left step that comes before the second slap!
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2 against 3
A central element in african music is that it is polyrhythmic: playing different rhythms at the same time.
A lot of african music is 6/8, i.e. it has 6 pulses to a bar. Try to tap the following with right and left
hands:
|lr . r l r . |
1 2 3 4 5 6
The first beat is left and right together. Once you can do this, notice how the left hand divides 6 pulses
into two groups of three, and the right hand divides it into three groups of two. Practice it with hands
changed. Practice it with one hand "tapping air" so you don't hear it. Become familiar with this pattern
of switching between 3 and 2 pulses in one bar - it will show up a lot! A classic example is the
Kakilambe.
Metronome
Look around for a metronome, an instrument that will play an even tick so you can learn to
synchronise your playing and keep exactly in time. There are electronic ones available with many
speed and rhythm settings. The metronome has a tendency to sound like it is speeding up or slowing
down, for example when you change from a rhythm into a solo. It isn't - you are! Become aware of
your natural speed changes. If you know where you have a tendency to speed up, you can adjust it.
Drum circles
Look around for drum circles! These events alow you to play your djembe, without having to stick to a
set rhythm, for a few hours at a stretch. This gives you invaluable practice time. You learn new things,
test your endurance, and if there are some advanced players there, you will get a good idea of where
you are going and how your playing progresses, compared to them. It will also allow you to play loud
from time to time. If there are no drum circles, consider starting a small one with a few friends or fellow
students from your class.
Responsibility
A final word on responsibility. If you have managed to improve your slap and tone and bass using
these tips and techniques, then you are also becoming more responsible for the music when you play
together! If you cannot play in time, or if you cannot play softly when someone else wants to play a
solo, then you should work on your social skills, not on your slap and tone! There is nothing more
frustrating to a group than someone who plays loudly but is always out of sinc with the group! Or
someone who can play good solo's, but is constantly playing solo without listening to anyone else. Or
someone who is loud but only knows 2 rhythms. A good slap and tone are completely useless if you
cannot play in a group setting and make music together! Good music contains more silence than
notes!
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French
English
closed
open
open, slap
bass
basse
bass
There is no established way of indicating these terms. In this learning material, the English terms
used are the slap, tone and bass.
The tone is a medium high-pitched, round, "matt" sound while slap is a high-pitched, open, sharp
whiplash-like sound and bass is a low, round sound. The tone and slap are played on the edge of
the drumhead, the bass in the centre.
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How to do it
Tone
Where to strike: The fingers meet the edge of the drumhead simultaneously covering as large an
area as possible. The part of the fingers that touch the edge of the drum extend up to the bend at
the root of the proximal phalanx (first finger bone) of the middle finger, but no further towards the
palm.
From the player's perspective the tone looks like this at the time when the hand hits the
drumhead:
Technique: Try clapping one hand against the other to find out how the tone is played; the feel on
the drumhead is very near to this. Keep your fingers together without squeezing. Point your
thumbs slightly upwards to prevent them from hitting the rim. You may use substantial force in
producing the sound.
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Slap
Where to strike: In the slap, the hand hits the centre of the drumhead 1-1.5 cm closer than in
the tone. The edge of the drum should be hit with the fleshy part of your palm which is on the
same level as your knuckles on the other side of your palm. The bones in your hand arch just the
opposite way than the edge of the drum, but try to do it so that as much of the fleshy part of your
palm as possible can receive support from the rim. Fingers are free to move and whip the skin
even when the palm movement stops.
From the player's perspective the slap looks like this at the time when the hand hits the drumhead:
Technique: Even though the slap sounds louder, the feel should be lighter than in producing the
tone. Do not press your fingers together, but allow the fingers to relax into a slight curve. Do not
spread your fingers too wide apart or straighten them because this makes them too tense. Keep
your wrist in a slightly lower position than in the tone to allow a slightly wider angle where your
fingers and the drumhead meet. Remember to keep your thumbs up.
