A goblet-shaped drum with a single membrane, the darbouka is the most popular accompaniment instrument in Tunisia.
The darbûka is a kind of single-headed drum whose lower part, narrowed into a neck, gives it the look of an upturned vase. Its hollow body is usually of terracotta, plain or glazed; for a time they were imported from Turkey, in Venetian or Bohemian glass.
A raw goat or sheep skin, scraped like parchment, is stretched over the wide rim; some professionals use fish skin, or even cat skin. It is held by a hemp or silk cord wound in a zigzag, forming diamonds adorned with little pompoms.
It is the accompaniment instrument of popular-music ensembles, where it replaces the naghghârât, the classical pair of kettledrums. It has also long featured in the classical orchestra.
Very popular in Tunisia, this percussion instrument delights young people in particular, boys and girls alike, in their amusements and in the intimacy of family life.
On leaving the family home, the bride never forgets to take her girlhood darbouka along with her trousseau — to create, in hours of leisure, an atmosphere of joy.
