Story and drawing by Abubakari Hamdia, 11 years.
I come from Gurugu in the northern region of Ghana. We have many drums there. A drum is a musical instrument, it is played by hitting with special sticks or your hands, a person who plays the drum is called a drummer. In my village, drumming is a way in which a drummer communicates through drums to people.
A drummer is a courageous, wise, and an intelligent person, all these are traits that help the drummer to deliver a good message through the beating of the drums.
Drums are beaten during special occasions in my village such as funerals, sacred days, festivals, and in the olden days during war times. A drummer must memorize and be a good listener, he should also be knowledgable in the culture of the people.
To become a drummer one would have to go through an apprenticeship, or perhaps inherit some skills from his/her parents. With an apprenticeship, a person learns the art of drumming from an experienced person by watching and doing. A parent can also pass on his/her skills to their children.
We also have very good drummers like Alhassan who can play to entertain the whole villages and Abukari who is a very skillful payer. Some of the names of the drums are luny naa and taha naa. Materials to make a drum are sticks, wood, the skin of a sheep. There are different types of a drum but I will tell you on another day
African Youth Writers Organisation (AYWO) 