West African Drumming – Percussion Buddies – 5 Set

The hand percussion instruments in our West African Drumming Buddies packs are made from natural materials by artisans working together in small groups.

Agogo Natural

This is a natural version of the classic metal agogo bells and it uses two differently sized coconut seed husks as the resonators. The husks have an opening cut in one end, to allow them to be glued to the wooden handle. We use a mix of very strong epoxy glue and sawdust for a strong and air-tight joint and then sand the outside down so that it’s safe and comfortable to play. The natural materials produce a much mellower sound than the metal version and it makes it possible to play for much longer without getting stressed!

Seseh and Beaded Shakers

The resonator is a coconut shell that has had a small hole cut in one end to receive the end of the wooden handle, which is glued into place with strong epoxy glue. The beads on these shakers are mounted externally on a string or metal netting and the sound is produced by the beads knocking or scraping against the coconut shell. The seseh shaker beads are made from seeds from the seseh palm; those on the beaded shaker are bevelled glass.

Caxixi Basket Shaker

The body of the caxixi shaker is woven from natural rattan and is filled with glass beads. A piece of hard coconut shell is woven into the base of the shaker and this enables the instrument to produce two different tones: a soft shushing sound when the beads are shaken against the rattan walls and a louder and brighter sound, when the basket is turned and the beads shake against the coconut base.

Hand percussion instruments tend to need very little maintenance, and if you treat them with reasonable care they’ll last for years.

Beaded Shaker and Seseh Shaker

Both these shakers are made from coconut shells, which are strong but brittle and they may crack if dropped on or knocked against a hard surface. So just be careful and it’s a good idea to wrap them in bubblewrap or a soft wrapping when storing them with other instruments.

If the handles get dirty or sticky, just wipe down with a damp cloth. Using a little detergent, disinfectant or surface cleaner won’t do any harm! If the netting carrying the seseh seeds works loose, you can use a short length of string to pull it tighter around the coconut shell.

Agogo Natural and Agogo Bells

Nothing much to go wrong here – as with the shakers, just wipe down with a damp cloth from time to time. Using a little detergent, disinfectant or surface cleaner won’t do any harm. It’s worth checking the metal bells occasionally, to make sure no sharp edges develop inside or out.

Caxixi Basket Shaker

If the rattan basket dries out it may become brittle and break, so it’s a good idea to wipe it down with a lightly oiled cloth once in a while. Light vegetable oil is fine, or pretty well any kind of polish. The other thing to check from time to time is that gaps don’t appear in the weave – and if they do, just ease them closed by squeezing the horizontal rows of rattan together with your fingertips.

We use the best quality materials and traditional manufacturing methods to make our West African Drumming instruments and accessories and they’re designed for serious, long term use in the classroom. Looked after properly the instruments will give many years of satisfaction, even if used several times a day and the materials and workmanship are guaranteed as follows:

Djembe and other drum shells – 10 years. But keep at a stable temperature and humidity and don’t let the shells get damp or wet. Don’t leave in direct sunlight or near a heat source as this can cause the wood to dry out and crack. Although they’re naturally tough, handle with respect and don’t drop them or throw them about as rough treatment can also cause cracks to appear.

Drum skins -5 years. But keep hard or sharp points (including rings and other jewellery) away from drum skins at all times. Keep skins dry and don’t leave in direct sunlight or near a heat source as this can cause the skin to dry out and split. If you need to tighten the drum skins, be sure not to over do it as over-tightening can also cause skins to split.

Hand percussion instruments – 1 year. But treat with care and don’t drop them or handle roughly as natural materials are not as strong as plastics and may crack or break, particularly if dropped on a hard surface.

Storage/carry bags and accessories – 2 years. But keep bags away from sharp points and don’t over-fill them or force the zips.

If you should get any problems with any of our African Drumming instruments or accessories, please take photos of the issues and email them to us with the order/invoice number and a brief description of how the problem arose and we’ll get back to you right away.

We work with a small number of specialist logistic companies to deliver your order quickly and economically. The delivery method varies, depending on your location and the size of the order, as follows:

UK Locations

Orders up to 5kg – Courier 2 to 3 working day delivery. This would typically include books, smaller instruments, percussion baskets and djembes up to 40cm.

Orders over 5kg – Courier, next working day delivery. Most orders are sent this way.

Large orders – Pallet service, 3 to 5 working day delivery. Used for large orders and those with more fragile contents.

Please note:

1. Above timings are from dispatch date. Time from placing your order will usually be one or two days longer, depending on the order and destination.
2. Delivery to offshore or Highland addresses may take longer and may cost more than to UK mainland addresses and we’ll quote and agree the costs with you in advance. Please note that in these cases it’s fine to go ahead and place your order, and there’s no obligation on your part until the delivery costs have been quoted and accepted by you.
3. For some destinations, where a courier service isn’t available, we may send by Royal Mail instead.

International Locations

Orders weighing less than 1kg and not too bulky – Post Office Airmail. This would include books and smaller percussion instruments.

Orders weighing more than about 1kg and large orders – international courier or pallet service. We’ll obtain competitive quotes and agree these with you in advance.

Please note that it’s fine to go ahead and place your international order prior to confirming shipping costs, and that there’s no obligation on your part until the delivery costs have been quoted and accepted by you. Payment for international orders, including shipping costs, is required before dispatch of the goods.

Returns

Please let us know straight away if anything arrives damaged or otherwise in a substandard condition and we’ll be happy to replace it, refund the cost or provide you with an alternative product to your satisfaction. Speed is of the essence here as most courier companies will only accept responsibility for damage in transit if the damage is reported within 24 hours of delivery.

 In the event of damage, please take photographs, including any damage to the packaging, and email these to us ASAP.

Similarly, if an instrument  develops a fault within 12 months of purchase in the course of normal use (though excluding fair wear and tear), please let us know, and we’ll replace it or refund the cost. It’s also very helpful for us to see photos of the issue as this gives us solid information for changing the design, the production method or the packing materials.

But please do contact us before returning any damaged or substandard items. Once we’ve approved their return, please send to:  Drums for Schools Limited, 21 Shaftesbury Avenue, Burton Joyce NG14 5GL 

We really appreciate your feedback in the case of faults (or if you think an instrument could be improved in any way) and we take all such feedback very seriously indeed.