Bongo drum

For other uses, see the disambiguation page Bongo.

File:Bongo drums.jpg

Bongos being played

Bongo drums are a percussion instrument often referred to more simply as bongos.

Made up of a set of two very small drums attached by a thick piece of wood, bongos are played while held between the knees. They are traditionally played by striking the heads with the fingers, although some contemporary classical compositions call for them to be played with sticks or brushes. The two drums are of different sizes, with the larger one being called the Macho (Spanish for male) and the smaller one called the hembra (female). Modern bongos may be made of wood, metal, or composite materials and produce a high-pitched sound.

The history of bongo drumming can be traced to the Cuban music styles known as Changüi and Son. These styles first developed in eastern Cuba (Oriente province) in the late 1800's around the time that slavery was abolished. 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. As in Cuban music the bongos are usually played by the same musician as the cowbell - in Spanish: cencerro - he is called bongocerro.

According to Mr. Victor "Papo" Sterling: "It's believed that Bongos as we know them today 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, which is still only accessible to the Initiates. Even today, these drums look much like the bongos we know, if they were joined with a wooden peck in the middle."

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 nations.

Pictures the tbila: http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/features/africa/images/ninstbila.jpg http://www.maghreb-art.de/ebusiness/filesharing/Produktbilder/tbila1.jpg

Pictures of the Egyptian "bongos": http://www.synchronicityshoppe.com/images/BONE.jpg http://egyptianaddiction.com/images/bongo.jpg