ŌTSUZUMI: Japanese musical instrument
http://worldhitz4u.blogspot.com/2014/03/otsuzumi-japanese-musical-instrument.html?m=0
The Ōtsuzumi is also
called ōkawa. The
musical instrument is an hourglass-shaped drum from Japan. This instrument is a
larger version of the tsuzumi and is used in the Japanese traditional folk
music and theater music. The appearance and the sound the musical instrument
gives out are somewhat different than that of the tsuzumi. The tsuzumi is
smaller and has more decorated drum head. The ōkawa is larger, and the head of the instrument takes plainer,
leathery appearance. The sound is also higher in pitch and sharper in pitch,
resembling more of a pop than the tsuzumi’s ‘pon’ sound. The hourglass
structure of this musical instrument is somewhat bigger and the heads of the
musical instrument are stretched very tightly. This musical instrument is played
on the player’s side, perhaps because of the larger size and the heavy size of
the musical instrument, while the tsuzumi is played upon the shoulder of the
player.
The care of the drum heads of this musical instrument is
irregular in that the heads of the instrument must be kept dry at all time. In contrast,
the heads of the smaller tsuzumi must always be wet. Since the sound of the ōkawa is meant to be higher in pitch,
the player of the musical instrument must make sure that the skin of the
instrument’s head remains restrained, and this can be gained when the head of
the instrument is kept dry. To keep the head of the musical instrument dry,
they are usually kept near a sort of old patter of Japanese furnace known as hibachi.
When the player of the musical instrument is ready to perform, he takes the
drum heads and binds them to the body of the instrument firmly.
Like the tsuzumi, the ōkawa,
is as well struck by the bare hands of the player, as the drum heads are taut
very firmly, the usually hurts to play the instrument, and the player of the
musical instrument must cultivate hard skin on his finger to play the
instrument comfortably. The player of the musical instrument must take care of
his hard skin, shaving them off with the use of a knife from time to time
before they grow so big.