Take care that you do not draw your hand too far away from the drumhead, because doing this
makes your hand land on the rim with the area between the knuckle and the first joint of your
finger. Although you may find playing the slap easier when the fingertips hit nearer to the edge, it
will hurt your hand and forces your hand and fingers to partially cancel out each other. The edge of
the drum will force your finger upwards just when it should be moving downwards.
Do not move your hand too far towards the centre of the drum. This focuses the weight on the
fingertips and the slap loses sharpness. This also strains the last joints of your fingers.
Avoid making an active movement with your fingers, in other words, snapping the drumhead
surface. You should try to find an ideal tension: not too stiff which prevents the fingers from
touching the drumhead, but not overly loose either.
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Bass
Where to strike: The best sound is produced right in the centre, but it is often practical to hit
where both hands have room for quick repetition of bass strokes.
Technique: Keep your palm stiff and flat and try to make the entire drumhead vibrate so that
even the lowest frequencies can be heard. Strike firmly but avoid overdoing it: the volume will not
grow endlessly by increasing the striking power.
The arm movement
Avoid tensing your arms so that your upper arms become rigid and only your forearms move
vertically.
A more economic way of playing is keeping your elbows clearly apart from your sides with the
elbows and palms moving almost in opposite directions. When the palm moves up and down to the
whole extent, the elbow moves in the opposite direction some 5 cm. The arm rotates around an
imagined axle which starts from the shoulder and runs through the forearm at a point which is
some 5 cm from the elbow towards the palm. In the opposite sides of the axle, the arm masses
balance each other during the movement, which makes the movement lighter but maintains the
speed of the palm movement.
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Fore Fot
Bass
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Tone
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Slap
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www.afrodesign.com
How to hold the drum
The most commonly used drums in Ghana are the Djembe and the Panlogo.
Hold your drum between your knees and incline it at a slight angle, facing away from
you. This opens up the hole of the bottom of the drum, allowing the sound to come
through. The body should be relaxed. If not, get a massage while playing, this works
very well!
The three basic strokes
A Djembe or a Ponlogo can each produce an infinite number of sounds, probably more
than a western drum kit. For our purposes here, we will describe the three basic strokes:
OPEN - a high pitched tone
SLAP - harsh staccato and loud
BASS - a deep resonant tone
THE OPEN
The open stroke has a high pitched ringing tone. It is played with the fingers straight
and together, hitting the periphery of the drum in a bouncy motion. As you can see on
the picture, the bases of the fingers come into contact with the edge of the drum. The
thick line on the picture of the inside of the hand shows where the drum impacts the
hand.
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THE SLAP
This is the most difficult of the three techniques. When played correctly, the slap is
short, sharp and loud. The sound should not be continuous. The heel of the hand
impacts against the edge of the drum as the fingertips grasp the skin, Bring your fingers
toward the edge as if you were try to pull the skin up. This takes practice!
THE BASS
This is a deep, resonant sound which can be felt low down in the body, The hand is
cupped and strikes the center of the drum firmly before bouncing back again. For all
these sounds you are advised to listen to audio if your sound is approximately like mine,
then you are doing well.
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Tubabu (Slovakia)
Zpsob hry na djembe
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The Slap
A beginner's guide to mastering the most difficult stroke on conga or
djembe
Of the three basic strokes on conga or djembe--bass, tone, and slap--the
slap is the most difficult to master and the hardest on your hands. So
take your time learning it and go easy at first. Don't hurt yourself by
hitting the drum too hard too soon.
The slap is produced by bringing your fingertips down onto the drumhead
with a whip-like motion. Only the pad of each fingertip--the fingerprint
section--should make contact with the drumhead. The only other part of
your hand that will make contact with the drum when you make a slap will
be the lower part of your palm--the chubby part. It should make light
contact with the edge of the drumhead just before your fingertips make
contact with the drumhead.
Here's an exercise that will help you get the feel of a slap stroke before
you try the real thing. Rest the chubby part of your palm on the edge of
the drum with your fingers raised, relaxed, and slightly curved. Now-without lifting your palm--bring your fingers down onto the drumhead.
Make sure you make contact with just the fingerprint section of each
finger. Do this exercise with alternating hands until the motion feels
comfortable.
