**Pottery Drums**

Hi!!!  Welcome to the 'Arts' page of the website.. This is a place where music and ceramics come together to create beautiful works of musical art.  Each piece that you see below is not only a functional drum but also a labor of love, created by Thomas Parker.   Feast your eyes and ears on the fantastic creations below. (sound may not yet be available.))

The drums shown below are "Talking Drums" These drums are originally from Africa and they are played under one arm with a curved stick in the other hand. The strings are squeezed together towards the body of the drum and this causes a raising or lowering of the pitch. This is also how the drums got their name. The constant pitch bending sounds as if the drum was 'Talking'.

The drums shown below are called,"UDU's"  Singular,"UDU"  They do not use a membrane head. Instead the sound is produced by hitting one of the openings with the palm of your hand. A water droplet type sound is produced. A lower pitch is made by striking the hole on the body of the drum and a higher pitch sound is produced by striking the hole at the top..))

The drums shown below are "Dumbeks".  Traditionally a middle eastern drum. They are characterized by a low "Boom" sound and also a high pitched "Tek"
sound when played near the rim. The heads are made from goatskin made from goats that lived good long lives and passed away due to natural causes.