How to Play African Drums

The African drums are sacred and symbolic instruments that people play for ceremonial rituals and at dances and celebrations. Authentic drums are beautiful works of art that you can play to make lively and original beats with a simple technique and a bit of practice.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Relax your hands and fingers and hold them loosely above the skin of the drum. The djembe is the most popular and widely available drum as you can make a range of different sounds on it. Strike the drum with both hands in a precise movement but not too hard, as the skin material can hurt your palms. Let your hand bounce back off the material to achieve a beat instead of a dull thud.

2. Move your hands to different places on the drum to create different sounds. Striking the skin in the middle makes a lower bass sound, and if you move towards the edges, you can create a more open beat that is not so dull.

3. Cup your hand slightly so that your fingers point downwards. Touch your hands to the drum skin again but this time only with your fingers so that your palm doesn't come into contact with the drum at all. This produces the "slap" sound, which is a more difficult technique but will come with practice.

4. Play a rhythm by making a sequence that uses all 3 sounds. Move your hand from the middle to the outside and then make the "slap" sound with your cupped hand. Create a sequence and repeat it over again, getting faster or slower to change the tempo.

5. Create a group to combine different rhythms and a variety of sounds. Include different types of drum such as the kpanlogo or djun djun to make different tones and widen the variety of music you can play.