Water gourd

Water gourd (Fr.: tambour d'eau), half gourd or half calabash that floats, open side down, in a pan of water and is struck rhythmically with small sticks. The instr. is sometimes called water drum, a misnomer; it is not a true drum and the term leads to confusion with those membranophones that are partly filled with water. The water gourd is a development of the cupped hand beating the surface of the water. It is found in Africa, C. and S. America. In New Guinea a var. form appears, that of an…