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"My name is Jonathan. I am 14
years old and live in Carenage, Trinidad. I am an African drummer. I
belong to Big Youth Drum company,I learned to make African drums from my
uncle."
What kind of drum is this?
This drum is called a
DJEMBE, it is also known as HEALING drum and MAGICAL DRUM since it has the
power to make people dance.
The Djembe are carved out of solid wood,
not built from staves like some drums.
They are shaped similar to
Shango's throne, or a mortar and also during initiations used as a
pedestal to sit upon. The drums are made of cedar, Avacado wood, or
sometimes mahogany.
First I remove the bark using a chizel and a
hammer, then I make the shape of the drum."
"The sound of a
beating drum may simply be music to some, but to others, it is a way to
express their heritage,it is important to know and understand your
heritage,Without knowing history, you have no future," "This is what it is
all about, remembering and understanding your roots.
How did African
drumming come to the Caribbean?
"Drumming and other aspects of African
culture were brought to the Caribbean through the slave trade.
Do
African Drums really talk?
A lot of times instead of using words people
would hit the drums. They are used to communicate with other villages,
though not to as full an extent as in the past. And they're an integral
part of rituals and festivals. If a great man, a king, visited a tribe, he
would be greeted with drums, singing and dancing. These beats may also be
constantly repeated and loud for a certain phrase like, "Invaders are
coming!Beware there is an attack on its way!"
Next I hollow out the
inside of the log with the chizel.
I choose goat skin for the top
of the drum. First I use a bottle and some red sand to scrape away and
remove the hair from the skin.
The skin is held onto the drum head by
two rings, one at the top and the other at the bottom, and they are laced
together with goat skin strings
Is it difficult to learn to
drum?
"At first your hands hurt. But when you work hard at it, it won't
hurt anymore. It builds my confidence up, like when I'm learning a
difficult rhythm and then finally I work hard at it and get it. It makes
me feel real good." ."
"The thing I love about drumming is the
excitement. And it's a lot of fun. It's just important that I'm doing
something positive." |
