The Cajon

The cajon is an Afro-Peruvan musical instrument originating from the early 1800’s. They were invented by slaves, who were not allowed to have musical instruments at work. The instrument does not look like a musical instrument at all; the construction is even more straightforward than a regular drum. It is a wooden box, with thick wood on five sides and a thinner sheet of plywood as the striking surface (thinner pieces of wood will resonate more easily). Despite its simplicity, the cajon is very versatile. Most cajons have a snare mechanism inside, some have a nylon string, others a steel bass string and there’s plenty of alternatives. The cajon resembles a djembe when it comes to playing: strike it dead-center and you will hear a bass tone. Strike near the edges and you will hear a higher tone. Of course, the sound is from another world and a cajon feels very different from a djembe.

From a drummer’s perspective, I think the cajon is a wonderful instrument for its portability, simplicity and relatively low volume, making it an ideal instrument for acoustic gigs. The versatility of the cajon enables it to be played as if it were a drum kit, the sound you get depends on where you strike. Strike dead center and you will have a bass drum sound. Strike near the edge and you will have a sharp snare drum sound. Strike anywhere in between… well you do the math. To get started with the cajon, I grabbed an old book I used to learn to play drums; there’s a Latin rhythm section in that book. Using the “bass” and “snare” sounds the cajon has to offer, it’s pretty easy to get a basic rhythm going. I tend to play the bass with my right hand and the snare with my left, but of course this varies as I vary the rhythm. Some will play hand-to-hand, which is good too. Something to keep in mind is to play flams where a bass and a snare note coincide; striking the cajon with both hands simultaneously is likely to kill the sound. If you’re too lazy to bend forward and play it with your hands, you can use mallets. Don’t use hard sticks; you will damage the front plate.

I am in the process of acquiring my own cajon, I intend to use it in a jazzband. Add some other hand percussion, like a shaker and / or a beat ring, and you have all you need. The beat ring can even be placed on the floor and played by tapping it with your foot. And you can use one hand for the shaker and the other for the cajon. This will take some practice but it’s gonna sound awesome and be a real eye-catcher.

~ by bigphil1004 on March 27, 2008.