Brief introduction of basic information of African drum

African drum is one of the common musical instruments in Africa. Do you know anything about African drums? Now I'd like to introduce the African drum to you. Welcome to read!

Brief introduction of African drum

African drum (Djembe) is a traditional musical instrument of African indigenous people, belonging to the leather percussion instrument. African drum originated from the Mali dynasty established by the 13th Gimanding people, and it is the most representative percussion instrument. African drums are usually played around the neck, not on the ground. The most special thing about African drums is that they must be played by hand, with high tuning and rhythm.

Playing methods of African drums

Drums can be solo, ensemble and ensemble. The rhythm of solo and ensemble drums is complex and changeable, cadence and sonorous. When a group of people play drums or one person plays drums at the same time, the drums are magnificent, like a million Ma Benteng, magnificent and exciting. In life in Africa, dance is indispensable, and dance is inseparable from drums.

In Swahili in East Africa? Drum? And then what? Dancing? This is the same word. In Togo's song and dance activities, when to play music and when to dance, so the rhythm and melody must obey the command of the drum. Mauritanian female drummers dance while playing drums. Sometimes they flick their heads with their fingers, such as flowing water, and sometimes they flap violently, such as the river running. While beating drums, they beat their arms and legs in turn with their hands and made various gestures, which was very touching. For example, in Burundi, 10 male dancers hold drums on their heads and beat them in a semicircle, and then the actors take them off and put them in front of them. Put another big drum in the circle, and the actors take turns playing it. Sometimes they jump in the air, sometimes they spin and dance, accompanied by singing, strong rhythm, intensive drums and warm carnival scenes, which are very wonderful. In Africa, drums are often used as a symbol of a country and a nation. For example, the national symbol of Uganda has a drum, which shows an ancient tradition. Because before Uganda became a Republic, there were four kingdoms, and the royal family of each kingdom had a set of drums of different sizes, and each drum had a different name and timbre. This drum can only be used in royal weddings, funerals, the accession of a new king, and the declaration of war. For people with different power levels, the number of drums is regulated. In the primitive kingdom of Buganda, there were 93 huge ceremonial drums, and the chiefs at all levels decreased in turn, so people or animals had to make sacrifices when replacing the drums. This kind of drum is sacred.

Selection method of African drum

1. Turn the golden cup upside down and see if there are any hand-carved marks inside and outside. Good gold cups and drums usually have hand-carved marks.

2. Look at the drum skin. Because the drum skin of Jinbei originated in Africa has not been treated by any chemical method, the drum skin is usually not as white as that of China drum.

Smell it carefully. If it smells like paint, it means it is made in China. If you can smell the slight smell of sheep and cattle, it means that it is probably produced in Africa, because the drum skin produced in Africa has not been chemically treated.

4. Observe the inside and outside of the drum carefully to see if there are traces of splicing. If there are traces of splicing, it can be concluded that it is a domestic imitation drum.

5. Look at the pattern on it. African hand-made gold cups and drums are generally carved deeply, and the dough is lifelike, almost like wood carving, while domestic ones are generally carved shallowly because of their large output.

6. Gently press the middle of the drum by hand to see if there is obvious deformation. Good gold cups and drums are usually tight and crisp when knocked by hand. If the drum skin of the African drum you choose is loose, it will not have a good timbre.

7. Lift the golden cup and drum with your hands. If you find that the golden cup drum is too light, it is not recommended to buy it.

8. Hand-carved gold cups and drums are different. If you find a bunch of twins, it must be machined.

Other uses of African drums

African drums are also often used to convey information and language. Drummers can make different sounds by hitting different parts of the drum surface with different dynamics, and with different rhythms, they can form various drums as signal languages to convey various information. In the quiet moments in the early morning and evening, drums can reach15km away, and drummers repeat drums one after another, spreading them accurately at an alarming speed? Words? 100 miles away, it can be reached in two hours. In the past, when slave traders arrested blacks, Africans told people to flee quickly by drumming, so that slave traders got nothing. Drum language is also often used to call on people to participate in public welfare work, resist enemy attacks, report fire, etc.

Africans often use encouragement to express things that are inconvenient to express in words. For example, in Aken, Ghana, husbands are used to praising their wives with drums at dances. Drums can also be used to announce a person's birth, death and marriage.

In many parts of Africa, there will be a rally to choose drummers every once in a while. In Ghana? Drumming game? Actually, drummers beat each other in two groups. First, praise the chieftain's virtue and merits with bright and warm drums, then narrate ancient myths and legends with slow and fresh drums, and then announce clan anecdotes with hurried drums. The complex and changeable drum rhythm expresses people's different feelings, sometimes making people sad and angry, and sometimes making people laugh. People hold their breath for fear of missing a drum. ? Drumming game? What is the climax? War drums? . One group of drummers asks questions, and the other group must drum up answers and ask rhetorical questions, otherwise they will lose. The audience gathered around the drummer to help make suggestions, join the battle and try their best to beat each other.

In a word, the most prominent and important factor of African music is rhythm. Drum is the basis of African music rhythm and the most important instrument to express music language. The important position of drums in African people's lives is incomparable to any other musical instrument.