ROOTS OF RHYTHM - CHAPTER 1: THE ADUFE FROM PORTUGAL

Instrument:
Adufe, a religious frame drum

Country:
Portugal

Flag:
The band of green means hope, and red stands for the blood of the
country’s heroes. The coat of arms recalls historic castles and
Portugal’s victory over the Moors in 1139.

Size and Population:

Portugal has 34,340 square miles not including the Azores or
the Maderia Islands. There is 458 miles of coastline with most of
it on the west coast. The estimated population as of July
2013 is 10,799,270, ranked 80th in the world.

Geography and Climate:

Portugal is on the westernmost part of the Iberian
Peninsula with Spain. It is mostly flat land just
above sea level. There are mountain ranges in the
northeastern, central and southwestern regions. The
Coastal Plains support farming and fishing on the
Atlantic Coast. On a huge plateau that extends into
Spain, farmers grow crops and raise livestock. Two
rivers cross the country from east to west, and the
Tagus River in the center empties into the Atlantic
Ocean at Lisbon, the capital, and divides the
country.
Generally mild, in the spring and summer Portugal is warm and dry. Snow covers the highest
northern mountain ranges several months each year. Average temperatures range from 70° F in
July to 50° F in January. Precipitation ranges from 55 inches in the north to 20 inches in the
south.

Background and History:

The area of Portugal was originally occupied by the Phoenicians thousands of years ago. The
area came under control of the Roman Empire around 200 B.C. Over the next few hundred years
Latin, the Roman language, became the basis of the Portuguese language, and Romans
established cities, built roads, and developed the area as Roman Catholic. Roman rule ended with
the invasion of northern Germanic tribes but Christianity remained.

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In 711 A.D. the Iberian Peninsula was invaded and subsequently ruled by Muslims, called Moors
(named Maurs, from Mauritania, northwest Africa). Under Islamic rule Arab-influenced
buildings were constructed, new crops were introduced, and education and roads were improved.
Many Christians opposed Muslim rule and fought to retake their land for hundreds of years. The
Portuguese won freedom from Arabic rule in 1139 and Portugal became an independent
kingdom in 1143, but the dominance of Arabic culture for over 400 years had been very
influential.

By 1415, the Portuguese had acquired much knowledge about navigation, shipbuilding and the
sea as traders and fisherman and had sailed far into the Atlantic Ocean. From 1450 to 1550 the
Portuguese began epic voyages to discover ocean routes to India, Brazil, China, and Japan, and
simultaneously began settlements on the east and west coasts of Africa, extending Portuguese
influence almost all the way around the world. The country controlled a vast overseas empire and
gained great wealth from its colonies in the form of gold, diamonds, colonial crops and
participation in the African slave trade. In 1580 Spain invaded Portugal and ruled until 1640.
However, Portugal thereafter was too small a nation to control a global empire and other nations
including England, France and the Netherlands began to take control of Portuguese colonies. No
other foreign powers ruled in Portugal after 1811. Portugal lost its wealthiest colony, Brazil, in
1822.
In 1910 the Portuguese established a republic and by 1928 Oliveira Salazar began a forty-year
rule as a dictator. In the 1960s, Portugal's African colonies rebelled against outside rule. Around
1974 dictatorships ended, almost all colonies gained independence, and there were free elections
in Portugal. The country became a member-country of the European Union in 1986, and
Portugal currently enjoys steady economic growth. In 2006, President Anibal Cavaco Silva
became President. In 2011, Prime Minister Pedro Manuel Mamede Passos Cholho became head
of government.
Culture:
The people of Portugal are a mixture of the various ethnic groups, ranging from the Greeks and
Romans to the Visigoths and North African Muslims, which have occupied the country at
various times over the past 5000 years. Over the past forty years many Africans from Portugal’s
colonies have moved to Portugal, forming the only minority. Most Portuguese are rural farmers
and coastal fishermen and keep close family ties. Some rural people dress in ancestral clothing
including berets, stocking caps, and baggy clothes among the men and long skirts and shawls for
the women. People enjoy folk songs, bullfights (the bull is not killed) and soccer. Over
50,000,000 people speak Portuguese. Outside of Portugal, Portuguese is the national language of
Brazil in South America, and Mozambique and Angola in Africa.
Most Portuguese are Roman Catholic and people enjoy religious celebrations, pilgrimages, and
processions. There are pilgrimages for healing to the town of Fatima, famous for the reported
appearance of the Virgin Mary in 1917. Education in the country is not strong and in most cases
children after the age of 14 need to begin work. The largest of ten universities is in Lisbon.
The arts have been heavily influenced by the Catholic Church, royalty, and the country’s love of
the sea. The folk music ranges from lively dance songs like chulas (choo-las) and viras (ver-las)
to sad songs like fados (fah-dos) sung to a guitar accompaniment. The focus instrument for the
Portugal lesson, the adufe (ah-doof) drum, is used in religious and folk celebrations. This

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 ROOTS OF RHYTHM - CHAPTER 1: THE ADUFE FROM PORTUGAL

instrument reflects many aspects of the Portuguese culture, particularly since it came from the
Muslim occupation after 711 A.D.