Now for the real thing. Start by lifting your hand two or three inches off
the drum by raising your forearm slightly. At the same time, flex your
wrist and pull your fingers up until your hand makes at least a 45 degree
angle with the drumhead. Keep your fingers relaxed and together or
slightly apart. Your thumb can be pulled up against your fingers or
pointing out away from the hand--whatever's comfortable.
Now throw your fingers down onto the drumhead in a whip-like motion
while you bring the chubby part of your palm into light contact with the
edge of the drum. It may help to imagine that the pad of each fingertip is
a lead weight and the rest of each finger is completely weightless.
When the pads of your fingertips make contact with the drumhead you
have two choices. You can hold them down on the head with a slight
gripping motion. This is called a "closed slap," and it's used by conga
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Bas
Ton
Slap
DODATKOWE UWAGI:
Bardzo trudno jest na pocztku wydobywa czyste slapy oraz tony. Kluczem, do
nauczenia si ich, jest odpowiednie rozlunienie mieni, odpowiednie rozwarcie palcw i
bardzo duo praktyki :)
Pamitajmy, aby nie spina mini doni, jak i caej rki, powinny by moliwie
maksymalnie rozlunione.
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Djembe Technique
Developing good djembe technique is crucial if you want to be an in-demand djembe
accompanist or if you want to solo for dance classes or in performance. Bass, tone, and
slap are the alphabet for your djembe vocabulary.
downbeat and the "+" beat (if you count 1 e + a 2 e + a etc.) are played with the right
hand (if you are right-handed), while the offbeats (the e's and a's) are played with the left
hand. (The term "roll" can also refer to double-time notes; see my djembe roll exercise
page for more on this.)
You want all of your basses, tones, and slaps to have the same tone, pitch, and character
each time you play them, so it's very important to practice as much or more with your
non-dominant hand so that every note sounds the same, regardless of which hand you're
using.
Djembe Bass
The bass is the lowest-pitched djembe sound. To make a bass sound on a djembe, drop
your hand down in the middle of the drum, with the base of the palm of the hand just
inside the rim of the drum. The thumb is tucked in, parallel (or almost parallel) to the
fingers. The four fingers are together. All of the palm, the fingers, and the fingertips hit
the drum head at once with a soft yet firm intention. Don't reach all the way to center of
the drum to make a bass sound; just get the bottom of the palm of your hand inside the
rim of the drum. Keep your hand soft and flat or else you can end up with slapping or
other extraneous sounds. As soon as your hand hits the drum head, let it rebound like it's
doing a belly flop on a trampoline. The movement to make a bass sound starts at elbow,
but the wrist should lift up a bit more than the hand itself; imagine a marionette string
attached at the wrist lifting the hand, and then just let it drop straight down on to the drum
head.
Djembe Tone
The tone is the middle djembe sound. Many of my teachers call the tone the natural sound
of the drum - the default sound it would like to make. But please note that, as Seattle
djembefola Lance Scott points out, "This doesn't mean that making a good tone is any
easier than making a good slap. The kind of sound most beginning drummers make when
hitting a drum is somewhere between a tone and a slap (usually closer to the tone). To get
a good, deep tone without any higher overtones takes a lot of practice."
To make a tone sound on a djembe, form a straight line from your elbow to your
fingertips and keep your forearm, wrist, hand, fingers, and fingertips gently locked as a
single unit. Imagine that your arm is like soft steel and your finger pads and fingertips are
a mallet that will firmly strike the drum head. With your thumb perpendicular to your
fingers (so that it won't hit the rim of the drum), firmly drop your hand onto the drum
head with the pads at the base of your fingers landing just outside of the rim of the drum.
Your fingers stay together throughout the motion so that the four of them form a sort of
paddle. The angle of force is straight down into and through the head of the drum. As
soon as your fingers hit the drum, they should rebound as if you had just touched a hot
stove.
