Sticks, Two-Drum Setups, Doholla and Riq
Playing with a stick, two-drum setups, the doholla, crossing over to riq and frame drum, and standing up with a strap.
12 questions answered
ADV-093 Do people really play darbuka with sticks? #
Yes — in Turkish folk and Balkan traditions, Bulgarian and Macedonian among them. The usual approach taps with the fingers of one hand while the other plays a thin stick, sometimes called a çubuk. It gives you a bright, cutting sound that carries outdoors and at weddings. Bear in mind it’s a regional style, not a replacement for hand technique.
ADV-094 How do I start playing darbuka with a stick? #
Use a light, thin stick and keep that hand relaxed, letting the stick rebound like a snare stroke. Give the stick the high and rim strokes while your other hand plays the Doums and the fills. Start with simple Balkan or Turkish folk patterns you already know by hand. For the feel and the placement, go to Balkan recordings or a teacher in that tradition — it doesn’t come off the page.
ADV-095 Why would a percussionist play two darbukas at once? #
For the range. A pair, often a standard darbuka plus a larger bass doholla, covers far more pitch: the small drum takes the fast rolls and crisp high tones while the doholla anchors the bottom end. Some players deliberately tune the drums to different pitches so they can play melodic-sounding phrases between them. You’ll see it in ensembles and in advanced solo setups.
ADV-096 How do I physically set up two drums? #
Put one drum on a darbuka stand (adjustable-height stands exist for both seated and standing play) and hold the other on your lap or under your arm, or mount both on stands. The key thing is position: you should be able to reach both edges without shifting your body. Tune them to contrasting pitches. Then start with simple call-and-response between the two drums long before you attempt fast cross-drum rolls.
ADV-097 What’s the doholla and do its techniques differ? #
The doholla is a large bass darbuka, typically around a 30 cm head or bigger, usually played on the lap. Its job is the ensemble’s low end, with deep Doums. That bigger head changes how rolls and finger work feel, so you’ll need to adapt your strokes and your dynamics. Mısırlı Ahmet is noted for developing his own technique on the deholla as well. Know what you’re doing on a darbuka first, though, before you venture into the doholla world.
ADV-098 If I play darbuka, how hard is it to pick up the riq? #
The stroke names carry straight over (Doum, Tek, Ka), but the riq brings a whole second skill set with it: jingle technique. That means shaking, tremolo, thumb rolls, direct jingle accents and damping. And because the riq head is small, the gap between the Doum and Tek zones is subtle, so your hand placement has to be precise. Many players say a darbuka sounds good inside the first hour, while the riq takes weeks before the strokes separate cleanly.
ADV-099 Do darbuka skills transfer to frame drum, and vice versa? #
Partly. Finger independence, rolls and a feel for Doum/Tek phrasing all carry across, and the pitch bending and all-finger rolls that frame drummers use can genuinely enrich your darbuka playing. Split-hand technique itself was influenced by tabla, and frame and kanjira players use it too. But the grip, head size and resonance are all different, so expect to relearn tone production on each instrument.
ADV-100 Can I combine darbuka with other percussion in a solo setup? #
Yes. Performers add a riq, a frame drum or finger cymbals (sagat) to their setups all the time, and in belly-dance ensembles the darbuka is usually sitting alongside riq, frame drums and sagat anyway. If you’re doing it all yourself, keep the darbuka as the main voice and use the rest for colour or for specific sections. Otherwise the texture turns to mud.
ADV-101 Is the doholla or two-drum setup something to buy before mastering one drum? #
No. The doholla is a second drum, for ensemble or advanced use — plenty of sources say the same, and it isn’t a first purchase. Get solid on one darbuka first. That extra range is no use to you until your technique can actually reach for it.
ADV-139 Should I play standing with a strap for gigs? #
Plenty of performers do, for weddings, processions and roaming dance gigs. Most advice says wait until you’re a solid intermediate player, and there’s a reason: the drum moves while you play, so you’re adapting your strokes on the fly. The alternative is tucking the drum under your off-hand arm, against your side. Either way, practise your solo material standing up before the gig — rolls and snaps feel different when you’re on your feet.
ADV-140 Does sitting sideways versus holding the drum upright change the sound? #
Yes. A mycongaplace poster noted that playing upright, with the drum’s mouth near the floor, can give you more volume, because the sound reflects back off the floor. Sitting near a wall does something similar when you play sideways. And the room itself matters: soft furniture and heavy curtains soak up your bass, so judge your tone in a room with hard surfaces before you blame the drum.
ADV-141 Can I add a kick pedal or cajon to my darbuka setup? #
You can. Cajon kick pedals turn a cajon into a bass drum played with the foot, and some percussionists build whole hybrid setups around one, with a darbuka or frame drum on top. It works well in acoustic and fusion settings. Keep the darbuka as the lead voice, and build the hand-foot independence slowly — it’s the same job as drum-kit coordination.