Djembe

A djembe is a west-african drum made of hardwood and covered with goatskin. The instrument nowadays is very popular even in germany, as it has a wide variety of sound repertoir. The djembe got my attention from my wife’s bellydance music, from my hobby in the medievals and from my participation at the Musisches Zentrum at Ulm University. The band Angaheym, good friends of us, used the instrument for their bagpipe music, as it is loud enough to stand the volume of the bagpipes.

djembeSoon I wanted to have my own djembe. I asked my friends who already had djembes which qualities I had to pay attention to. In Ulm I got my “personal” djembe which now serves me well for over ten years. Even a performance with children during my alternative civilian service in an integrated kindergarten was no problem for the instrument.

Those who like african or oriental rhythms will be very happy with a djembe. Originally the drums were used as solo instruments or in an ensemble with other djembes. Nowadays, they are often used as accompaniment. Especially those pseudo-medieval music groups use the djembe in their percussion.