Music: Instruments & Rhythms

Instruments: There are many types of traditional musical instruments in Portugal. In addition to
bagpipes and flutes there is the violin called rabeca chuleira (rah-bek-ah choo-lee-air-ah), the
traditional antique guitar called cavaquinho (cah-vah-keen-hoh), the friction drum called
sarronca (sah-rong-kah), and the square frame drum called adufe, the last of these being the
focus of this lesson. Because of their small size, several types of instruments were taken to
foreign lands by sailors. Among these were both the rabeca chuleira and adufe.

The adufe is a square or rectangular pine frame drum from 12 to 22 inches on a side and around
1 to 2 inches thick. There is a drumhead on each side made of goatskin and the two sides are
sewn together or nailed on to the frame. Before the heads are attached the drum maker will place
objects inside the drum to rattle when the drum is struck or shaken. These objects might include
bells, dried seeds, bottle caps, a gut snare or even small metal nuts or jingles.

The drum was introduced into the Spanish and Portuguese cultures by the Moors of North Africa
beginning in the early 700s A.D. The adufe is found mainly in three different regions of Portugal
and the way of making it is different in each one. In Alentejo, a tanned pig’s bladder is used for
the skin while in Tras-os-Montes, a goatskin called “samara” (sah-mah-rah) is used. The drum is
decorated with bits of ribbon on each corner of the frame.

The name adufe probably came from the Arabic name “duff” or “deff.” During the Middle Ages
this term was used for round and square frame drums. In Arabic the definite article “al” added to
the word “duf,” becomes “adduf.” In Spain and Galicia (northwestern Spain) the square frame
drum is called “pandeiro” (masculine). This name is related to the Persian-Arabic name bendayer
(ben-dair), a kind of frame drum. The adufe is also known as pandiero quadrado (pon-dee-air-oh
quah-drah-doh). It is similar to a square frame drum found in Egypt that dates back as far as
1400 B.C. Triangular drums are also found on the Iberian Peninsula.

The drum continues to be very popular in the west central Beira Baixa province. It is used in the
religious celebrations known as “alvarissa.” Adufe players drum outside the door of the local
church, but also in town festivals, local dances, and on Sundays for relaxation. It is also used
during work in the fields. The instrument is usually played by women, and is used to accompany
religious songs, festival songs and ceremonies. It is also played by men but not during religious
events. The drum accompanies the charamba (cha-ram-bah), a Portuguese circle-dance
performed by couples. Adufe players are called adufeiras (ah-due-fee-air-ahs).

One famous woman adufeira is Catarina Chitas (1913-2003) from the Beira Baixa region. There
is now a famous Portuguese group named Adufe that made very large versions (several feet on a
side) of the adufe for stage performances that were inspired by Japanese taiko (tie-koo) drummer
performances. Professional frame drummers around the world now use the adufe as a standard
part of their instrumental performances. A large meeting of adufeiras took place in the north
central town of Niza, Portugal in 2003, and global interest in this ancient instrument continues to
expand.

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The adufe is held between the thumbs of each hand and played with two types of strokes: 1) the
full hand hits and rebounds off quickly, creating a low tone; and 2) the full hand’s fingers slap
the head staying on to stop the sound from ringing, creating a high tone. The Spanish version can
be played in a sitting position with the frame and skin struck by a stick in the right hand and the
skin struck with the left hand. Percussionists will sometimes clap the rhythms to practice, but in
some cases, especially in the Berber tradition, clapping is the main way a rhythm is performed.

Rhythms: The adufe rhythms came from the Moorish Berber tribes of North Africa and they are
the basis of many current Portuguese rhythms. Two important rhythms for the Portuguese adufe
are the ritmo de passo (reet-moh deh pah-so), or “stepping or passage rhythm,” in 4 or 8 counts
and the ritmo de roda (reet-mo deh roh-dah), or “round or wheel rhythm,” in 3 or 6 beats. When
the ritmo de passo has four counts, the repeated rhythm sounds like “low, low, high, high.”
When the ritmo de roda has three counts, the repeated rhythm sounds like “low, low, high.” The
six and eight count versions of these beats have a double low sound on counts three and four (see
the Resources section below). The rhythms can be played either slow or fast.

