Talking drum

{{Short description|Hourglass-shaped West African drum}} {{Other uses}} {{more citations needed|date=April 2009}} {{Infobox instrument | name = Talking drum | image = TalkingDrum.jpg | background = percussion | names = Dondo, Odondo, Tamanin, Luca Cappacio, Lunna, Donno, Kalangu, Dan karbi, Igba, Doodo, Tama, Tamma, Gangan | classification = Percussion | inventors = | related = | musicians = | builders = | developed = Antiquity | range = | articles = | image_capt = | hornbostel_sachs = 211.242.11 | hornbostel_sachs_desc = Individual double-skin hourglass-shaped drums, one skin used for playing }}

The '''talking drum''' is an hourglass-shaped drum from West Africa, which can be used as a form of speech surrogacy by regulating its pitch and rhythm to mimic the tone and prosody of human speech.<ref name=Gershon>{{cite journal |last1=Gershon |first1=Livia |title=How Does the West African Talking Drum Accurately Mimic Human Speech? |journal=Smithsonian Magazine |date=2021-07-27 |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/how-west-african-drums-really-talk-180978296/ |access-date=2021-08-04 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Gninyomo |first=Luc |date=2021-08-14 |title=What Is a Talking Drum in Africa? |url=http://www.sheenmagazine.com/what-is-a-talking-drum-in-africa/ |access-date=2023-02-11 |website=Sheen Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref> It has two drumheads connected by leather tension cords. It is often played while being held under the arm. The player can change the pitch of the drum by tightening and loosening the cords between their arm and body.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Talking Drum |url=https://percussion.byu.edu/talking-drum |access-date=2026-02-25 |website=BYU Percussion Techniques |language=en}}</ref>

Originating from the 18th century, talking drum players used tones to disseminate messages, such as news of ceremonies and commands, over {{convert|4|-|5|mi|adj=on}} distances.<ref name=":0" />

A skilled player is able to play whole phrases. Most talking drums sound like a human humming depending on the way they are played.{{fact|date=January 2026}}

Similar hourglass-shaped drums are found in Asia, but they are not used to mimic conversation, although the idakka is used to mimic vocal music.<ref>{{Cite journal |title= Acoustics of Idakkā: An Indian snare drum with definite pitch|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/324828208 |journal= The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America|year=2018 |doi=10.1121/1.5038111|last1=Jose |first1=Kevin |last2=Chatterjee |first2=Anindya |last3=Gupta |first3=Anurag |volume=143 |issue=5 |pages=3184–3194 |pmid=29857748 |bibcode=2018ASAJ..143.3184J }}</ref>

Five varieties of ''dùndún'' pressure drums of the Yoruba and the ''atumpan'' and ''fontomfrom'' of the Asante (Ashanti) are especially notable. They send messages up to distances of {{convert|20|mi|km}}, where other drummers relay them, quickly spreading news.{{fact|date=January 2026}}

==Names of talking drums by language or region== {| class="wikitable" ! Language !! Name |- |Akan languages (Fante, Twi, Baoule) |Dondo, Odondo |- |Bambara, Bozo, Dyula |Tamanin |- |Dagbani, Gurunsi, Moore |Lunna, Donno |- |Efik |Obodom |- |Fulani |Mbaggu, Baggel |- |Hausa |Kalangu, Dan Kar'bi |- |Songhai |Doodo |- |Serer,<ref name="Pangool pp 48–49">{{in lang|fr}} Gravrand, Henry, "La civilisation seereer – ''Pangool'', vol. 2, Les Nouvelles Editions Africaines du Senegal (1990), pp. 48–49, {{ISBN|2723610551}}</ref><ref name="Khass">{{Cite web|url=http://www.kassoumay.com/musique-senegal/instruments-senegal.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120705103703/http://www.kassoumay.com/musique-senegal/instruments-senegal.html|url-status=dead|title=Instruments du Sénégal (in) kassoumay.com|archive-date=2012-07-05|access-date=2021-04-19}}</ref> Wolof,<ref name="Khass"/> Mandinka<ref name="Khass"/> |Tama, Tamma<ref name="Khass"/> |- |Yoruba |Dùndún, Gángan<ref name=Durojaye>{{cite journal |last1=Durojaye |first1=Cecilia |display-authors=etal|title=When Music Speaks: An Acoustic Study of the Speech Surrogacy of the Nigerian Dùndún Talking Drum |journal=Frontiers in Communication |date=2021-07-27 |volume=6 |page=132 |doi=10.3389/fcomm.2021.652690 |doi-access=free }}</ref> |}

