Ashiko

The ashiko is a drum, shaped like a tapered cylinder or truncated cone with the head on the wide end, and the narrow end open. It is made of hardwood and generally has a calfskin hide. Nowadays, goatskin is sometimes used, in imitation of the high sound of the popular djembe drum. It is played with the hands, and tuned by ropes. Ashiko drums – or variants thereof – are traditionally found in West Africa, as well as part of the Americas.