Tribal Drumming

The Bodhran is usually played in a seated position, held vertically on the player's thigh and supported by his or her upper body and arm (usually on the left side, for a right-handed player), with the hand placed on the inside of the skin where it is able to control the tension (and therefore the pitch) by applying varying amounts of pressure and also the amount of surface area being played, with the back of the hand against the crossbar, if present. The drum is struck with the other arm (usually the right) and is played either with the bare hand or with a lathe-turned piece of wood called a "tipper", "beater", or "cipín". Brush-ended beaters are also used. There are numerous playing styles, mostly named after the region of Ireland in which they originated. The most common is Kerry style, which uses a two-headed tipper.

The Berimbau is a single-string percussion instrument, a musical bow, from Brazil. The berimbau's origins are not entirely clear, but there is not much doubt on its African origin, as no Indigenous Brazilian or European people use musical bows, and very similar instruments are played in the southern parts of Africa. The berimbau was eventually incorporated into the practice of the Brazilian martial art capoeira, where it commands how the capoeiristas move in the roda. The instrument is known for being the subject matter of a popular song by Brazilian guitarist Baden Powell, with lyrics by Vinicius de Moraes. The instrument is also a part of Candomblé-de-caboclo tradition

The Djembe (pronounced "JEM-bay") (Djem, djem tree + Be, "goat") also known as djimbe, jembe, jenbe, yembe or sanbanyi in Susu; is a skin covered hand drum shaped like a large goblet and is meant to be played with bare hands. It is a member of the membranophone family of musical instruments: a frame or shell (in the djembe's case it is a shell) covered by a membrane or drumhead made of one of many products, usually rawhide. The djembe originated in West Africa, where it became an integral part of the area's music and tradition.

As a result of the goblet shape, the density of the wood, the internal carvings, and the skin, there is a wide range of tones that can be produced by the djembe. The primary tones are generally referred to as "bass," "tone" (or open tone), and "slap." Striking the skin near the center with the palm produces a bass note; striking the skin nearer the rim with the fingers flat produces a tone, and the same position with the fingers relaxed so that the fingertips snap to the head of the drum produces a slap. The slap has a high, sharp sound and the tone is more "round" and full. Other notes exist, but only advanced drummers can consistently create sound distinct from the others.

The Güiro is one of the instruments used in traditional Puerto Rican music that are believed to have originated with the Taino people. The güiro, a notched hollowed-out gourd, which was adapted from a pre-Colombian instrument. Others maintain that similar instruments were also used in other parts of Central and South America and brought to Puerto Rico by the Arawak indians.

The güiro is made by carving the shell of the gourd and carving parallel fluting on its surface. It is played by holding the güiro in the left hand with the thumb inserted into the back sound hole to keep the instrument in place. The right hand usually holds the scraper and plays the instrument. The scraper is more properly called a "pua". Playing the güiro usually requires both long and short sounds, which are made by scraping both up and down in long or short strokes. The güiro, like the maracas, is usually played by a singer. The instrument's rasping sound adds counterpoint to folk music but is less often used in salsa bands.

A Tamborim is a small, round Brazilian frame drum of Portuguese and African origin.

The frame is 6" in diameter and may be made of metal, plastic or wood. The head is typically made of nylon and is normally very tightly tuned in order to ensure a high, sharp sound and a minimum of sustain. The drum is devoid of snares or jingles.

The tamborim is used in many genres of Brazilian music. It is most commonly associated with samba and pagode, but is also used in chorinho, bossa nova, and some northeastern folklore rhythms such as cucumbi.

In most musical styles, the tamborim is played with a short, thin wooden drumstick. In samba, it is played with a beater made of several flexible nylon or polyacetal threads bound together. On rare occasions, it may even be played with the fingers.

