Stating that ALL Ghana and Indonesian djembes are made

of "softer woods" seems dangerously fuzzy. Having worked on a few

hundred drums, I have seen a wide range of wood hardness and overall

drum quality from ALL of the counties of origin I know of.

Specifically, I've worked on drum shells from Ghana ranging from so

soft you can gouge them with a thumbnail to as hard as a rock!Rob:
Now there's an opinion I can sink my teeth into. I've worked on several thousand
drums over since 1986, and I've never seen a djembe from Ghana that wasn't made
of tweneboa. Of course, wood ages, and hardens, and depending on how it grows
and under what circumstances (temperature, rainfall, southern facing slope, etc)
so some tweneboa will be harder than others, but none as hard as khadi or lenke.
I've always avoided ghana djembes for this reason, so my experience with ghana
djembes is not as deep as with Ivory Coast, Guinea, Mali, or even Senegal.
So.....if there are hardwood drums coming from Ghana, I'd love to see them. Even
for someone that's been in this so many years, I have things to learn, and
things are always changing. If you are a drum maker with hard Ghana wood drums,
please find out what the wood is. I'd love to know, and your customers would
want to know as well.
Tim:
The

harder ones are light in color but not weight and I just grabbed one

(plus a very high quality Indonesian drum from a reputable source)

and both seem very close in density to both a handy Ivory Coast

Djembe and my Favorite Mali Djembe. It seems to me that either there

are several woods that are called Tweneboa or that its quality has a

vast range. Similarly, the Indonesian carvers seem to work with a

variety of woods.

I am no wood expert, nor djembefola, and have sold only a few

dozen drums. Even counting the other drums I've worked on, I am

surely not as experienced in these matters as others on this list.

But it still seems to me that such over generalized statements are

less than useful. Rob:
Getting to the origin: Someone was asking opinions of some drums that were on
the internet. Based on the pictures, it was highly likely that they were made in
Ghana of tweneboa. I gave my opinion, which was asked for. I don't know what the
guy wound up doing, but I wish him well. If he wound up finding a local drum
amker, and bought a more traditional carved djembe from Guinea, Mali, Or Ivory
Coast, I think he would be happier with his decision in the long run.
Many beginners are happy with Indonesian or Ghana drums, but more serious
players tend away from them. As Tom said, his friend and master player/drum
maker from Ghana plays a Guinea drum when he performs. Most players that spend
less money on these typically less expensive drums tend to buy a "better" drum
later, especially if they are more serious. (And by serious I mean taking
classes, workshops, playing every week instead of teice a year, etc) For those
that plat at 1 or 2 drum circles a year, and don't want to take workshops and
lessons, those other drums are probably fine. Tim:
As well, I have found that email and this medium

are very poor at properly getting across our true meanings and intent

and I doubt that anyone is really attacking any one else here . . . Rob:I know I
didn't intend to attack anyone, or any country. I merely offered an opinion on
better quality djembes, which is what was asked for.
Tim:
Of course, if someone prefers a Djembe made from a particular

wood or from a certain country, no problem. Plus, I'll be the first

to admit that the worst drums from Ghana or Indonesia or wherever are

certainly crappy. But having taken some rather crappy drums and made

them into instruments the owners are thrilled with (and that I don't

mind having my name inside of!) I'd rather that this list not seem

too particular about just what makes a decent djembe (or djembe

shaped object if you prefer :-). After all, the consensus seems to be

that mail order is not wise and people can be limited in what is

available in their part of the world . . . Rob
That is my opinion as well, but I'm curios why this doesn't denigrate the hard
working people that make websites that bring people drums online. the standards
don't seem to be the same. It's ok to say "Don't buy from a website" but not ok
to say "I avoid tweneboa djembes from Ghana". Why is that? Tim:
My fear is that we might

prevent a new drummer from grabbing hold of whatever they can and

joining in the rhythm . . .

Drum on!

TimRob:

A ghana djembe is certianly better than no djembe at all. As much as I
personally can't stand the sound of an 18" remo, I don't offer my opinion to
those that are playing one, unless asked. I prefer Ghana over giant Remo any
day. I hope this doesn't start an influx of "how could you attack the good
people at remo?" thread, but it might. So be it, this forum is about differing
opinions, after all. It's the only way to learn.
Rob Wandellprimalbeat.com
If two people agree on everything, one of them in unneccessary.











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