Bongo Drum, the Afro-Cuban instrument enriched the Cuban regional music. Along with it the iconic instrument, a pair of the drum has influenced global music too.
Bongo Drum, also known as Bongos is an Afro-Cuban instrument that has evolved in the 19th century. The name of the instrument came from the word bongó, the word came from the words Mgombo or Ngoma which means drum. It got its name like this. This instrument is a pair of two small drums which are basically hand drums because it is played by the bare hand. They are compact in size and the sizes of the drums are slightly different from each other. This instrument is usually played in eight strokes. The rhythmic instrument is vastly used in Cuban and salsa music along with Cuban jazz and Latin rock.
The eight stroked drums are almost 20 centimetres high and the diameters are near about 20 centimetres and 25 centimetres. The larger one is known as hembra, the female, and the smaller one is known as macho, the male. It is the smallest drum in the Latin music culture. It is one of the most important instruments in the orchestra of Havana music and was developed in the 1940s.
The shells of the Bongos are usually made with wood and fibreglass. The top of the drums is made with calfskin. The shells get attached with steel hardware which helps with tuning. The Afro-Cuban instrument started used in the salsa music of the United States later.
Origin:
It is not has been found how the instrument got invented and became so popular. But the instrument was first recognized in Eastern Cuba. Later on, in the 19th century, it got developed in the Cuban music culture. At first, this instrument only got popular in the nengón, changüí music styles. In a lot of cases, it has been argued that the bongos are emanated from the Bantu drum models which are mainly seen in Central Africa. The confusion has been created for its similar structure. Both the instruments are open bottoms and belong from the regional part of Eastern Cuba.
Professionals have said that the Bongos originally belong from Cuba. At first, it used played one at a time; later attaching two drums were invented. Along with Salsa, the instrument developed parallel in other genres too. Later when Latin music, particularly Cuban music started influencing Jazz in the 1930s, it made its way to become part of American Jazz.
Playing techniques:
Just like any other instrument this also has techniques to play this one too. There are four stokes that are used to play the bongo. That are-
- Mute tone- this tone is made by using four fingers, to make this tone the instrument needs to hold the base against the skin. That helps to create the tone.
- Slap tone- this tone is made by hitting the middle of the drum with curving fingers. At the same time, they have to allow the palm to strike on the edge too. This kind of tone helps to make a popping sound.
- Open tone- this tone requires four fingers to be held together and hit the rim of the head.
- Heel tone- to make this tone the artist has to rock the heel of the palm and make the tip of the fingers back and forth. This particular tone makes a sound similar to a drum roll.
In some contemporary music, the bongos are also played with drum sticks. That created a high pitch and synchronizing rhythm. That helps to add an intense tone to the music.
Mechanics:
Traditional bongos were unpitched instruments that are nailed-on drum heads. The original bongo drums were able to change their pitch by moistening it with water or removing the moisture. A moistened drum lowers the pitch. For that heating, the drum would remove the moisture and help to hit high tunes. This happens because the heated surface helps to vibrate the skin faster and produce tune in high pitch. These methods are only done before any performance; it will help to achieve the desired tune.
In the 20th century, modern bongos have evolved a lot. There are now tuning hardware attached with the instrument, so the tuning can be done easily. There are hooks on the tuning ring around the rim that is attached to the head of the drum. The tuning lugs are tightened and loosened according to the preferred tune with the tuning oil. It is important to maintain the same tune or else it won’t give the same feeling every time.
The bongo drum is an integral part of Cuban music. It became the key instrument of the regional music culture. In the time of fast development of the music industry this instrument got massive popularity and became one of the significant tools of it. This Afro-Cuban instrument got started using in Cuban music and later started influencing Latin music, which slowly manipulated jazz music. Over decades the use of it increased more and more, therefore now it has become part of contemporary music globally.