Cajon Drum

Cajon drums are drums presently crafted out of wood, but the Cajon drums of yesteryear were in the form of simplistic boxes, tiny drawers from dressers or crates for fish. The actual term “Cajon” is derived from the Spanish language and when translated means “box.” As time passed, the Cajon drum was reshaped and reconstructed to appear as it does today: a six sided wooden box with a whole on one side of it, usually the back side. The wood utilized on five of the wood panels in Cajon drums is crafted out of 3/4 inch wood: typically white wood, or pine wood. The last side of the Cajon drum box is crafted from plywood material.

Cajon drums have a history that can be traced back to central and West African slaves from Peru, as well certain regions in Cuba; it is believed that the drum was created in the 1800s on the coast of Peru, and in just five decades time the Cajon drum became a widely used and widely appreciated instrument. At the turn of the century, people began to experiment with the shape of the Cajon drum to change the sounds that the instrument would produce when played.

This instrument is now identified with Afro/Cuban music such as the famous rumba, as well as Afro/Peruvian style music. The Cajon drums that were first used in regions of Peru include wooden boxes or crates that were commonly utilized for harvesting fruit. Slaves in Africa relied on the crates as a drumming tool and later developed the Cajon drum from the simplest fruit harvesting wood crate design.

How to Play the Cajon Drums
The side of the Cajon drum that is crafted out of plywood materials is the actual playing area of the drum. The side with a hole cut into it is always the back siding of Cajon drums and is the portion that is positioned perpendicular to the Cajon drum head or parallel to the head depending on the drum style. The tapping region on the Cajon drum is further identified as tapa or drum head.

When an individual plays Cajon drums, he or she positions their body above and over the box; some drummers straddle the box while playing, and others sit upon it when they play. The drummer will take the Cajon drums and tip them or tilt them inward in order to begin playing. The surface of the drum is then tapped with the open palm to derive different sound effects from the instrument.

While the Cajon has a rich history with origins in Peru and Cuba where African slaves used fruit crates as percussion instruments, it has become a mainstay in modern day music.

Today, the cajon is heard extensively in Andean, Cuban and Flamenco music. It's steadily gaining popularity in all types of contemporary music and has become a favorite for "unplugged" sessions and is often used to accompany the acoustic guitar.

New York percussionist, Jimmy Lopez, is an accomplished Cajon player who is mastering the art of crossing modern melody with this traditional box drum. In the list below, you can see a variety of rhythms that can be performed on the Cajon.

Track List
The video below provides a demonstration of each rhythm.

1. Reggae One Drop Rhythm on Cajon
2. Reggae Steppers Rhythm on Cajon
3. Playing Cajon with Jazz Brushes
4. Jazz with Brushes and Heel Hits for Bass Drum
5. Brazilian Batucada Feel
6. Dancehall / Ragga Rhythm
7. Morocco, Northern African Belly Dance African Feel
8. Variation of Northern African or Arabic Belly Dance Feel
9. Moroccan Folkloric Gnawa Bass Drum Feel
10. West African 6/8 Rhythm on Cajon
11. Djembe Rhythm Adapting to Cajon
12. Rock Beat on Cajon

Try some of these rhythms yourself and see where the journey takes you!

Jimmy Lopez is a member of the Jessi Colasante band, Boom Box Repair Kit and the leader of his own musical group World Sound Traveler. He has also appeared on recordings for artists such as Marc Rizzo (Soulfly); Cruzando Banderas (Latin Rock), opera composer, Rubyana and many others.

Find out more about Jimmy and his incredible passion for life and artistic creation at http://www.myspace.com/jimmydrums.

by Kristin Royce

Follow the instructions below to adjust the slap/crackle effect and snare response on a cajon drum.

How to Adjust the Top Corners of a Cajon for Slap / Crackle Effect

The sound of your cajon is very adjustable. There's a bass tone in the middle area, and on the edge there's a slap or a crack. With this guide, you will learn how to adjust the corner crack tone.

Start with a far corner of the faceplate - furthest from the body of the cajon. When the plate is less taught, the drum gives a slow dynamic and a rather pronounced crack. That sound might be too much for some people.

To adjust the response, take a Phillips Head screwdriver and very gently start to close that gap by tightening the screw. As the gap tightens, the response time quickens and the crackle effect is reduced.

If you want it to go away altogether, make the plate good and snug. Do not over-tighten. With the constant contact there will be no crackle effect.

Now, work the opposite corner to create a satisfying dynamic when you play your cajon drum with both hands.

If the opposite corner is tight already, put the screwdriver in and give it about a half of a turn counterclockwise. That's should be all it takes to create a variance in tone.

How to Adjust Cajon Snare Effect

The Meinl Cajon and Toca Snare Cajon come with a fully adjustable snare on the inside that is in contact with the faceplate.

To control the snare effect, tighten or loosen the knob and adjust the snare levels or turn it all the way off.

When the snare is in light contact, the snare effect is the strongest.

And if you want the snare off, back the knob off and retighten it in position and the snare effect will be gone.

If you take the faceplate off of the cajon, you can see exactly how the snare effect works.

Look closely at how the knob on the outside connects to the snare wires on the inside. As you roll the knob forward, the snares come in contact with the inside of the faceplate. As you roll it back, the contact is reduced. So, with close precision, you can carefully set how much snare effect you want on your cajon.