==History== Hourglass-shaped talking drums are some of the oldest instruments used by West African griots<ref name="Khass"/> and their history can be traced back to the Bono people, Yoruba people, the Ghana Empire<ref name=MakeDrums>{{cite web|title=The History of the Drum – Early History|date=2011-10-18 |url=http://makedrums.com/the-history-of-the-drum-early-history|publisher=MakeDrums.com|access-date=2015-03-19}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Meyerowitz|first=Eva Lewin-Richter|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ExJPAQAAMAAJ|title=The Akan of Ghana: Their Ancient Beliefs|date=1958|publisher=Faber & Faber|language=en}}</ref> and the Hausa people. The Yoruba people of south western Nigeria and Benin and the Dagomba of northern Ghana have both developed a highly sophisticated genre of griot music centering on the talking drum.<ref>{{Cite journal|title=The talking drums of the Yoruba |date=1954 |url=http://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/africanmusic/article/view/223|language=en-US |doi=10.21504/amj.v1i1.223 |last1=Beier |first1=Ulli |journal=African Music: Journal of the African Music Society |volume=1 |pages=29–31 |url-access=subscription }}</ref>

Many variants of the talking drums have evolved, with most of them having the same construction mentioned above. Many non-hourglass shapes showed up quickly and were given special names, such as the Dunan and the Fontomfrom.<ref name=MakeDrums /> This construction is limited to within the contemporary borders of West Africa, with exceptions to this rule being northern Cameroon and western Chad, as well as areas that have shared populations belonging to groups predominant in their bordering West African countries, such as the Kanuri, Djerma, Fulani, and Hausa.{{fact|date=January 2026}}

===Serer people=== In Senegalese and Gambian history, the '''tama''' (in the Serer language) was one of the music instruments used in the Serer people's ''"Woong"'' tradition (the "dance performed by Serer boys yet to be circumcised" or the future circumcised, also known as the ''"Xaat"'' (in Serer).<ref name="Pangool pp 48–49"/> The tama drum has Serer religious connotations (which predates the Ghana Empire).<ref name="Pangool pp 48–49"/>

In the ''Xaat'' tradition, the tama makes up the fourth musical drum ensemble. The Serer drums played include: Perngel; Lamb; Qiin; and Tama.<ref name="Pangool p 49">{{in lang|fr}} Gravrand, Henry, "La civilisation seereer – ''Pangool'', vol. 2 (1990), p. 49.</ref>

{{quote|When the rooster crows, the Xaat will rest and sleep until the moment of circumcision, if he has been judged to be able to dance to the Woong, surrounded by four tam-tam. The Perngel, the Lamb, the Qiin and the Tama.|author=Henry Gravrand }}

From a historical perspective, the tama (just like the Serer junjung), was beaten by the griots of Senegambian kings on special occasions, such as during wars (a call for arms), when the kings wanted to address their subjects, and on special circumstances in Serer country – a call for martyrdom, such as the mayhem at Tahompa (a 19th-century surprise attack)<ref name="Joof"/><ref name="Camara">Camara, Alhaji Sait, "Chossani Senegambia" (history of Senegambia), in GRTS (Sunu Chossan), (Gambia).</ref> and the Battle of Naoudourou,<ref name="Joof">{{in lang|en}} Joof, Alhaji Alieu Ebrima Cham, "Senegambia, the land of our heritage" (1995). See also :

