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March 10th, 2010 admin Leave a comment Go to comments

Bongos Dynamic

Bongo Drums or Bongos are percussion instruments that are comprised of two drums attached to each other. One of the drums is bigger than the other and is called a hembra, which translates from Spanish into English as "Female". The smaller drum is called a Macho, translated form Spanish as: "Male". A bongo player is called a Bongocero.

The Bongos arrived in South America as a result of the Atlantic Slave Trade. Originally, Bongos were tacked and tuned with the use of a heat source, but by the late 1940s metal tuning lugs were installed to facilitate easy tuning. By the Middle of the 21st Century, Bongos gained association with Beatniks, who used them to provide accents when they read poetry. In History, the first recordings of the Bongos were heard performed by groups like the: Sexteto Habanero, Sexteto Boloña and Septeto Nacional.

The Bongos were most probably derived from the Abakua Drum Trio: The Bonko. These drums played a big part in the Abakua religion and are still used until today. If you join these drums with a thick wooden stick, they would end up looking like the Bongos, as we know them today.

Bongos can be made of several types of materials. They are most often made of wood, metal or some other composite material. The two drums are attached to one another by a thick piece of wood. The drums head can be made of animal skin or other synthetic material. For the head of the "Macho" (the smaller drum); X-Ray films are sometime used.

Bongo like drums can be found in Morocco. These drums have ceramic bodies and goatskin raw hide for the head. Similar drums are also found in Middle Eastern countries and Egypt. Bongos are sometimes used as an accompaniment to the flamenco and other Spanish music. Ceramic Bongos are more common in Asia and the Middle east rather that in Africa. Wooden bongos came to the Americas and into Cuba because of the slave trade.

Bongo drums produce a high pitched sound and are played by placing and holding up the drum in between the knees of the player with the hembra (larger drum) on the right side. Striking the head with the fingers and the palms are a traditional way of playing the Bongos, although some modern players use other instruments like sticks and brushes. A muted sound is achieved form the Bongo by placing one hand on top of the head while the other is striking it. Bongos can also be placed in stands when they are played with an orchestra and a band.

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