Pate hula drum .. a wooden instrument of leadership

The pate hula drum is one of the components of a hula drum set, it is circular in shape and can be of any diameter the drum maker wants it to be, this can also be said of the length of the drum. Made mainly from timber that is only found in the south pacific regions such as, mero, tamanu, coconut palm and mango tree. This timber can be compared to Mahogany, kauri, totara and pine.

This is the reason for the harmonics created by the pate -- the usual timber from the Pacific Island countries is a brilliant sound conductor. The drum maker carves out the centre hollow area of the pate; the more that he hollows the drum out the deeper the tone. This is also how a drum set is tuned before being sold or played.

Hula Drums

Before the arrival of the chain saw the pate hula drum was chiselled out by hand. It took days. And the weather played a large part in this cycle; the wood was easier to carve when dry. But the introduction of the chainsaw increased productivity - helping traditional drum makers to profit; at the same time allowing fly by night drum makers to make a quick buck. This was not too much of an issue because the original drum makers had a good name and buyers were usually aware of whom to trust.

The lead pate hula-drum is larger and always the deepest tone of all the wooden log drums. This ensures that the lead pate hula-drum is heard above the rest of the drum set. The lead drum as like any good leader; when leading correctly people will follow and so do the drummers, but the lead pate can also be a great challenge to the drummer who well knows that his mistakes will be heard by all, and will also throw the others drummers off track.

This has happened to some of the best drummer I know. Yes - me included. But you learn as you go and try to keep it tight. It's not always the best drummer who is the lead drummer. This varies according to the the type of performance or show. But there is no doubt that the hula drum set is not complete with out the lead pate.

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