What is Frame Drum?
A frame drum is a drum that has a drumhead width greater than its depth. It is one of the most ancient musical instruments, and perhaps the first drum to be invented. The instrument consists of a single drumhead that is usually made of rawhide, but man-made materials may also be used. The drumhead is stretched over a round, wooden frame called a shell. Metal rings or jingles may also be attached to the frame. Frame drums range in size from small hand-held tambourines to large ceremonial drums over 22 inches in diameter, and include diverse regional forms: the Middle Eastern bendir, tar, riq, and daf; the Irish bodhrán; the South Indian kanjira; and the North African mazhar.
Origins & Lineage
Archaeologists have discovered artifacts depicting hand drums from as far back as 3000 BCE. Uncovering the earliest evidence of the frame drum takes us to ancient Mesopotamia. These instruments were often associated with religious rites and were considered sacred. In ancient Sumer, the frame drum was called the “tammuritu” and was played during rituals to honor gods and goddesses. Ancient writings and depictions from 2,700 BC reveal that the most prevalent form of the drum was the frame drum.
Frame drums were played in the ancient Middle East (chiefly by women), Greece, and Rome and reached medieval Europe through Islamic culture. It was only quite recently discovered that the drum was played predominately by women, in ancient times. Thousands of images depicting a women holding or playing a frame drum have been found in the form of statuary, relief, vase painting, hieroglyph and votive offerings. In pre-classical Greece the women initiates called the maenads played the frame drum along with the priestesses of Demeter, Artemis, Aphrodite and the muses. On the island of Crete, the frame drum was used in the rituals of Ariadne, Rhea and Dionysos.
Scholar and drummer Layne Redmond (1952–2013) researched this history extensively. For fifteen years, she researched the history of this drum in religious and healing rites in the ancient Mediterranean world culminating in her 1997 book, When the Drummers Were Women. The book details a lost history of a time when women were the primary percussionists in the ancient world and also explains why they are not today.
How It’s Practiced
Frame drums are held and played in various positions depending on cultural tradition and drum size. Some players hold the drum vertically in front of the body; others rest it horizontally on the lap. In many cultures, larger frame drums are played mainly by men in spiritual ceremonies, while medium-size drums are played mainly by women. The Irish bodhrán is unique: Irish Bodhan or Bodhran is also one type of frame drum that is played in a different way than other drums as it makes use of a wooden beater.
Players use the fingers, palms, and entire hand to produce a range of tones—from deep bass to sharp slaps to ringing overtones. Techniques vary widely: the bendir’s internal snare produces a buzzing timbre; the daf combines skin strikes with shaking to activate internal jingles; the riq demands intricate finger rolls on both head and cymbals. Through case studies including Sufi dhikr ceremonies, Kurdish rituals, Yazidi Qawwal performances, and the Fjiri music of Gulf pearl divers, the project explores the varied roles of the frame drum across devotional and communal life.
In spiritual contexts, The Sacred Drum has a long history of usage in ceremony and healing rituals the world over. The drum has the unique capacity to help shift a person’s brain waves from over-analytical stressful modes of thinking characterized by Beta brain wave activity into more relaxed and coherent brain wave patterns characterized by Alpha and Theta brain waves.
Frame Drum Today
The contemporary frame drum renaissance began in the late 1970s. Glen Velez (born 1949) is a four-time Grammy winning American percussionist, vocalist, and composer, specializing in frame drums from around the world. He is largely responsible for the increasing popularity of frame drums in the United States and around the world. Beginning in the late-1970s, his single-handed development of a global approach to modern frame drumming in the USA involved the mastery of diverse hand drumming techniques from South Indian, Central Asian, Arab, Persian, Brazilian, and Italian musics. He synthesized those techniques with his background in Western classical percussion, devising a unified technical vocabulary that he used in handheld, lap style, and freehand frame drumming.
Some aspects of Velez’s research were taken up by Layne Redmond, one of his earliest students and collaborators, who in turn impacted the women’s drumming movement by disseminating Velez’s ideas about the connection of women to frame drumming. Today, frame drummers perform in world music ensembles, sound healing sessions, meditation retreats, Sufi ceremonies, ecstatic dance gatherings, and devotional music concerts. Instructional materials, workshops, and online courses have made the instrument accessible to spiritual seekers and musicians alike.
Common Misconceptions
Frame drums are not merely tambourines relegated to backup rhythm in pop music. The Western tambourine represents one small branch of a vast global family, and traditional frame drumming involves virtuosic technique, complex rhythmic structures, and deep cultural knowledge. The frame drum is not a “beginner” instrument—mastery requires years of study across multiple regional styles.
Another misconception: that frame drums are exclusively “feminine” or “masculine.” While ancient Mediterranean cultures featured women drummers prominently, and some modern spiritual movements emphasize the drum’s connection to goddess traditions, frame drums have been played by all genders throughout history and across cultures. In Sufi orders, Kurdish ceremonies, Irish folk music, and South Indian classical contexts, gender associations vary widely.
Finally, the frame drum is not interchangeable across traditions. A bendir is not a bodhrán; a tar is not a riq. Each regional form has distinct construction, playing technique, musical context, and sonic palette.
How to Begin
Beginners should choose a drum suited to their intended practice. For world music technique, consider an 18–20 inch tar or bendir. For Irish music, a bodhrán with crossbar and tipper. For sound healing or meditation, a simple tar without jingles offers the clearest tone.
Study with a teacher familiar with the tradition you wish to learn—Middle Eastern, Irish, South Indian, or contemporary fusion. Glen Velez’s Handance Method provides a systematic approach to modern frame drumming. Layne Redmond’s book When the Drummers Were Women offers historical and spiritual context, while her instructional videos Rhythmic Wisdom and A Sense of Time teach foundational techniques.
Online resources include workshops from world percussion educators and frame drum festivals in Europe and North America. Begin with basic strokes—dum (bass), tek (slap), and ka (finger tap)—and build coordination slowly. Many traditions emphasize learning rhythms orally and through embodied practice rather than notation.