The tamborim is held with the weaker hand with the thumb crossing the rim and resting on the drumhead. The other fingers are curled under the rim, with the index typically applying and releasing pressure on the underside of the head to achieve higher or lower notes. The beater is held by the very tip with the strong hand and the head is struck a little off-center. A playing technique called virado is often used, in which the drum is rapidly flipped upside-down to produce ghost notes and syncopated grooves. The instrument may also occasionally be struck on the rim.

Tamborim players alternate between repetitive groove patterns and through-composed signature phrases which function as a melody and are easily distinguished above the other percussion instruments.

The Ngoma (pronounced en-go-mah) was the first drum ever created. This same style of drum is still being played in Southern Africa by the descendants of Queen Marimba today. She created many of Africas' first instruments, such as the Marimba (named after the queen herself), Karimba, the world's first portable keyboard, Chipendani (the mouthbow, also known as Berimbau in Brazil) and of course Ngoma (the drum), thousands of years ago.

The original Ngoma was created from an old mortar that was worn all the way through by Queen Marimbas' cook. Queen Marimba took this mortar and attached an animal skin to the top of it creating the world's first drum. Queen Marimbas' direct descendants are the Wakamba people of East Africa, who live just south of Mwanza Nyanza. Over the years there have been numerous various peoples of Africa have moved in and out of this area and have taken their culture with them, while also transporting the Wakamba culture throughout East and Central Africa. Today the word Ngoma means drum in a huge area of the African continent in numerous languages. The shape of the drums will vary, but the name remains the same.

Talking Drums were developed and used by cultures living in forested areas, drums served as an early form of long distance communication, and were used during ceremonial and religious functions.

In Africa, New Guinea and the tropical America, natives used drum telegraphy to communicate with each other from far away for centuries. When European expeditions came into the jungles to explore the primeval forest, they were surprised to find that the message of their coming and their intention was carried through the woods a step in advance of their arrival.

Among the most famous talking drums are the drums of West Africa, where they were invented. From regions known today as Nigeria and Ghana they spread across West Africa and to America and the Caribbean during the slave trade. There they were banned because they were being used by the slaves to communicate over long distances in a code unknown to their enslavers.

The Doumbek is a goblet shaped hand drum used in Arab music, Persian music, Balkan music, Jewish music and Turkish music. Its thin, responsive drumhead and resonance help it produce a distinctively crisp sound. It is of ancient origin, and is believed by some to have been invented before the chair. The great goblet drum has a single drum head on one end and is open on the other end. The body may be made of beaten, cast, or spun metal, ceramic (often with a glued-on head) or wood. Materials for the head include synthetics such as PET film or FiberSkyn, as well as more traditional animal skins, such as goat or fish. In general, goblet drums tend to have much lighter heads than African or Indian drums.

While ceramic bodies with skin heads are usually considered to have the best tone, metal bodies and Mylar heads are generally favored by professional musicians because of their practicality, since they are far more durable, easily tunable, and insensitive to weather conditions. Furthermore, drums with Mylar skins can be played very loudly, making them well-matched with modern brass and electric instruments. The West African djembe, a related instrument, is larger and made from a log carved into a goblet shape.

The history of bongo drumming can be traced to the Cuban music styles known as Changui and Son. These styles first developed in eastern Cuba (Oriente province) in the late 19th century. Initially, the bongo had heads which were tacked and tuned with a heat source. By the 1940s, metal tuning lugs were developed to facilitate easier tuning. Some of the first recordings of the bongo can be heard performed by the groups Sexteto Habanero, Sexteto Boloña and Septeto Nacional.

It is believed that Bongos evolved from the Abakua Drum trio 'Bonko' and its lead drum 'Bonko Enchemi'. These drums are still a fundamental part of the Abakua Religion in Cuba. If joined with a wooden peck in the middle, such drums would look much like the bongos we know today.

Bongo-like drums with ceramic bodies are found in Morocco where they are known as tbila, as well as in Egypt and other Middle Eastern countries. Ceramic bongos are more common in the Middle East and Asia than they are in South America this is because wooden bongos were brought to Cuba during the slave trade.