The Atabaques are made using the traditional barrel construction method. Staves sawn into shape are joined together and glued by metal hoops. These barrel hoops give the drum body additional support. It is worth checking the fit of the metal rings from time to time and, if necessary, reattaching them firmly to the drum with a few hammer blows.
If the Atabaque has a tensioning system with tensioning hooks, it is advisable to use a little oil from time to time to maintain the smooth running of the nuts.
On atabaques with traditional string tension, the skin is tuned with the help of wooden wedges that are inserted under the belly of the drum between the drum body and a ring of round iron. If you strike the top of the wedges, the metal ring is pushed downwards and by stretching the ropes that connect the iron ring and the skin, the tension acting on the skin is increased. It has proven to be a good idea to tune "crosswise" with this type of tensioning, just as with the system with tensioning hooks, i.e. to work on the opposite wedge or tensioning hook before moving on to the neighbouring one.
After playing, the drum is released again. This increases the service life of the heads and the shell.
Goatskins are best suited for atabaques. Thin calfskins are an alternative.
You can play the atabaques with your hands. The technique is similar to that used for playing congas. In Brazil, the atabaques are played with this technique in capoeira, samba de roda, ijexá rhythm, umbanda and candomblé Angola.
In Candomblé Ketu, on the other hand, sticks are used to play the atabaques. Two thin, elasticated wooden sticks are used for the two accompanying drums. Alternatively, the plastic sticks commonly used for the repinique in samba reggae can be used. A slightly thicker, slightly elastic stick or a solid stick such as a timbales stick is used for the low drum.
In Afro-Brazilian ritual music, the atabaques follow a tripartite division in sound, size and skin diameter that is frequently found in Africa, Latin America and Brazil. Two drum parts take on accompanying functions, one drum has solo duties. This is always accompanied by an agogo, more rarely a rattle instrument such as the ganzá or shekeré.
In the Ijexá of the large Afoxé groups, the atabaque blends into the hypnotic overall sound of the agogos and shekerés, and provides a solid, earthy basus.
In capoeira, the atabaque, together with pandeiro and agogo, accompanies the rhythm of the berimbau.
The Samba de Roda in Bahia does not require a fixed set of instruments. It is played in different styles in a wide variety of formations, or simply on the instruments that are available at the time. In the hinterland of Bahia you can find samba rounds with one or more atabaques, but also without this traditional drum.
When playing the accompanying voices on Lê and Rumpi, the sticks do not hit the head with the tips, but flat in the upper third of the stick. This is the only way to achieve the desired sharp, slap-like sound. As the elasticated sticks have hardly any rebound, the entire movement must be actively controlled from the wrist and forearm. Various patterns of accompanying voices are played very quickly and enriched with 32nd notes. Playing these rhythms with the right swing requires a lot of practice.
The large solo drum Rum requires a different technique. The left hand, without the stick, plays filling strokes and a few accentuated strokes. The loudly audible solo phrasings are played with the stick in the right hand on the skin and shell of the atabaque. There is an open sound on the skin when the stick hits the centre of the skin with the tip, and a sharp slap when the stick is struck flat across the entire skin. Added to this is the dry, clacking sound of the stick on the drum body.
If you only play the atabaque with your hands, it is important to change your usual conga technique. As atabaques are fitted with thinner heads than congas and the head diameter is smaller than that of the congas, the open tones on the atabaque are played closer to the edge of the head. With the open tone, the edge of the skin runs close to the root of the finger. Slaps, on the other hand, are best performed with the relaxed hand positioned in the centre of the head. Bass notes sound much weaker on the atabaque than you are used to from congas.
