Tonbak

Tonbak. Courtesy of Pooyesh.

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Name: - Tonbak. Also known as tombak. 

Class: Membranophone. 

Category: drum. 

Origin: Iran 

Instrument maker:  

Date:  20th century. 

Description: Iranian hourglass-shaped drum carved from solid mulberry wood. It is covered at the wide end by a membrane of lamb or goat skin. The technique of this instrument uses both hands and consists of rolling and snapping the fingers in various ways. The rich variety of tones and textures on this instrument allows the player to punctuate and ornament the melodic phrases as well as create rhythmical patterns. Tom and bak are onomatopoeias for two basic strokes, one low (tom) in the center, and one high (bak) on the side of the membrane.

Dimensions:

Museum or collection: Courtesy of Pooyesh. 

Photo credit: Courtesy of Pooyesh. 

Information Source: World Music Portal and Pooyesh.

Tonbak Web sites:

• Tonbak is a British-based site dedicated to the tonbak and has a listing and links to numerous Iranian tonbak players.

Last Updated Thursday, April 03 2003 @ 12:49 PM EST|4,409 Hits