* {{in lang|fr}} Sarr, Alioune, "Histoire du Sine-Saloum", (Sénégal), Introduction, bibliographie et notes par Charles Becker, Bulletin de l'Institut Fondamental d'Afrique Noire, Tome 46, Serie B, n° 3–4, 1986–1987, p. 42.</ref> where the defeated Serers (by the Muslim-marabouts of Senegambia), committed suicide rather than be conquered by the Muslim forces or forced to submit to Islam.<ref name="Joof"/><ref name="Camara"/> Suicide is permitted in Serer religion only if it satisfies the Serer principle of Jom (see Serer religion).<ref name="Pangool p 40">Gravrand, ''Pangool'' (1990), p. 40.</ref> The word ''"Jom"'' means "honour" in the Serer language.<ref name="Pangool p 40"/><ref>{{in lang|fr}} Gravrand, Henry, "L'Heritage spirituel Sereer: Valeur traditionelle d'hier, d'aujourd'hui et de demain", in ''Ethiopiques'', numéro 31, révue socialiste de culture négro-Africaine, 3e trimestre 1982</ref>

===Yoruba people=== ====Ayangalu==== Ayangalu is believed to have been the first Yoruba drummer. Upon his death he was deified, and so now he is counted among the ranks of the Orishas. It is believed by followers of the Yoruba religion that he is the patron spirit of all drummers, and that in the guise of a muse he inspires the drummers to play well. The word "''Ayan''" means drummer in the Yoruba language. This is why some Yoruba family names contain the prefix ''Ayan'', such as Ayanbisi, Ayangbade, Ayantunde, Ayanwande etc. This prefix marks its bearers out as hereditary custodians of the mysteries of Ayangalu.<ref name="TheNation">{{Cite news |title='My life as an editor and gangan drummer' |url=https://thenationonlineng.net/life-editor-gangan-drummer/ |location=Lagos, Nigeria|date=2016-04-10 |access-date=2026-03-15|newspaper=The Nation}}</ref>

In the 20th century, the talking drum became a part of popular music in West Africa. It is used in playing Mbalax music of Senegal and in Fuji and Jùjú music of Nigeria (where it is known as a dùndún, not to be confused with the dundun bass drum of the Mandé peoples).<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Talking Drum in Nigerian Pop Music – Fuji Music: MUSC&105 1778 – F17 – MUSIC APPREC|url=https://ccs.instructure.com/courses/1478582/pages/the-talking-drum-in-nigerian-pop-music-fuji-music|access-date=2021-07-11|website=ccs.instructure.com}}</ref>

The talking drum is also used in ceremonial functions and events like weddings, burial ceremonies, and private functions. Most importantly, it is commonly used by African bands as part of their musical instruments.{{fact|date=January 2026}}

== Playing technique == [[File:Iya Ilu Dundun.png|thumb |Iya Ilu, Yoruba talking drum.]] The pitch of the drum is varied to mimic the tone patterns of speech. This is done by varying the tension placed on the drumhead: the opposing drum heads are connected by a common tension cord. The waist of the drum is held between the player's arm and ribs, so that when squeezed the drumhead is tightened, producing a higher note than when it is in its relaxed state; the pitch can be changed during a single beat, producing a warbling note. The drum can thus capture the pitch, volume, and rhythm of human speech, though not the qualities of vowels or consonants.<ref>{{cite news|last=Gertjegerdes-Myricks|first=Petra|title=African American History Village Receives New African Drums|newspaper=Columbus Times|date=17 July 2002|id={{ProQuest|367868191}}}}</ref>

The use of talking drums as a form of communication was noticed by Europeans in the first half of the 18th century. Detailed messages could be sent from one village to the next faster than could be carried by a person riding a horse. In the 19th century Roger T. Clarke, a missionary, realised that "the signals represent the tones of the syllables of conventional phrases of a traditional and highly poetic character."<ref>Gleick, J. (2011), ''The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood'', London: Fourth Estate, p. 15.</ref>

Many African languages are tonal; that is, the pitch is important in determining the meaning of a particular word.<ref>Chen, Matthew Y. 2000. ''Tone Sandhi: patterns across Chinese dialects.''</ref><ref>Odden, David (1995), "Tone: African languages". In J. Goldsmith (ed.), ''Handbook of Phonological Theory'', Oxford: Basil Blackwell.</ref> The Yoruba language, for instance, has three principal tones, low, medium, and high, analogous to tonic sol-fa notes do, re, and mi; different inflections of the three tones are then used to convey different messages. The same plan of three principal tones and their inflections also applies to how the drum talks in Yoruba music and culture. However, the Serer language and its relative Senegambian languages are not tonal, unlike almost all other Niger-Congo languages.<ref>Pozdniakov, Konstant in and Segerer, Guillaume (2017), "A Genealogic Classification of Atlantic Languages". (Draft) To appear in: Lüpke, Friederike (ed.) ''The Oxford Guide to the Atlantic Languages of West Africa'', Oxford University Press.</ref>