Djembe Slap
The slap is the highest-pitched djembe sound. To make a djembe slap sound, assume the
same arm position that you did to make a tone and then relax the wrist and let it drop
down so that the palm of the hand is extended back about 10 or 15 degrees. Relax your
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fingers and let them naturally spread out and curve. With a flicking/whipping motion,
drop your hand onto the drum head with the pads at the base of your fingers landing on
(or just outside) the rim of the drum. Only your fingertips should hit the drum head (in
extreme slow-motion they land in this order: pinky, ring, middle, index finger). As soon
as your fingertips hit the drum head they should rebound like the tip of a bullwhip. The
direction of force is at a slight angle to the head of the drum (unlike the tone, which goes
straight down into the drum).
My teachers have differed on exactly where the hand should land to make a slap sound.
Some say the pads at the top of the palm/base of the fingers should be in just a bit from
where they are to make a tone. Others say they should land in the same place as they do
when you make a tone. Experiment with this to find the position that works best for you.
Your goal is to end up with a crisp, clear, clacking slap.
Muffled Slap
To make a muffled slap on a djembe, use the same technique as for a regular slap, but
place the other hand on the drum head to muffle the sound. The trick here is to deftly slip
the opposite hand onto the drum without making a sound. Use a swooping motion coming in at a flat angle - to quickly and quietly slip the non-playing hand on to the drum
head, and then make your muffled slap.
angle of attack: straight down into the drum head for a tone, at a slight oblique angle for a slap
tension in the forearm: strong tension for a tone, relaxed for a slap
curve of the fingers: straight for a tone, curved for a slap
amount of flesh that hits the drum head: all of the fingerpads and fingertips for a tone, just the fingertips for a slap.
For Mamady Keita, it's the intention that makes the difference. He holds his hands the
exact same way for each sound, but when he thinks tone, he makes a tone; when he thinks
slap, he makes a slap. However you get there, the end result should be a thudding melodic
tone and crackling crisp slap.
Vocalization
Many djembe teachers and students find some sort of vocalization helpful. Baba Olatunji
used to say, "If you can say it, you can play it," and he developed his Gun/Dun, Pa/Ta,
Go/Do system to help students sing rhythms before playing them. Most of the djembe
teachers I have had use some sort of vocalization scheme. To keep things simple, I
recommend adopting your current teacher's vocalization style, but if you have a lot of
teachers, you might also want to develop your own for your ongoing learning.
Many experienced djembe players vocalize as they play. When Pepe Danza solos, he's
vocalizing non-stop. Ibrahima Camara says, "If I don't talk, I cannot play." So if you see
djembe players muttering to themselves as they play, don't question their sanity; just
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Practice
Like any musical skill, mastering djembe technique requires lots of practice. The more
you practice, the better you'll sound. Tyler Richart, one of the most accomplished djembe
players in Seattle, still spends an hour a day just working on his basic djembe sounds.
When he teaches djembe soloing, Tyler points out that your djembe sounds are your
alphabet to make the words that you use to tell your story. If you haven't mastered your
djembe technique, your story will sound like you're talking with a mouthful of gravel.
Sources
I am grateful to the many djembe and other hand-drumming teachers I have studied with
over the years. In roughly chronological order they are Simone LaDrumma, Bill
Matthews, Babatunde Olatunji, Sanga of the Valley, Thione Diop, Geoff Johns, Gordy
Ryan, Mamady Keita, Rusty Knorr, Rusty Eklund, Pepe Danza, Tyler Richart, and
Ibrahima Camara. I have also learned a lot from the djembe players I have played with
for Seattle dance classes: Carold Nelson, John van Broekhoven, Thierno Diop, Ryan
Harvey, Thaddeus Honeycutt, and many others. I am also grateful to Seattle's two great
dununfolas - Frank Anderson and Marc Langeman - for their support and help.
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Wil Howitt
Getting Started
First, of course, you need a drum! If you already have a djembe or an ashiko (a similar kind of African drum), you're all set. If
not, you may want to look in a local music store, or look at the pointers at the end of this document.
Before playing your drum, be sure to take off any rings you may be wearing. Only your skin should touch the
drum's.
Posture
It's important to be aware of your body and your posture while playing. It can be hard work! If your drum has a strap, you can
play it sitting or standing. If it has no strap, you must sit to play. If you are sitting, you will want a chair with room underneath
it for the drum, which goes between your legs. Try to perch on the edge of the chair, with your back straight. You can cross
your ankles to hold the drum in place if you don't have a strap.
