Darbuka Lesson: Slaps (intermediate)

This tutorial teaches the technique I use for slaps. It’s a little different than how most players do it — my slap is designed to minimize hand and finger movement so it conserves your energy and allows you to play faster.

I resisted making this video for a long time because you really need to be able to hear a good slap, and I was afraid the microphone on my cell phone wouldn’t do an adequate job of capturing the differences between good and bad slaps. And nope, it didn’t. The transient (initial audio spike) of the slap is too fast for a cheap mic to capture, so you don’t hear the crack of a good slap the way you would hear it in the room, or listening to a recording from a quality mic. When you listen to good players, either live or in a decent recording, really LISTEN to how their slaps sound, and if you like what you hear, see if you can get your slaps to sound more like theirs!

***In the video I said that you should have your fingers together in the slap--I now wish I had put this point differently. It's okay if your fingers separate a little because they are relaxed. Mine often do! What I avoid is deliberately opening them, because that takes time and energy, and is unnecessary.