Members boosh Posted May 17, 2008 Members Share Posted May 17, 2008 Hiya Folks , I have a pair of these things : Is there a simple way to tune these things? I mean,...gimme a guitar and I tune it for ya in all kinds of tunings but what about Bongos? Are they supposed to be tuned in C and D? And if so,...how do I do that?? Booshy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members alfonso Posted May 17, 2008 Members Share Posted May 17, 2008 For what I know there are different possibilities. The most used are a major third or a fourth (more often) between them, the notes are depending from the size and the quality to get an optimal tension, you have to feel when the drum starts "singing". On how, to do this, it's plenty of specialized forums for latin percussions, I'm not an expert, sorry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nerol1st Posted May 17, 2008 Members Share Posted May 17, 2008 From the looks of it a simple wrench could tune those drums. I don't know the tuning though sorry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jimbroni Posted May 17, 2008 Members Share Posted May 17, 2008 The interval should be farther apart than a whole tone as you questioned. Will they be played with other percussion like congas, if so the scheme get slightly more intense? However, the small drum should be your root and tuned pretty high until it starts to sing you can do it by ear or you do it to a guitar or piano. The large drum should be tuned relative to the smaller drum by an octave, a fourth or a fifth lower. You could do a third, but that would be more common for a conga in a full out latin percussion set. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Lee Knight Posted May 17, 2008 Moderators Share Posted May 17, 2008 I've done it a few different ways but here's the one I like the best... Take the heads off and hang the bongos so you're letting the drums ring without muting it with your fingers. Tap the shell with a pencil, drum stick or your knuckles and listen. Try to hear a pitch. It won't be a distinct pitch but it will have one. Find that pitch on your guitar or piano and write it down. Repeat with the other drum. Put the heads back on and tune the drum to its natural resonance, the pitch you've just noted. Make sure all the lugs are at the same tension and pitch. I've also done this to toms on a kit before and they really sing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members boosh Posted May 17, 2008 Author Members Share Posted May 17, 2008 Take the heads off and hang the bongos Okay,....you lost me here already,...I'm a cook remember,..when I read things like that I think of rabbits.What are the heads of the bongos??? We are talking about instruments right ,..not some kind of animal?Please make sure you explain stuff to me in pidgeon english or patois,.. I'm not a native english speaker. Booshy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Lee Knight Posted May 17, 2008 Moderators Share Posted May 17, 2008 The skins? The membranes you strike... heads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members boosh Posted May 17, 2008 Author Members Share Posted May 17, 2008 The skins? The membranes you strike... heads. Okay,...but why do I need to take them off? I mean when i tune a guitar I don't take the strings off do I? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members boosh Posted May 17, 2008 Author Members Share Posted May 17, 2008 Okay nevermind,... I know what you mean,..I take the skin off and tap the freehanging drum to find the natural sound of each drum.....Then I put the skin back on and try to find that pitch,...Sorry ,..it's my own stupid fault I didn't understand! Thanks Lee! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Lee Knight Posted May 17, 2008 Moderators Share Posted May 17, 2008 You got it. And it's not really necessary to pull the heads but it's cool to find that resonant pitch. It can be as simple as tightening to the pitch you like. Tap the head just in front of each tightening lug and make sure they're all ringing at the same pitch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members boosh Posted May 17, 2008 Author Members Share Posted May 17, 2008 Okay,.....I just found this guy on YouTube,....I was just off to be,...Damn YouTube,..This is gonna be a long night,...http://www.youtube.com/user/bongorilao Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jimbroni Posted May 19, 2008 Members Share Posted May 19, 2008 You got it. And it's not really necessary to pull the heads but it's cool to find that resonant pitch. It can be as simple as tightening to the pitch you like. Tap the head just in front of each tightening lug and make sure they're all ringing at the same pitch I dunno. I would say probably not as far as tuning to resonance for both drums, although this is good general advice for tuning drums. This is common for regular drums, not bongos. Bongos and Congas typical have a musical theme that goes with the song they are played to, so you are tuning to notes and not resonance of the drum. That said, if you are just doing percussion you can tune the small drum to resonance, but you really should the larger drum based on a musical interval relative to the first. Like an octave or down a fourth or fifth. I feel like tearing the drums apart to find the resonance is good for information only. Its good for initial information to let you know where the note center are. Like I said, Bongos and Congas are supposed to be tuned musically, so it should be very convenient to tune these guys to variety of ways much like a guitar. We shouldn't making a mountain out of tuning Bongos cause that'd be discouraging. They should be tuned quite regularly and differently depending on taste and the song, so you can find the intervals you like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members boosh Posted May 19, 2008 Author Members Share Posted May 19, 2008 Thanks Jimbroni , I watched the videos on YouTube from that Bongoman and he explains it quite nice,.. I noticed that I have to adjust the things depending on what song I jam along with so I keep my wrench at hand Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Lee Knight Posted May 19, 2008 Moderators Share Posted May 19, 2008 I agree Jimbroni. I just wanted to pass on the resonance trick becasue it really can sound great. On Bongos too. DW drums put a mark on each shell letting you know the resonant pitch of that drum. You don't have to tune to that note and most times you might not want to. But if you do... the drum will siiiinnnnng. Like I said, with Bongos too. Having said all that, yeah, just tune to where you want to hear them... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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