The problem was how to communicate complex messages without the use of vowels or consonants but simply using tone. An English emigrant to Africa, John F. Carrington, in his 1949 book ''The Talking Drums of Africa'', explained how African drummers were able to communicate complex messages over vast distances.<ref>Carrington, J. F. (1949), ''The Talking Drums of Africa'', Carey Kingsgate Press.</ref> Using low tones referred to as male and higher female tones, the drummer communicates through the phrases and pauses, which can travel upwards of 4–5 miles. The process may take eight times longer than communicating a normal sentence but was effective for telling neighboring villages of possible attacks or ceremonies.<ref name=":0">{{cite book|last=Ong|first=Walter|title=Interfaces of the Word: Studies in the Evolution of Consciousness and Culture|year=1977|page=101}}</ref> He found that to each short word that was beaten on the drums, an extra phrase was added, which would be redundant in speech but provided context to the core drum signal.{{fact|date=January 2026}}

=== Example === The message "Come back home" might be translated by the drummers as: "Make your feet come back the way they went, make your legs come back the way they went, plant your feet and your legs below, in the village which belongs to us".<ref>Gleick (2011), p. 13.</ref>

Single words would be translated into phrases. For example, "Moon" would be played as "the Moon looks towards Earth", and "war" as "war which causes attention to ambushes".{{fact|date=January 2026}}

The extra phrases provide a context in which to make sense of the basic message or drum beats. These phrases could not be randomized, when learning to play the drum students were taught the particular phrase that coincided with each word. This reason alone made learning to talk in drum language difficult and few were willing to take the time to do so.<ref>{{cite book|last=Ong|title=Interfaces of the Word|year=1977|page=97}}</ref> The extra drum beats reduce the ambiguity of the meaning. Ironically, when the West understood the mechanism of the drums, they had already begun to be used less often in Africa. Also, words often lost their meaning. In an interview with Carrington, he explained that when words that are not used often, the phrases that correspond to them are forgotten. When given the beat for young girl, the drummers thought the phrase played was in fact the one for fishing nets.<ref>{{cite book|last=Ong|title=Interfaces of the Word|date=1977}}</ref>

As emphasized by Finnegan,<ref name=OLA>{{cite book|last=Finnegan|first=Ruth|title=Oral Literature in Africa|year=2012|publisher=Open Book Publishers|location=Cambridge, UK|isbn=978-1-906924-72-0|chapter-url=https://unglue.it/work/81834/|chapter=Drum Language and Literature}}</ref> the messages sent via drums were not confined to utilitarian messages. Drum languages could also be used for specifically literary forms, for proverbs, panegyrics, historical poems, dirges, and in some cultures practically any kind of poetry. The ritualized forms and the drum names of particular individuals constituted a type of oral literature. Among some peoples such as the Ashanti or the Yoruba, drum language and literature were very highly developed. In these cultures, drumming tended to be a specialized and often hereditary activity, and expert drummers with a mastery of the accepted vocabulary of drum language and literature were often attached to a king's court.{{fact|date=January 2026}}

==Details of design== The dimensions of the drums differ between ethnic groups, but all follow the same basic design.{{fact|date=January 2026}}

The ''Tama'' of the Serer, Wolof and Mandinka peoples is typified by its smaller dimensions, having a total drum length typical of {{convert|13|cm|in|abbr=on}} with a {{convert|7|cm|in|adj=on|abbr=on}} drum head diameter. This produces a much higher pitched tone than other talking drums of the same construction.{{fact|date=January 2026}}

