conga sound

[pcastag]

With all of the discussion about drums and sound and the indian not the arrow arguments I found myself questioning the difference in mass produced w/ plastic skin v traditional with cow or mule. Anyways pedrito is one of my favorites , figured I'd post a couple of videos of some awesome drummers playing on distinctly differnt drums, the playing is obviously awesome on both clips, but I tend to find myself gravitating toward a certain sound more than another, particularly in a drums only setting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7oC-j8wX ... re=channel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCgHIAiScOk

Second clip has been corrected.

PC

[jorge]

Pcstag, those links both give me the same clip, although that particular clip is one of the most unbelievable demonstrations of musicianship I have ever seen. Pedrito and Mauricio both know how to get great sound out of plastic skins, but that is a compromise they make for gigging convenience. They can get even much better sound out of real cuero.

. Sure, they do start out playing bata rhythms but the rhythms are modified, mixed together in nontraditional and creative ways and transposed for 6 congas. After the first minute or so, they go into a different rhythm using the same bata "one voice" concept but more rumba-based than bata-based, with a lot of melodic improvisations. Their improvisations are unbelievably tight, always in time, and always in clave, although they often turn the clave around in very imaginative ways I for one have never heard or even thought of. Then at 4:20 they go into the longest, most amazing break I have ever heard, over 2 minutes long, all in clave if you can hear it. Try playing even simple improvisations while holding clave with your foot and playing just a simple guaguanco pattern as a base. Not as easy as it looks. In spite of the complexity of what they play here, they can both play with as much afinque y sabor as anyone else I have heard from NY, Puerto Rico or Cuba. These guys are light years ahead of the New York salsa and rumba scene.

[congamyk]

PC - thanks for the idea and videos.


IMO Pedrito is easily the best all-around player/singer/band leader on conga drums and conga rhythms in the world. No one is as versatile, diverse and provoking. NO ONE can sing and play (simultaneously) like him - no one. As for Brazil, and other styles Pedrito would own them too if he wanted (and maybe already does).

[niallgregory]

Who gives a shit whether hes playing bata rhythms on congas ? Whats the point in getting stressed over it . Some people love the clip others obviously have an issue with whats being played on it but why the need to start a confrontation , which by the way seems to be coming from the same people these days . And thats exactly what i mean when referring to pedro being the best all rounder out there , he is after all a Cuban percussionist who specializes in Afro Cuban percussion . His versatility in all cuban styles blows me away . An amazing conga player and vocalist , a superb timbalero etc etc , and by all accounts a great dancer . For me the guy has it ALL when it comes to afro cuban music .But then thats just my opinion .

[JohnnyConga]

I second that emotion!....JC

[pcastag]

OOOPS!, the point of this clip was to compare the sound of the two sets of distinctly produced congas, played by experts. This was supposed to be the second clip, something all of us have probably seen before.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCgHIAiScOk


Pedrito would sound good on anything, even on a door as they sometimes play in Cuba, or on a desk as is the norm in American classrooms! Anyways in a drums only setting my point was that to me the cuban drums with animal skins sond much better to me than the LP drums with the plastic skins, regardless of the quality of the player. Anybody can jam on anything, like I said previously the spirit is ultimately what is conveyed, but a quality instrument makes it so mouch more enjoyable for both the listener and the player IMHO.
PC

[vasikgreif]

pcastag:
To keep track on the topic, I always prefer the sound of traditional skin over plastic skins, but I naturally agree that the player is the most important factor.

Pedrito is, without discussion, unbelievable musician, and one of the bests AfroCuban music oriented performers out there.

[vasikgreif]

Leedy:
PM sent, as this kind of discussion doesn't have anything to do with the topic or music in general...

[roberthelpus]

While I agree that I like wood and skins better than plastic, this is not a fair comparison. Two different videos, taken in two different places, with one looking like it was taken inside and the other on what looks to be a partially open air porch. Completely different recording systems with no real attempt by the engineers to avoid audio coloration, and if you really wanted to compare the drums alone you would have the same players playing the same thing.. What are we comparing here?

I've seen some great players get some good sounds out of plastic heads. There are some folks around here that I respect and dig that go with the synthetics to deal with tuning changes and I would not say a word against it. One of the main things that I have against synthetic heads is that I hate the way they feel when I play them. I swear that when they get warm they actually feel slimy or greasy.Feel is very important to me. I've had drum kit players, and others, ask me if I ever wanted to play kit and I always answer by saying, why would I want to give up that direct connection and feel of playing congas and bongos to hit things with sticks. The fact that every sound you make has to shaped by your hands in such a personal way.

[pcastag]

This thread has been hijacked by ridiculously argumentative behavior. Having studied bata in cuba and having hung out with Skip barney and members of puntillas group quite a bit I certainly knew that the rhythms were adaptations of bata. Regardless the point was to compare the sounds of two distinctly constructed drums in the hands of some master players in a drums only setting. I din't feel attacked by cuco's response, and I think I misdirected the discussion of the thread by posting the same video twice accidentaly rather than the two I wanted to compare.

[pcastag]

While I agree that I like wood and skins better than plastic, this is not a fair comparison. Two different videos, taken in two different places, with one looking like it was taken inside and the other on what looks to be a partially open air porch. Completely different recording systems with no real attempt by the engineers to avoid audio coloration, and if you really wanted to compare the drums alone you would have the same players playing the same thing.. What are we comparing here?.

I have to disagree with your assessment of the recordings and their value in terms of sound distinction. Yes , obviously the best way to record and compare two distinct sets of drums would be to have the same drummer play the same rhythms with the same recording techniques. However I feel that there is enough distinction in these two recordings to notice a remarked difference in the sound that is most likely due to the drums construction and head materials.
PC

[ABAKUA]

Keep it on track guys...

& Pls remember to play nice or I'll take your toys away... & Im sure we dont want that.