Basic Tones
The djembe is played with three basic tones, so we will start by learning each tone in isolation. In this lesson we'll call them
"gun" (rhymes with "moon") which is the low bass note, "go" which is the middle note, and "pa" which is the high note.
Each description comes with an applet which shows the hand position on the drumhead. Click on it to hear the
sound.
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www.kanyinsola.com
Playing position
Sit on the edge of a chair and stand the djembe on the floor between your legs. Tilt the djembe forward, away from you.
Hook one leg behind the djembe, so it loosely rests between both your knees and one lower leg behind the djembe. The
tilted position (about 20-30 degrees) allows the bass sound to come out of the bottom opening.
Imagine the skin on top of the djembe forming a
plane into infinity. Your arms and hands should
be level with this plane or even above it, and not
below it.
Stick out your elbows until the elbows are in
line with this plane. Keep your shoulders down
and relaxed. Rest your hands on the djembe
edge, with all fingers flat on the skin, and about
half the palm outside the skin in the air. The tip
of the thumb rests lightly on/against the edge of
the djembe. The fleshy mounds on the palm,
underneath the knuckles, rest on the edge of the
skin. The wrists are in line with the plane of the
skin. Your arms and hands will make a 90
degree angle between them, and point to the
centre of the djembe skin.
The general playing movement (more about that
later) is initiated by the wrist. Bring the wrist up
slowly. The hand follows. Bring the wrist down
slowly. The hand follows. It is a wave-like
movement which will develop into a whip-like
movement later. Do not "lock" the arm and wrist
into position and move the fingers up and down
only, but involve your whole hand, wrist, arm
and even your body. Your "consciousness" for
the movement is in the wrist, not in the fingers!
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SLAP
:Played near the rim but futher in than
open.
Overview
The tone and slap are each others opposites in virtually everything. But there are two things that do not differ:
Both tone and slap can be played using the exact same position of the hand relative to the djembe How hard you
hit controls the volume, not the sound, although slaps are easier if you put some force into them. What differs is
everthing else! Here is a schematic overview and summary of the differences.
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Tone
Slap
Part of the skin to hit Area from the rim to 1 inch inwards.
The tone
The general movement of the hand is one of rolling from the fingertips towards the palm. It is like walking backwards. The full
power of the fingers is used to depress the skin and create a tone. At the end of the movement, the high frequencies are
dampened because the 1st section of the fingers (the red parts in the hand-picture) stay on the skin. If you have practiced
the wrist exercises earlier, this will become much easier to do.
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Keep the fingers next to each other, the hand and fingers almost flat. Move the hand and arm down in the
direction of the arrow, so the fingertips touch the skin first.
The 1st section of the fingers comes to rest on the skin at the edge. The top 2 sections of the fingers are free of
the skin. .
After hitting the skin, the coloured parts of the fingers rest on the edge of the djembe (indicated by a blue line).
The white areas of the fingers do not touch the skin.
The main force of the tone is concentrated in the red-coloured parts in the handpicture: the 1st section of the index and middle fingers. It feels like your hand is every
so slightly tilted towards these fingers. Once the tone is made, you should be able to
hold the djembe only by using the friction of these (red) parts of the fingers on the
skin, pulling slightly towards you. The fingers at stage 2 above are slightly tensioned
or stiff, which prevents them from bouncing off the skin and leaving too many high
overtones in the tone.
So the general movement is down-towards-yourself, hit-and-hold whilst the wrist
travels further down. The wrist then travels further towards yourself, up, then away
from your body, and down again to produce the next tone. The wrist makes a little
circle.
The slap
The general movement of the slap is the reverse of the tone. The initial downward wrist movement changes to an upward
movement whilst the fingertips hit the skin. The momentum and mass of the fingers which are still travelling down, causes
the full length of the top 2 sections to hit the skin. At that moment, the wrist is already travelling upward, aiding the fastest
possible release of the fingers from the skin.
