Position - Posture - Sitting

[Djembe-nerd]

There are a few discussions on Djembe L-FAQ about this, but lets discuss this with a little detail.

In my journey, I have experimented with seating height a lot. This is what I do :

- Height of throne (flat round seat with cushion) around 19.5" for a 24-25" djembe.
- Tilt of the djembe approx 35 degrees from horizontal.
- Angle of the elbow while making a tone, 20 degrees from horizontal, I think for me this gives a good balance between the forearm and wrist force together at the strike.
- distance of the djembe to the stomach varies (of course it depends on the arm length too) a little but usually its 6-7".

The thing I struggle with is keeping the back straight all the time. When ever I remember I strighten it, then while playing it bends again....any advice.

Openfor discussion and to see what you all do too

[michi]

Talking in absolutes in terms of seat height and so on is probably not that useful because that depends on the height of the drum and the height of the player.

What I usually tell my students is that they should adjust seat height such that, with their arms in a normal playing position, the line of the forearm and the face of the drum are in the same plane when the hand is resting at the edge of the drum. That way, you are neither "reaching up" towards the skin, so the wrist ends up below the playing surface, nor are you "reaching down", with a kink between the hand and the forearm. Basically, at impact, the back of the hand, the forearm, and the drum face should all be in a straight line.

Cheers,

Michi.

[Djembe-nerd]

I remember Mamady telling a lady in the camp on her technique that the wrists should be slightly lower than the knuckles or the skin surface when striking the djembe.

[michi]

I remember Mamady telling a lady in the camp on her technique that the wrists should be slightly lower than the knuckles or the skin surface when striking the djembe.

Yes, the wrist may be ever so slightly below the knuckles. But you definitely don't want a big kink in your hand between the fingers and the palm, or the palm and the forearm.

I see quite a lot of people play with these kinks, striking from the forearm with essentially the whole hand and the wrist locked, so the wrist is well below the playing surface, as well as the palm. That's seriously bad technique.

Cheers,

Michi.

[e2c]

I see quite a lot of people play with these kinks, striking from the forearm with essentially the whole hand and the wrist locked, so the wrist is well below the playing surface, as well as the palm. That's seriously bad technique.

And a very easy way to injure yourself.

[Djembe-nerd]

What do you think is the ideal balance is between the wrist and the forearm force.

[michi]

What do you think is the ideal balance is between the wrist and the forearm force.

Most of the force comes from the forearm. The flexing back of the wrist on the way up and straightening of the wrist just before impact adds speed because the speed of the palm/fingers coming down is added to the speed of the forearm, so you get a faster impact. But that straightening adds speed more than force.

Cheers,

Michi.