Congas for a Piano Player

[R A Miller]

Hello to all. This forum is a great resource.

I'm learning Afro-Cuban style piano. Rebeca Mauleon recommends in "101 Montunos" that the aspiring Afro-Cuban pianist learn the basics of playing a percussion instrument. Well, I'd like to learn to play the congas.

I've searched the forums here and learned that I should avoid the beginner conga sets and should purchase quality drums in standard sizes. I've decided that I prefer wood to fiberglass.

The LP Matador, Meinl Marathon Exclusive and Pearl Elite all sell for approximately the same amount. Is one of these drums a better value than the others? What about the heads? Any one preferable to the others?

I'm leaning towards the Pearl. Based purely on aesthetics, I prefer the colors that Pearl has available. The Pearl is 28" tall and the other two are 30" tall. I would like to fabricate something like the Pearl Reso-Plate to place the congas on for stability on the carpeted floors in my home. This would raise the Pearl to a good height for me for seated playing.

Thanks in advance.

Rick

[franc]

hola rick,
welcome!!! you are like me . i play congas seated. i have a wood panel to seat the congas on. yes, you can make your own reso-plate or order it through pearl percussion. all the names you mentioned of congas manufactures are fine!!! i recomend ''matador'' by l.p. the heads of the ''matador'' are not that great or produce great sound. i recomend ''remo nuskyn synthethic head'' at least for the conga. for the tumba you can get the same or ''rawhide''.then you are going to have a great pair of congas!!! both are great for the tumba. my best and saludos franc

[Isaac]

Welcome aboard Rick,
I always keep some wood plates in my trunk for gigs
where there's a carpeting. You needn't spend much or
anything at all. Your local lumber yard will have plenty of thin
sheets that are leftover pieces and cuttings about to be tossed. I got some 1/4" mahogany planks. They'll even cut them to a manageable size for a few $. They don't have to be round, In fact larger rectangles will give more stability to your drum, and prevent it from slipping off a smaller round shape.

Isaac, Percussionist / Rep. JCR Percussion Co.
funkytradition@yahoo.com

[Raymond]

Rick,

Welcome to the forum! Great alternatives, and ideas, about the equipment you will be getting. My five cents here...go with the Pearl Elites...They come with better factory heads and above all are good value. (Meinl's Marathons and Matadors are good but are not the "top" regarding heads and/or hardware. Pearl Elite and Pearl Primero's Pro hardware and construction are tops, comparable, to the other brands top congas which are pricier I think you will liked the "polished steel" of Pearl instead of chrome).

Saludos!



Edited By Raymond on 1122125544

[R A Miller]

franc, Isaac and Raymond. Thanks so much for your responses.

I've decided to go with Pearl. Raymond, I hadn't noticed the difference in hardware. I do prefer the polished steel to the chrome plated hardware.

Isaac, thanks for pointing out that a rectangular shape plate will provide better stability than a round one. I have some scrap plywood that will work great for this purpose. What size plates do you use? Do you have one plate for each drum?

Thanks again!

Rick

[Isaac]

Hi Rick, I have two 1/4 thick planks of mahogany plywood
I got from the scrap heap at a big lumber yard.
They're apx. 14" x 22", I piece them together
and have my own wooden floor, I take with me to gigs.
If the stage is carpeted I go back to my car and get them.
I even use them if I'm playing with stands, because they
reinforce my sound.
My fellow musicians are always curiously asking about my
floor setup. I tell them " I've always wanted to be
the floor manager".
~ ISAAC

[Berimbau]

Dear Issac,
Back when I was growing up in Brooklyn, a common joke in the bars was that if a fight broke out, always stand behind the conguero as he would be the toughest guy in the joint!! So glad that you went out to a scrap heap for your "reso plates" instead of buying one of those God-awful yuppie conga coasters that Pearl passes off to girlie men wannabe congueros!!! Mine are the "Jerry Gonzalez" model, boosted from a construction site in the Bronx. In bar fight they also make for a handy weapon. Just leave those edges nice and rough. Anyone remember the old combination conga wrench/bottle opener, getting stabbed by your girlfriend or playing so hard you pissed blood? Now those were the good old days!!



Just Waiting for the Outraged Replies,



Berimbau

[Diceman]

Berimbau,

Wood is good, but I think Jonny Conga mentioned in another post that those round hard compound waiters trays work very well, but are only good for defence rather than attack. I think waiters are getting wise to congueros so they are getting more difficult to 'acquire'.
Apocryphal or not, but can anyone ever say that they have ever pissed blood playing congas? Probably the odd split finger but waterworks hmmmmmm.
However, I do have a combination bottle opener/wrench, it came with a pair of Meinls. Sold the Meinls but kept the wrench-bargain!!

Diceman

[Berimbau]

Well Diceman........................................................
..................................................................You're allright!!!!
Now those waiter's trays sound great, but remember they are NOT the Jerry Gonzalez signature series unless they are, what did you say, "acquired." God I just love those British euphanisms!! Anyway, the blood piss only happens after LOTS of very SERIOUS gigging or a really BAD social club fight. Really not at all since I "acquired" a nice set of condenser mics and the NY cops have long since closed those places down. Can you even find a cockfight in NYC in 2005? The stabbing girlfriend is long gone and really about as missed as the red pee. But the NYC scene in the 1970's was just the BEST!!


Saludos,



Berimbau

[Diceman]

I guess I did get the red piss syndrome as a result of conga playing, after getting hit on by an 'admirer' who left me with pyrotechnic piss, needing a long course of antibiotics.

Just got the Jerry Gonzales signature reference, where does that come from?
The 70s was good on the other side of the Pond too, I think!!

Sabor
Diceman

[Berimbau]

Well...........The 70's were great except a few "hit 'n' run dates that landed me at the doctor's office for rabies shots. Why the Jerry Gonzalez signature series? Because he is the REAL DEAL Nu Yorican conguero, and not some makeup-wearing New Age California fruit basket plastic drum tapper!!! In a bar fight he'd have your back.


Saludos,



Berimbau

[Berimbau]

Well...........The 70's were great except a few "hit 'n' run dates that landed me at the doctor's office for rabies shots. Why the Jerry Gonzalez signature series? Because he is the REAL DEAL Nu Yorican conguero, and not some makeup-wearing New Age California fruit basket plastic drum tapper!!! In a bar fight he'd have your back.


Saludos,



Berimbau

[Igor]

Congas after piano/keyboards - crazy but true. Learn congas for more percussive aproach (if you like it) on the keys !! I switched three months ago (after 25 years of piano / keyb.) to bongos/congas & misc. perc. and I´m very happy. Many hard working hours are yet to come, but my child dreams went through.
My gear: Meinl Marathon classic quinto and conga (on stand) playing seated on high position (ex piano) bench, matador bongos on TMB Meinl stand ( stand are dancing around while macho slaping !? - not so good) and some hand percuusion.

Genre: jazzy pop, funk, fusion ( I like "Weather Report" perc. aproach very much)

Life is rhytm, listen to yourself !

Ps. I´m very satisfied with community and content on this forum !

Many regards from Slovenia, Europe,

Igor

[SkinDeep]

I HAVE TO AGREE WITH BERIMBAU. THE BLOOD THING IS REAL, ONE REASON IS THAT BLOOD VESSELS IN YOUR HAND ARE SURE VICTIMS OF SLAPS AND TUMBAOS..SUAVE