The Yoruba and Dagomba peoples, on the other hand, have some of the largest talking drums in their ''Lunna'' and ''Dùndún'' ensembles, with a length typical of {{convert|23|–|38|cm|in|abbr=on}} and a drum head diameter of between {{convert|10|and|18|cm|in|abbr=on}}. In Yoruba talking-drum ensembles, these large drums are used alongside smaller ones similar to the ''Tama'', called ''Gangan'' in Yoruba language.{{fact|date=January 2026}}

==Playing styles== thumb|Drummers on parade Playing styles are closely linked with the drum's construction and the tonal qualities of each language. A clear difference in playing styles can be heard between areas with predominantly Fulani and Mande-speaking populations and traditionally non-Mande areas further east.{{fact|date=January 2026}}

The predominant style of playing in areas further west such as Senegal, Gambia, western Mali, and Guinea is characterized by rapid rolls and short bursts of sound between the stick holding hand and accompanying free hand, and correlates with the various pitch accent and non-tonal languages heard in this area. This is a punctuation style is typically heard in the popular Mbalax genre of Senegal.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Barz |first=Gregory F. |url=https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000051499 |title=Mbalax |date=2001 |publisher=Oxford University Press |series=Oxford Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.51499}}</ref>

From eastern Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana, towards Niger, western-Chad, and Nigeria, with the exceptions of areas with Fulani and Mande-speaking majorities, the playing style of the talking drum is centered on producing long and sustained notes by hitting the drum head with the stick-holding hand and the accompanying free hand used to dampen and change tones immediately after being hit. This produces a rubbery sounding texture to its playing, which mimics the heavy and complex tones used in languages from this area (see Niger–Congo tonal language chart). This characteristic style can be clearly heard in the popular music of this area, particularly in those where the talking drum is the lead instrument, such as Fuji music of the Yoruba of Nigeria.{{fact|date=January 2026}}

In some ethnic groups, each individual was given a "drum name" which could be used direct messages to specific individuals. Examples from among the Bulu of Cameroon are "Even if you dress up finely, love is the only thing" or "The giant wood rat has no child, the house rat has no child". Talking drum players sent messages by drumming the recipient's name, followed by the sender's name and the message.<ref>"Drum Telegraphy".</ref>

==See also== * Drum (communication) * Whistling languages, tonal transpositions of spoken languages.

==References== {{reflist|1}}

==Bibliography== *{{in lang|fr}} Gravrand, Henry, "La civilisation seereer – ''Pangool'', vol. 2, Les Nouvelles Editions Africaines du Senegal, 1990, pp. 40, 48–49, {{ISBN|2723610551}}. *{{in lang|fr}} Gravrand, Henry, "L'Heritage spirituel Sereer: Valeur traditionelle d'hier, d'aujourd'hui et de demain", in ''Ethiopiques'', numéro 31, révue socialiste de culture négro-Africaine, 3e trimestre 1982 [http://ethiopiques.refer.sn/spip.php?article895] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110901205550/http://ethiopiques.refer.sn/spip.php?article895 |date=2011-09-01 }} (retrieved 7 May 2012) *{{in lang|en}} Joof, Alhaji Alieu Ebrima Cham, "Senegambia, the land of our heritage" (1995) *{{in lang|fr}} Sarr, Alioune, "Histoire du Sine-Saloum" (Sénégal), Introduction, bibliographie et notes par Charles Becker, Bulletin de l'Institut Fondamental d'Afrique Noire, Tome 46, Serie B, n° 3–4, 1986–1987, p. 42. *"[https://web.archive.org/web/20070930044547/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,773609,00.html Drum Telegraphy]". ''TIME'', 21 September 1942. Online version accessed 7 November 2006.

==External links== *[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FDfn9t2zG4 Video of Senegalese talking drum, known as a ''Tama'' -"Male' and the talking drum from africa" (in) Youtube]

Category:Serer culture Category:Serer history Category:Culture of Senegal Category:Culture of the Gambia Category:Senegalese musical instruments Category:Ghanaian musical instruments Category:African drums Category:Music of West Africa Category:Ivorian musical instruments Category:Culture of Mali Category:Culture of Nigeria Category:Culture of Niger Category:Yoruba musical instruments Category:Drums Category:Speech-surrogate instruments Category:Hausa musical instruments