1st professional djembe. Which wood?

[tasb]

Hello. I am about to buy my 1st professional drum and am split between 2 djembe. I live in the middle of nowhere which makes finding and playing a potential djembe difficult. I've played regularly for about 3 years on a 12" x 24" gambian djembe. My decision is split between two drums. A 13" x 24" douki and a 13.5" x 24" lenke I found on the net. I have heard that lenke is one of the most favoured of djembe but know little of douki. I'm leaning more to the lenke but am a bit apprehensive as its a bigger jump from 12" to 13.5" rather than to 13" as I have small hands and have short-ish legs. A little advice would be much appreciated. They're both the same price.

Thanks guys.

Tom

[bops]

Hi Tom, welcome to the forum.

Remember that wood type is just one of many factors that make up the overall quality of a drum. There are many others to consider. I personally prefer Lenke, but Duki can also make good drums. Check out this article I wrote on selecting a drum:
http://djembefola.com/articles/guide-to-buying-a-djembe.php

Hopefully this is helpful. Good luck!

[tasb]

Wow thanks. That has totally opened my eyes. I think what I really should of put with the title is what size as now I can see both of them as possibles. What I really want to know is, would buying a 13.5" radius djembe of the same height be foolish as I have small hands and small legs which may make it a bit of a problem supporting the drum. I've always played on a 12" so really a step up of 1" 1/2 seems miniscule but a few people have said its a big step. Am I being over cautious?

Cheers guys.

Tom

[michi]

Being small and having small hands is an advantage. People with small hands can play any diameter djembe, whereas people with large hands need a drum large enough to accommodate their big paws and can't play smaller drums. Similarly, if you are short, you can easily play both short and tall drums by adjusting seat height. For tall people, playing short drums is problematic because, with a lowered seat, their knees tend to be too high, making for an uncomfortable and cramped seating position.

I wouldn't worry about playing a 13.5" drum at all, even being short and having small hands. (The same thing applies to me, and I have no problems playing a 15" drum that's 25.5" tall.) 13.5" is not very large anyway, pretty much average size. You'll be fine with that drum, no doubt, and the height of 24" is just fine too.

Cheers,

Michi.

[e2c]

13.5 x 24 is pretty much standard these days.

And, as michi said, i doubt you'll have any trouble adapting! (I have small hands myself; have never had problems playing a 13+" djembe.)

If anything, I think you'll like the range of sound that comes with a slightly larger head.

[e2c]

People with small hands can play any diameter djembe, whereas people with large hands need a drum large enough to accommodate their big paws and can't play smaller drums.

I'm puzzled by this, if only because all conga drums have head diameters well under the size of standard djembes... and then there are bongos, bata, kpanlogo, bougarabou, etc. But yet, I've never heard anyone make the "big hands, bigger drumhead" argument with any of the Latin percussion instruments

And in documentary footage I've seen of percussionists in Guinea, virtually everyone - regardless of what part of the country they're from or the size of their hands - is playing drums with a far smaller head size than is common for djembes sold in the West.

I can't help wondering if market demand has driven the size of current djembes - Westerners want more boom for the buck, so to speak, and the carvers in Africa comply, maybe?

[/apologies to tasb for the threadjack]

[freefeet]

I live in the middle of nowhere which makes finding and playing a potential djembe difficult.

Hi Tom

Never heard Bristol be called the 'middle of nowhere' before, but can understand why some would call it that.

Have you tried this place... http://africandrumservices.co.uk/index.html I've had no dealings with them myself but as they're in the 'middle of nowhere' as well i thought they might be a good starting place to try a few drums out before buying and see if you're comfortable with the size.

As to the size thing, i've played a 10 inch bougarabou for years and happily jump onto 13-14 inch djembe when i feel like it. Going from 12 to 13 shouldn't be an issue for playing at all, you'll just have a bigger sound.

Good luck with the new drum.

Stan

[tasb]

Thanks for the advice people. In the past I've always not researched enough before buying anything and then before I knew it, I'd get stung for ignorance. Education is key.

I say Bristol, but its about 50 miles away from there, lol. Never seen this website before, may have to pay them a visit sometime. Good to see people on here from the south west of UK! We get the best weather in this corner!

Tom

[Paul]

I wouldn't associate the words 'professional djembe' and 'Gambia' normally though I do have some nice one from there..

He is a bit far away but Nansady Keita (newcastle i think) will have some nice drums.... and will also disprove any theories in realtion to the size a djembe player

[tasb]

As I said, I have played a Gambian djembe for 3 years and although it does play nicely and I've derived a lot of joy out of that drum I recently had the opportunity to play a well tuned lenke and felt the difference instantly. I wonder what wood is primarily made for djembe in Gambia? My one must be some form of hardwood as it is heavy, and the wood grain does seem similar to the browns like a dugara or hare, but once a quality skin has been mounted, the verticals pulled tight and its fully cranked up, the sound quality just doesn't match the hardwood types everyone talks about on this forum. Maybe its a mahogany? Any explanation as to why there's a difference in quality of sound would be nice to know.

Also, how come every time I type the word djembe into any document it's never recognized; highlighted by a red jagged line directly beneath it. Probably because its a french word. But still, surely its mainstream enough to be seen as commonplace therefore included in the english dictionary. I guess if I were to do a document in french it would be fine.

Thanks,

Tom.

[bops]

I wonder what wood is primarily made for djembe in Gambia? My one must be some form of hardwood as it is heavy, and the wood grain does seem similar to the browns like a dugara or hare, but once a quality skin has been mounted, the verticals pulled tight and its fully cranked up, the sound quality just doesn't match the hardwood types everyone talks about on this forum. Maybe its a mahogany? Any explanation as to why there's a difference in quality of sound would be nice to know.

What you've described sounds like Dugura, aka Duki (Susu) or Dimba (Wolof). It has a dry sound. The difference in sound quality is due to the carving and construction. A well-carved, well-build dugura drum sounds great (under great hands). Lower quality drums don't sound as good, simple as that.

Also, how come every time I type the word djembe into any document it's never recognized; highlighted by a red jagged line directly beneath it. Probably because its a french word. But still, surely its mainstream enough to be seen as commonplace therefore included in the english dictionary. I guess if I were to do a document in french it would be fine.

Try this: right-click on the word, and choose (this depends on your browser) Spell-checker options, Dictionary, or something along those lines. Choose Add to dictionary.

[Paul]

Like bops said they are most likely Dimba, certainly the ones pictured in the website look so. but you can get Hare (Wen, in Wolof) the sabar drums I saw didnt seem to be dimba at least.

I'd go guinean..

[Trog]

Some of the Gambia djembes I've seen on the web look to have a very tapered body.
Does your drum look like a Mali or Guinea style? Can you post a picture of it?