Sub-Saharan African Drumming

• Djembe drums


  Single-headed goblet-shaped drum, played with hands, producing various sounds, traditionally played by men
• Agogô (bell)


  Features bells and rattles, creates high and low pitches when struck, used to cut through sound of multiple drums
• Balafon (xylophone)


  Tuned West African percussion instrument, ancestor of marimba, capable of producing 18 to 21 notes
• Dundun drums


  Larger double-headed drum played with a stick, capable of producing 3 basic sounds: open, muted, and bell
• Polyrhythms


  Combination of two or more different rhythms played simultaneously, overlapping each other
• Cross Rhythms


  Complex type of polyrhythm using conflicting rhythms, often not following the same pulse
• Call and Response


  One person initiates a 'call', and the rest respond, commonly used in traditional African music
• Master drummer


  Virtuosic musician controlling the tempo and structure, often playing a core rhythm and improvising
• Melody


  Short, few-pitched vocal or instrumental phrases, often used in call-and-response singing
• Tonality


  Percussion-based music with little harmony or tonality, featuring short improvisations around set patterns
• Texture


  Consists of several layers of drums and percussion instruments, combining in complex layers
• Tempo/Metre/Rhythm


  Strong sense of pulse, divided into groups of 3 or 4, featuring cyclic, polyrhythmic, and triplet rhythms
• African music occasions


  Performed at weddings, funerals, festivals, and public/private ceremonies, without the use of sheet music