Forum notation

[haworth]

Can someone point me to a site that explains exactly how this type-able notation system is read?
S = Slap, I suppose. Is that the same as OPEN or CLOSED?

Janice
Dubreka, Guinea

[michi]

For djembe, normally people us s for slap, t for tone, b bass. For dunduns, o for open and c for closed, b for bell.

Michi.

[haworth]

Slap is Open
Tone is Closed?

On a Dundun, is a "closed" a muted sound with the other stick also on the head?

Janice

[michi]

Slap is Open
Tone is Closed?

Hmmm… Not quite sure what you mean here. Both tone and slap are played open on a djembe, meaning that the fingers rebound immediately. Slap is the high sound, tone the low sound. Or do you mean the fingers? Initially, most teachers tell people to play tones with the fingers closed and straight, and slaps with the fingers relaxed, so they are slightly apart and curved a little. Is that what you mean?

On a Dundun, is a "closed" a muted sound with the other stick also on the head?

Not really. Muting with the other stick only applies to ballet style anyway, seeing that there is only one stick for traditional playing.

A closed stroked is a pressed stroke, where the head of the stick stays on the skin instead of rebounding, making a higher-pitched sound.

Cheers,

Michi.

[haworth]

Differences in terminology...

Here in Guinea I have been taught that the brighter sound is "open" and it is played with the fingers spread apart. The darker sound is "closed" and played with the fingers together. I have *assumed* that "slap = (my) open" and "tone = (my) closed" but I have actually seen them backwards in several books.

I get the closed dundun now. I play ballet style almost all the time.

Thanks for the info.

Janice
Dubreka, Guinea

[rachelnguyen]

Hi Janice,

For some reason, tones are often called 'open tones', even though your hands are usually held more tightly closed. I haven't heard a slap called anything other than a slap.

Personally, I refer to the dundun sounds as either open or muted.... but that is not part of the notation, LOL.

[michi]

Differences in terminology...

Yes, I thought that might be the case

Here in Guinea I have been taught that the brighter sound is "open" and it is played with the fingers spread apart. The darker sound is "closed" and played with the fingers together.

This is generally the advice given to beginners to learn how make tone and slap. Be careful though. Rather than thinking of "spreading the fingers", I recommend to think of "relaxing the fingers" instead. The reason is that I have seen quite a lot of people who compulsively close and spread the fingers, which ends up slowing them down and really is bad technique. The difference between a tone and slap is a movement in the fingers of no more than 2 mm with good technique.

Here are two clips of Mamady demonstrating technique. Note how he plays both tones and slaps without having to close his fingers. The only thing that changes is the amount of tension in the fingers so, for a tone, the middle finger joint ends up a little closer to the skin and more of the fingers make contact.





Cheers,

Michi.

[rachelnguyen]

Awesome videos!

[bubudi]

on some hand drums (including conga, bugarabu) the slaps are usually played in a closed manner, while djembe slaps are usually played open. a lot of early instructional material may be based on conga notation or technique, which would explain the opposite terminology.

djembe slaps can be played both open or closed in a variety of ways, but normally they are played open, although many djembefolaw from mali have a preference for closed technique.

[michi]

djembe slaps can be played both open or closed in a variety of ways, but normally they are played open, although many djembefolaw from mali have a preference for closed technique.

Agreed. For someone just starting out, I would definitely recommend to play open slaps before moving to closed ones.

Cheers,

Michi.

[haworth]

You're losing me here. I guess I'll keep doing what I'm doing for the moment while I'm still here in Guinea. The whole key is to make a MELODY with the sounds of the hits.

Janice
Dubreka, Guinea

[michi]

You're losing me here.

There a different ways (quite a few, actually) to play slaps. The most basic (and most used) is the open slap, where the fingers rebound from the skin instantly, and the contact time is as short as possible.

Another style of slap is more closed, where the fingers rest fractionally longer on the skin before rebounding. This dampens the skin more and kills off some of the overtones, so the slap has a very short sustain and sounds dryer.

I guess I'll keep doing what I'm doing for the moment while I'm still here in Guinea. The whole key is to make a MELODY with the sounds of the hits.

Definitely!

If you look at the second Mamady video I posted, that is the kind of style you should be aiming for initially. As little change as possible between tones and slaps, so you get maximum efficiency. Also have a look on YouTube for videos of acknowledged masters. Famoudou, Mamady, Bolokada Conde, Babara Bangoura, Soungalo Coulibaly, etc. It's instructive to compare the technique of these guys. They all have their little differences. Look for what's the same among all of them and distill that.

Cheers,

Michi.