Drawing percussion instruments; African drums (ngoma, isukuti); patterning (1.1, 17 lessons).
📖 5 min read · 3 worked examples · 5 practice questions
At the title up here — can anyone guess what makes an instrument a percussion instrument? Percussion instruments are instruments that make sound when you strike them, shake them, or scrape them. For example, drums, shakers, and bells are all percussion instruments. In Kenya, these instruments are very important in our traditional music and during celebrations like weddings and festivals. Drums like the ngoma and isukuti are used for dancing, storytelling, and bringing communities together. Let's get ready to learn about them! Here's what we've learned so far: percussion instruments make sound by being struck, shaken, or scraped. They are a big part of Kenyan music, and today we'll dive deeper into African drums. Great job, everyone!
Let's say hello to Ngoma and Isukuti! First, meet Ngoma. Ngoma is a big, barrel-shaped drum. People use it during important ceremonies and storytelling. Can you imagine beating a drum that big? The sound must be very deep and powerful! At Isukuti. Isukuti is smaller and has two heads — one on each side. It is played during festivals, especially the Isukuti dance. It makes a faster, livelier rhythm. Let's think: which drum would you use for a celebration dance? Both drums are often decorated with colourful patterns. The decorations tell stories or show the culture of the community. Ngoma and Isukuti are not just instruments — they are also pieces of art. Great job everyone! Next, we'll explore how these drums are made.
First, let's think about this question: What exactly is patterning in art? Patterning is when you repeat shapes, lines, or colours over and over to make a design. It's like a dance of the same thing happening again and again! Think of a stamp. You press it down, lift it up, and press it again — and each time it leaves the same mark. That's exactly what patterning does! At this drum. See those shapes? These are triangles — one, then another, then another. They are repeated all around the drum to make a pattern. Here's another pattern — the diamond pattern. See how the diamond shape keeps showing up? It gives the drum a beautiful, organized look. Here we have dot patterns. Just small dots, but when you repeat them in a line or circle, they become a lovely design. Kenyan drum makers are very clever with this. They use triangles, chevrons — those V-shaped lines — and dots to decorate their drums. Each pattern tells a story or makes the drum special. To wrap up: patterning is repeating shapes, lines, or colours to make a design. On drums, patterns can be symmetrical, meaning both sides look the same, or they can go all the way around. Great job everyone!
Great job, everyone! Today we covered a lot. Let's quickly recap what we learned. We explored two amazing Kenyan drums: ngoma and isukuti. We went step by step through drawing each one. We also saw how adding patterns makes our drums beautiful and unique. Most importantly, keep practicing your drawings and patterns at home! Remember, creativity comes with practice. See you next time!
Drawing our own Ngoma drum! Follow these steps. Step 1: Draw an oval in the center of your paper. This will be the body of the drum. Step 2: Add two curved lines at the top and bottom. This gives the drum its 3D shape. Step 3: Draw the drum head as a circle or oval on top. This is where the drum is played. Step 4: Add decorative patterns like zigzags, lines, or dots. Traditional patterns make it unique. You've drawn your own Ngoma drum. Try adding color to make it pop.
Everyone, let's put our drawing skills to the test. This is Worked Example 2, and we're going to draw an isukuti drum together, step by step. Here are our instructions. Step one: draw a long rectangle for the body of the drum. Think of it like the main tube — nice and long. I'll start right here with a rectangle. See how it stretches across? That's the body of our isukuti. Step two: add two circles at each end for the drum heads. The isukuti is a double-headed drum — it has a head on both sides. Let me draw one circle here at the top, and another at the bottom. Step three: connect the circles with straight lines to form the cylindrical body. I'll draw lines running from the top circle down to the bottom circle. This makes the drum look round and solid. There we go — our cylinder is starting to take shape. Step four: add ropes or straps, and pattern the drum with simple geometric shapes. The isukuti often has ropes running along the sides that help tighten the drum heads. I'll add some lines here to show those ropes. Finally, let's decorate the body with some patterns — triangles, zigzags, or even just dots. I'll add a few simple shapes to make the drum look traditional and beautiful.
By now, you are getting really good at this. This time, we are going to 'Create a Pattern on a Drum' — just like the beautiful patterns you see on traditional drums like the ngoma or isukuti. Watch this carefully. We are going to wrap a pattern all the way around a drum. Follow these three simple steps to design your own pattern. First, choose a base shape. The example here uses a zigzag line. Imagine drawing a zigzag that goes up and down all the way around the drum. A zigzag is just a 'V' shape repeated. Can you picture it? Step two is to repeat that zigzag shape at even intervals. That means each zigzag is the same distance apart — just like planting maize in a straight line with equal spacing. This makes the pattern neat and organized. Finally, step three — add a second row with a different shape. For this one, we add circles underneath the zigzags. This gives the pattern variety. Two different shapes working together make the drum look beautiful. To summarize: pick a shape, repeat it evenly, and then add a second shape in a new row. You have just created a repeating pattern on a drum. I'd like you to try designing your own pattern in your notebook.
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