Keep the fingers slightly spread, like 1mm apart. Move hand and arm down in the direction of the arrow. The
fleshy mounds on the palm, under the finger knuckles, hit the djembe edge - but only very lightly, more as a
resting point!
The top two sections of the fingers bend down slightly due to the slap force, and hit the skin as simultaneously as
possible, tips first. The 1st section of the fingers (connected to the palm) stays clear of the skin! The wrist and
palm are already travelling upwards again.
The red parts of the fingers hit the skin as one, super-flat, and at the same time. The orange parts may hit the skin
too, with less emphasis. The white parts of the hand do not touch the skin!
The main force of the slap is concentrated in the red-coloured parts in the hand-picture: the top 2 sections of the
middle and ring fingers. It feels like your hand is every so slightly tilted towards these fingers. Once the slap is
made your fingers bounce off the skin really fast and your wrist continues to travel upwards and slightly away
from you. This upwards movement will aid you in keeping the djembe skin clear at the edge, allowing the slap to
sound properly. As soon as the slap starts to sound like a tone, you are not leaving enough clearance and/or are
playing with the finger knuckles instead of the tips coming down on the skin first.
So the general movement is down-away-from-yourself, hit-and-bounce whilst the wrist travels upwards and
away from you already. The wrist then travels further away from yourself, up, then towards your body, and
down again to produce the next slap. The wrist makes a little circle, but the opposite way from the tone.
Once you get the hang of the movements, the circular travel of the wrist will be reduced to a minimum, it will
become more of a slight emphasis in direction.
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Playing softly
Playing the tone and slap softly is a lot harder than doing it loudly! Here are some instructions, but as usual you have to
practice, practice, practice! One benefit: if you can play them softly, you will have had so much experience that you will be
able to play them consistently and loud without any more problems!
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www.mairie-athis-mons.fr
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www.soundingforms.com
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"BOUNCED" SOUNDS
BASS
is played with the full hand in the centre of the drum
head. It can be played:
o with a flat hand, so that the palm is the main point
of contact with the skin.
o with the fingers bent slightly back, so that the
fleshy mounds at the base of the fingers are the
main point of contact.
o with a cupped hand, so that the edges of the
palm are the main point of contact.
The centre of the skin has what is known as a "sweet
spot", at which the sound is fullest. Search out the
"sweet spot" on your drum. It's worth it.
DARK (also know as "open")
is played at the edge of the drum head, with a flat hand
and the fingers together. The quality of the sound varies
according to how far onto the head your fingers extend.
Using only the area from the middle knuckle to the tip
produces a lighter sound; using the full length of your
fingers produces a stronger, fuller sound.
LIGHT (also know as "slap")
is also played at the edge of the drum, with your fingers
relaxed and slightly spread. This is usually the hardest
sound for beginners to produce. Bring your hand down
onto the drum so that the middle of the palm contacts
the wooden rim of the drum head first (keep your
thumbs out of the way!). At this stage, no sound has
been produced. But, because your fingers are relaxed,
the momentum of your movement carries them on, and
they flick onto the skin, like a whiplash, producing a
sharp, "crack" sound.
There are many varieties of this sound, mostly to do with
how spread the fingers are. Conga players, for instance,
tend not to have their fingers spread at all. This
produces a drier sound, often called a "closed slap". It is
also possible on the djembe. Experiment!
TOUCH
this is a very light touch with the fingertips, played
anywhere on the drum; it is used to "fill in" between the
main sounds
RIM
is quite a gentle sound, played at the edge of the skin,
using only one or two fingers
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"TRAPPED" SOUNDS
SOFT TRAP
uses the same hand shape as the LIGHT sound, the
fingers lightly trap the skin, rather than bouncing off.
Often played with a slight trill, or even a brushing
motion, of the fingertips.
HARD TRAP
is like the SOFT TRAP, but done with considerably more
force. This sound is often played by holding the skin with
one hand and playing the stroke with the other. It
produces a very sharp, "crack" sound.
OTHER TECHNIQUES
There are a number of other common rhythmic techniques
used on hand drums. Perhaps the most frequently used
are:
FLAM
To play a flam, both hands are used to play two sounds
almost, but deliberately not quite, simultaneously. It is
most frequently played using DARK, LIGHT or SOFT
TRAP sounds.
