Percussion

Rhythm may be the oldest impulse in music, though most early percussion instruments were made from wood and hide and rarely survive. What has come through is telling: painted mammoth bones from Ukraine suggest percussive music as far back as 24,000 years ago, and every culture since has found its own way to drive a beat. The bodhrán, djembe, tabla, handpan, cajón: each arrived from a specific place and practice, shaped over generations. Frame drums from the Celtic tradition, djembes from West Africa, tablas from North India, handpans, tongue drums, Latin percussion, and the instruments that have driven rhythm in folk and traditional music for centuries.