The drum
(the “Stump”)
Drums played an important role in the musical life
of ancient lithuanians. They were festive, ritual and
military instruments. More than once they were mentioned
in the old writings of the Lithuanian historians, their
popularity was witnessed by the folklore – songs, legends.
Two kinds of drums were popular with the people – single-headed
drums and double-headed drums.
Eventually several ethnographical variants of ehese
instrument had developed.
One of them, popular in Samogitia, was called the “stumo”.
The barrel of this drum was made of a sound or rotten
piece of wood, mostly from a stump. If a sound piece
of wood was taken, it was hollowed out leaving 2 – 3
cm. thick wall. But most often for making “stumps” rotten
trunks of willow, linden and sometimes birch were used.
Both open ends were evenly cut and the thin end was
covered with dog or goat skin, scraped but uncured,
which was fastened to it with a hoop. The “stump” was
30 – 40 cm. high and 40 – 30 cm. in diameter. The “stump”
was put on the ground at the player’s feet and beaten
with one or two wooden drum sticks about 30 cm. long
the end of which was covered with felt of cattle hair
or tigthly wrapped in rough woolen cloth.
|