slit-log drum, nkou

Slit-log drum system used by the Fang people of the Republic of the Congo, documented by Pepper (1958) [Disk 2, Face 1, Sequence 1). The instrument itself (nkou in Fang) is a slit-log drum struck with two wooden beaters, producing 2 pitches (higher and lower). Pepper's recording appears to show some correspondence between the pitches of a drummed message and the tones of its verbal equivalent. Content includes long-distance communication between villages, including calling others by name.

Pepper, H. (1958). Anthologie de la vie africaine Moyen-Congo—Gabon. Ducretet Thomson.