The asafo drum is an open single-headed conical drum made of one single
piece of wood. The membrane is fastened and tightened with ropes that are
attached to 7 or 8 conical pegs.
The drum is approximately 100 cm in height and has a diameter of 25 to
30 cm at the top and 20 cm at the bottom; in the middle the drum widens to a
diameter of 40 cm. Besides zoomorphic designs such as a snake biting a frog,
a long-horn antelope, a porcupine and the sankofa bird, the drums are also
decorated with anthropomorphic elements such as two cone-shaped breasts
- symbolizing the female fertility cycle - and an akan chair is
also sometimes added.
In the literature, Andreas Meyer, (Afrikanische Trommeln 1997 pp. 68
– 70) refers to this drum as the ntan drum.
The asafo drummer beats the drum alternately with a wooden stick and the palm of his hand. This drum has a loud bass tone with a long echo. It is highly suited to accompanying dances such as the ompeh dance.
© RMCA/Dominik PHYFFEROEN