Latin Percussion Instruments

Agogo

Yoruba word for bell. They are liturgical bells to evoke the saints in the worship of the Yoruba.

Bass Drum

The bass drum is a membranophone percussion musical instrument, with a very low timbre but with an indeterminate tone. Because of its low-pitched sound, it is commonly used to mark and maintain a pulse.

Block High

It consists of a small block of hardwood or plastic, flat and rectangular, and emptied along a half centimeter on the side, towards the top. This slot serves as a sounding board. This instrument is struck by a hard stick, made of wood or rubber, in the middle or on the edge above the opening.

Block Low

Large and low tone version of the Block

Block Wood

Traditional wooden block

Bongo

The bongos, an instrument of Latin American origin, consist of a pair of small drums with a very high and brilliant sound, and that do not have a metal ring that protrudes over the edge of the patches. Originally they were played with the hands, placing them between the knees of the percussionist, who shows off virtuosity according to the part of the patch where he strikes. However, in contemporary music it is more common to strike this instrument with felt or wooden sticks, placing them on a fixed tripod.

Bongo Fiber High

High tone fiber bongo

Bongo Fiber Low

Low tone fiber bongo

Bongo Low

Low wood bongo

Cabasa

Of Brazilian origin, the cabasa is an essential instrument in the interpretation of the sambas. It is a pumpkin surrounded by a necklace of small pearls or small balls in the shape of a net. When shaking the instrument, this necklace collides with the surface of the pumpkin, producing a particular click.

Caixixi

The caxixi consists of a closed basket with a flat bottom filled with seeds or other small particles.

Cajon

The cajón is a musical instrument of Peruvian origin that has become popular throughout the world thanks to new flamenco, modern jazz and Afro-Latin-Caribbean music. There are documented data on the existence of the cajón in Peru since the middle of the 19th century.

Castanets

The castanets are a percussion instrument representative of Spanish flamenco music, which presents a distinctive sound of any other instrument and which together with the classical or flamenco Spanish guitar are part of Spanish folklore and culture.

Clave High

Small percussion instrument made up of a pair of cylindrical sticks made of solid wood. Its diameter is approximately 2 centimeters by a length of 25 cm. Also called a clave is the instrumentalist who performs it. The sound is produced by impacting one on the other.

ClaveLow

The black slaves who were transported from Africa were the ones who introduced this instrument, which at that time was simply made up of the spoons with which they ate, clashed inside out.

Low tone clave

Conga Fiber High

Hight tone fiber conga

Conga Fiber Low

Low tone fiber conga

Conga Low

Low tone conga

Conga Medium

An instrument of Latin American origin also known as a tumbadora. They consist of 1, 2 or more drums with a top patch and a special wood soundboard, with an elongated body. The congas could have their historical predecessor in the European atabales of the Middle Ages. Like the bongos and timbaletas, they are instruments that have been gradually incorporated into the symphony orchestra, coming from the popular music and Latin American dance groups.

Conga Quinto 1

High tone wood conga

Conga Quinto 2

Conga Wood High

High tone wood conga

Conga Wood Low 2

Low tone wood conga

Cowbell Large

The Bell or Cencerro is a percussion instrument that is normally made of metal like the Bells. The bell is one of the instruments that cannot be missing in any set of any percussionist as it is widely used for any musical style, but especially for Latin music. It is of African origin. Two sounds of different heights can be obtained, a low one if played near the mouth, and a high one if it is struck in the closed part.

Cowbell Medium

Mid-tone cowbell

Cowbell Small

High-tone cowbell

Djembe Mallet

The djembe, of African origin, is a wooden drum in the shape of a glass and goatskin, currently stretched by a system of ropes and iron rings. Because of its ability to bring people together and foster joy and a sense of unity within the group, it is known as the healing drum.

Gourd Cabasa

The cabasa is built with steel ball rings in the form of chains, which wrap around a thick cylinder. It's a hollow, closed body. Inside, there are metallic rattles that, when the instrument is shaken in the air or struck by hand, collide with each other or with the wall of the cabasa and produce sound. The cylinder is attached to a long, thin wooden or plastic or metal handlebar.

Guiro

The güiro is a musical instrument that plays the traditional music of some South American countries, such as the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico or Cuba, although it is also played in other places. It is made with a hollowed out pumpkin that has its shell carved in parallel grooves on its surface. It is held with the thumb of the left hand, which fits into an opening behind it and also serves to give it a more intense sound. The right hand picks up a kind of fork with many spikes and scrapes it against the grooves of the shell. Normally, it is played by the singer and requires long, short sounds, played with long, short strokes in both directions, up and down. It is also known as pumpkin, guayo, and scraper.

Guiro B

Guiro Large

Guiro grande de tono grave

Guiro Large 2

Guiro grande de tono grave

Guiro Mini

Guiro pequeño de tono agudo

Hand Claps

Palmas

Hand Clap

Palma

Maracas

The maraca originally consisted of a small, dry, hollow pumpkin in which a few seeds of the pumpkin itself were introduced, which sounded when the instrument was shaken or shaken by means of a handle. Today, pumpkins and their seeds are no longer used, but other materials of varying quality are used. In dance music, the percussionist usually uses an equal pair of maracas, one in each hand. But in contemporary music, a more serious and a more acute one is usually used. In addition to shaking the instrument, you can hit it with your fingers either directly or with a mute. A possible variant of the maracas is the tube, although its technique is different. Although today they can be made of synthetic material or leather, the original maracas were built with the fruit of a tree called güira that grows in some areas of America.

Pandeiro

Membrane percussion instrument, of Indian or Arabic origin, made of a goatskin patch and a wooden ring. It was introduced in Brazil by the Portuguese, who used it to accompany religious processions

Shaker

Also known as a sacudidor, in its essence is a cylinder filled with small elements that when shaking the body collide with each other and produce the sound. Currently there are several types that affect their aesthetics and sound: square shapes, with tambourine inside, with tone change.

Shaker Egg

Small egg-shaped Shaker

Shaker Light

High tone Shaker

Shekere Big

Originally from Africa, the shekere is a percussion instrument consisting of a dry, hollow pumpkin, covered with a net of beads (stones, snails, etc.). It is used in religious rituals, but also in popular dance music and Cuban jazz. This instrument comes to Cuba through the African slaves brought by force to Cuban soil. Of course, they had to rework it, using the materials that existed in our country... so the Cuban shekere is slightly different from the African one. Through many years of oral transmission of the art of its manufacture, and the way it was played, he also became infected with the rhythms of the greatest of the Antilles.

Shekere Big 2

Shekere Medium

Mid Tone Shekere

Shekere Small

Small Tone Shekere

Sticks

Beating of sticks or sticks

Tambourine

The tambourine is a percussion instrument belonging to the group of frame drums. It is touched by sliding one or more fingers over it or by hitting it with them or with the whole hand. Sometimes it hits other parts of the body, as in the Fantasía de Pandereta typical of the tuna: while the tambourine handler dances, he plays with it, beating it with different parts of his body, maintaining the rhythm of the song, showing a great sense of musical rhythm as well as his skill when playing the instrument.

Timbale High

The timbales or pailas are a percussion instrument of Cuban origin. Together with congas and bongo they form the core of the main percussion instruments of salsa, songo, timba, bolero and other Caribbean rhythms. It consists of two metal drums, barrel type, which are called pailas. In the beginning the pailas were made of iron and copper, but today they are made of stainless steel, brass or bronze. Its sound has a lot of brightness when struck with the baque - ta on the edges of the hoop.

Timbale Low

Large low-pitched timbale