The Bongos were first used in the Cuban music called the Son (1900 - peasant music tradition from Oriente province in eastern Cuba). They were the principal percussion instrument of Cuban popular music before the addition of congas later in the conjunto.The larger, low-pitch drum is called the hembra (female), and the smaller, high-pitched drum is the macho (male).The bongos are played by holding them between the knees, facing outward, the large bongo to the right of the player. They may also be mounted on an adjustable stand. Tuning varies among players (generally much higher than the congas).   Because of the physical differences between the congas and the bongo, the technique for each instrument is quite different. The most important rhythm/technique played on the bongo is the martillo.

Those unfamiliar with drums may be surprised to learn that they are tunable.Tuning is accomplished by stretching the head of the drum until it attains the note desired. The difference in the notes between the two is usually a fifth, says Britannica.com. Achieving this accuracy was difficult in the first bongos, which were made with animal skins stretched and tacked over the drum body and were tuned by using heat. Today there is tunable hardware which greatly eases the task of tuning. Heads can be anything that can be stretched and tacked over the drum body, but modern heads are usually either pre-mounted synthetic, pre-mounted rawhide, or unmounted rawhide. Only the super-serious bongocero will take the time to find a rawhide skin with the appropriate thickness and uniformity to hand-tuck onto his bongos. Pre-mounted synthetic skins are more weather-resistant and stay tuned better than rawhide. The type of head also affects the sound of the drum. Personal preference dictates which type of head the particular bongocero will use. Heads should be changed when they no longer have the sound that you like to hear. The most important aspect of tuning is to make sure the head is tightened evenly. Tunable bongos will have from four to five tuning lugs around the bottom of the drum. The lugs attach to the bongo head via a hook that latches onto the bongo rim to which is attached the head. Viewing the drum from the side as the lugs are tightened can help assure uniformity of tightness. Start with one lug, tighten it one or two turns, then proceed to the lug beside it, tighten it one or two turns, and continue on around the drum. The macho head is usually tuned tighter than the hembra head, which can be as much as a full octave lower than the macho. Detuning the bongos helps keep the heads in good shape longer, and can even protect them from splitting in the event of drastic temperature changes. Detuning is accomplished by loosening the lugs around the drum, thus loosening the head. Synthetic heads are less prone to splitting due to temperature changes than are rawhide heads.

The most important rhythm of the bongo is the "martillo" (hammer). It consists of eight distinct strokes and like the "tumbao" is a one-bar pattern which is repeated. The sound of "Martillo" could be phonetically interpreted as "dicky-docky-dicky-ducky".  The right hand accents the first and third beats with a sharp, muted sound played on the high bongo. The left fills in the rhythm by alternating between the thumb and fingers with a sideways rocking motion (manoteo - heel toe movement); the thumb muffles the right hand strokes. Open sounds are palyed on two and four on the high and low bongo respectively. The Martillo is effective for all rhythms from slow boleros to fast rumbas. Its function is like the ryde cymbal in jazz drumming or the tumbao of the congas. Martillo and Tumbao can be played together without disrupting the stability of the rhythm.

Links or Where I Ripped All of This Stuff

Return