DOUBLE
The double is a technique in which you play two notes at
double the speed of those around them, using the same
hand. It can be played with any of the "bounced"
sounds, in either hand.
ROLL
The roll is a technique where a number of notes (often
four, sometimes six or eight) are played at double the
speed of those around them, alternating hands. It is
usually played using DARK or LIGHT sounds, and
occasionally the RIM sound. Rolls can start in either
hand.
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www.soungalo.com
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Percussions de Guinee
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www.african-drums.geniusgoods.com
TONE
This should produce a higher pitch, cup
your hand slightly and hit the edge of the
drum, the center joints of your fingers
should be on the corner of the skin and
the edge of the drum
SLAP
This is the most challenging sound to
produce and will take a little practice. You
want all your fingers from the edge of
your middle finger to the pinky to hit the
drum. You want to hit in between the
direct center and the edge.
You want to pull your hand back and just
swipe this area of the drum with your
hand, this should produce a slap sound.
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www.drum4success.com
Techniques & Rhythms
The djembe is played with bare hands (no jewellery, as this can scratch the drum
skin or even break the jewellery).
Mastering the correct drumming techniques to distinguish between the different tones
can take practice, however, a beginner can produce a good range of sounds on a
good drum in a short time with guidance. The key is finding the right place to hit the
drum skin and the correct hand position to produce the different tones.
The following pictures show the three basic hand positions and give a description of
how to strike the drum. Of course, learning from expert enables the beginner to listen
to the different tones and match the sounds they are producing with those of the
master drummer.
The Bass Tone (Gun and Dun - see the Language of
drumming)
The bass tone is the lowest sound and is played in the centre
of the drumhead. Strike the drumhead with the entire flat of
the hand with the fingers almost touching. Keep the hand
relaxed and bounce the whole hand straight off the drumhead
so that the sound is not damped.
The Open Tone (Go and Do - see the Language of
drumming)
This is a higher sound, produced by striking the drum towards
the edge of the drumhead. Keep the fingers together and the
thumb out of the way. Bounce the hand straight off the drum
to produce a clear sound.
The Slap (Pa and Ta - see the Language of drumming)
This is a sharp sound produced by whipping the drumhead
with the fingers. Strike the drum with the hand at a slightly
inward angle, making contact with the side of the palm and
the little finger, whipping the fingers down onto the drumhead.
Keep the hand relaxed, the fingers apart and the thumb well
out of the way. The 'slap' can take a little more practice than
the bass and open tones.
Remember - if you hit the drum too hard you will hurt your hands!
Practise this rhythm one part at a time, starting very slowly and gradually increasing
the speed.
Using mnemonics can make it much easier to remember the sequence of hand
positions and drumming tones in complex rhythms.
Chunking (breaking down) complex longer rhythms into shorter sections (phrases)
using mnemonics or word patterns can enable us to remember, replicate and perform
complex rhythms we never imagined possible. Transforming messages, phrases and
even company slogans into rhythmic patterns helps to remember them.
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www.experienceafrica.co.uk
How to play the drums :
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.
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Go Do (pronounced "go-doe")
Pa Ta (pronounced "pah-tah")
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Poloaj
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Osnovni tonovi
Tri osnovna tona:
Gun / Dun
Go / Do
Pa / Ta
Savjet: Neka slabija ruka "kopira" jau, odnosno, neka izvodi jednak pokret. Meutim, jaa i slabija ruka imaju razliite "boje" tonova to predstavlja
dodatnu kvalitetu.
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Savjet: Vjebati udarce "jedan po jedan" (odnosno, sporo priblino svakih 5 sekundi), sluati, gledati ruke i ispravljati udarce.
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Savjet: Pa / Ta nisu glasni Go / Do. Ovi udarci se razlikuju po boji tona i oba mogu biti glasni ili tihi. Dobro je uz Pa / Ta zajedno vjebati naglaene Go
/ Do.
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Gun / Dun
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Go / Do
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Pa / Ta
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www.drumlesson.com
Slap taken from a video clip
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