Arizona Dunun Ensemble is a musical group comprised of players from Sedona, Cornville, Cottonwood, and Flagstaff, Arizona, and specializes in West African percussion. The Ensemble is dedicated to learning traditional rhythms and songs which accompany the Djembe, or “Jebe Bara,” which means Drum of Unity.
They strive to share this music with others as accurately and as skillfully as possible and have a lot of fun making a big, joyful noise in the process.
Over the past two decades the Djembe has become a hugely popular instrument all over the world, and in the United States it is often played without regard for African technique, tradition, and culture. Out of respect the AZ Dunun Ensemble believes these aspects should be remembered when playing this instrument; and they strive to keep the Djembe in its traditional musical context, hence the name Arizona Dunun Ensemble.
In West Africa, the Djembe is almost always accompanied by one or more Dunun, a two-headed cylindrical drum played with a stick. The Dunun is vital to Djembe music! It is the engine that provides the “bass” notes and the melody. Dunun is pronounced “due noon.”
Visit the group's page for other exciting events at www.azdunun.org
Tenuci is honored to have supplied the African fabrics used for the group uniform
Photo credits to Ron Shrewsbury.
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