When the Portuguese colonized Brazil in 1500, the adufe was taken to that country with the
sailors. More recently, the rhythms of the adufe influenced the development of samba rhythms,
making a distinct sound that the public recognized. The adufe drum and its rhythms have
traveled to many countries!

Listen & Play Along: *Use Roots of Rhythm CD Notes to support this section.
Note to teachers: if instruments are not readily available, consider having students make their
own (a general activity for making drums can be found in the Roots of Rhythm: Introduction
section, and a specific adufe-making activity can be found below) or encourage them to
improvise - using everyday items such as buckets, containers, phone books, desk tops, etc., as
instruments. Rhythms can also be created with body percussion including hand clapping, foot
tapping, finger snapping, etc.

Listen to Tracks 1-2 of the Roots of Rhythm Companion CD to hear the sound of the adufe. Now
it’s time to play the adufe. First, you’ll need a drum to play (see the exercise below for making
an adufe, or use other percussion instruments if you are unable to find or make the drum). Once
you have an instrument, play your drum along with the rhythms on Tracks 1-2 of the Roots of
Rhythm Companion CD, and first simply try to get a high sound, and a low sound. Use your
hands, or if suitable, use sticks. The closest thing to the square adufe is a standard tambourine.
Remember, the adufe also has rattles or jingles like the tambourine, but they are enclosed inside
between the two drumheads.

Once you find the high and low sounds on your drum, you can begin to work on the specific
adufe rhythms demonstrated on Tracks 3-10 of the Roots of Rhythm Companion CD. These
rhythms are also shown in the box notation in the Resources section, for drumming with three,
four, six and eight counts. The two basic rhythms are ritmo passo and ritmo roda.

Making Your Own Adufe: You can make your own adufe with some simple tools and materials
by following seven steps. Remember, when you stretch the tape around the frame, pull it tightly.
Listen to the sound of the adufe on Tracks 1-2 of the Roots of Rhythm Companion CD and see if
your homemade version sounds the same.

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Tools: Hammer Hacksaw to cut wood Scissors

Pencil to break PVC tape Sandpaper
Materials: Wood 1” x 2” x 12” - two Box nails 1 ” - four PVC tape – one roll
Wood 1” x 2” x 10
” - two Talcum powder Pebbles, beans, seeds
Wood dowel 3/8” x 10” Ribbon - several colors Thumb tacks - four

Seven Steps for Making an Adufe:

1. Cut wood in four measured pieces and sand each piece.
2. Hammer 1 nail in 3. 2 more nails go in 4. Wrap tape down 5. Wrap tape across
each end the opposite end frame on the nail end frame, opposite way

6. Tack several strips of ribbon Tape overlaps NOTE: In step 4, add

on the drum’s corners for talcum powder inside
decoration to remove stickiness,
then add rattles before
7. Sand the stick ends round adding the last strip.

Adufe and Performers:

Photograph by Craig Woodson.

Adufeiras from Portugal.
Photograph by Benjamim Pereira.

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Resources: The Adufe Ensemble & Rhythms

12-inch Adufe 14-inch Adufe 16-inch Adufe

Passo Rhythms in 4 and 8 counts and Roda Rhythms in 3 and 6 Counts

Ritmo Passo Ritmo Roda

For the 16” For the 16”
Adufe Say “low low high high” Adufe Say “low low high”
Four Counts 1 2 3 4 Three Counts 1 2 3
12” L R 12” L R
14” L R 14” L L
16” L L R R 16” L L R

For the 16” For the 16”

Adufe Say “low…. low-low high…high….” Adufe Say “low….low-low high….”
Eight Counts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Six Counts 1 2 3 4 5 6
16” L R L R R 16” L R L R
14” L L R R 14” L L R
12” L R R 12” L R
Please note:
1. The passo and roda rhythms are shown for a right-handed percussionist.
2. R or L means play the low or rebound hit on the drum; R or L means play a high damp or slap.
3. R or L means hit the wooden rim of the drum with the stick.
4. The arrows show how the basic rhythms with three or four counts can expand to a more
embellished rhythm with a double low on beats three and four on six and eight count rhythms.
5. The traditional speed for the 4-count and 3-count rhythm is four boxes per second.

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