A Caucasian dhol (, , , tr, ) is a cylindrical drum used in the Caucasus. This drum has traditionally been used by various Caucasian warriors in battles, and today is used in national folk music.
Construction
The Сaucasian dhol is a double-sided barrel drum, the shell made from wood or acrylic plastic, and the head from thin leather or synthetic plastic film. The traditional preference is a walnut wood shell and goat skin heads. The skin or plastic film is be spanned on a strong iron round rod, strong during the tuning up of the drum heads the rod should not be bent, the round rod is optimal for touch hands. Adjustments are made by hemp or synthetic rope.
Playing
The Сaucasian dhol is mostly played as an accompanying instrument with the
Garmon,
Zurna and
Clarinet. There are two playing variants, one with hands and the second with two wooden sticks. Usually the sticks are made of
Cornus as a heavy type of wood is preferred.
Regional forms and traditions
Armenia
In
Armenia, the drum is called
Dhol, and is made from natural thin leather skins or plastic film heads. The shell is wooden or acrylic plastic. The Armenian dhol was traditionally played with a wand and a club, each one hitting a different side of the drum, or more rarely with the bare hands. Nowadays, bare hands are preferred.
Chechnya and Ingushetia
In
Chechnya and
Ingushetia it's called
Fuott or
Wuott. It is made from cylindrical wooden shell and acoustic membrane from natural leather skin, traditionally played with the bare hands.
Georgia
In Georgia it is called
Dholi or
Doli. Georgian dhols mostly use natural thick leather skin heads and a wooden shell. The playing is almost entirely done with the hands.
Azerbaijan
In
Azerbaijan,it is called the Nağara, played with sticks in Northwestern Azerbaijan, such as in the region of
Qazax District or
Tovuz District, and bare-handed anywhere else. It is made up of wood and has a plastic head commonly. The Nağara is played on multiple occasions, such as marriage, which along the whole way is played, like the way to the brides house, or Vağzalı, which is music played when the bride or groom step out and walk down the aisle. Vağzalı is played with the clarinet, with soft playing of the Nağara.
During
Novruz it is played in celebrations, and following so is the
Yalli dance, a circle dance in which the Nağara is used, along with the
Zurna.
Southern Russia
In
Southern Russia it is called
Doul, and is almost identical to the Armenian variant.
