How to Play Conga Drums : Tumbao Latin Music Rhythms

[TomBrooklyn]

The first step to playing the conga is to don a beret.

[MrJazzfingers]

@TomBrooklyn It's actaually a Flat Cap worn backwards...I have the exact same one :) check out Kangol Products

[JeterSwisherFan88]

It's about time I found a true expert on ExpertVillage! Just saying.

[althero]

but can you play the cunga?

[damodrummer1]

ah man I'm really disappointed after seeing the "how to play jazz bass on conga" video. This guy can actually play.

[onespiritful1]

Great instruction thank you God Bless

[catman351]

?La negra tiene este? Azucar!

[hermione92982]

He is a great teacher! I learned the Tumbao... Kind of. That slap is so hard!

[ArianaGrandeRulesxxx]

Its interesting to see this because i play African Drums so it was cool to see another type of hand playing drums

[JohnnyConga]

Learn to play the Conga drum from Johnny Conga using SKYPE..sign up today and get your first lesson FREE!...email me at johnnyconga@live.com and let's do it!..

[InsaneFridge]

you can t say he s a expert just because of that xD.........thats just standart....you realy can`t tell if he is an expert (at least i know i could do that better)

[Miguelc271086]

This is the only expert that expert village has

[feshayeghebremedhin]

wow but it has to be more intersting than it is

[jaime800327]

muy chevere tu programa te escribo desde cali y adelante

[BrandonSinkovich]

dont rest on your drum as my teacher always says

[mikegalsworthy]

what?? Expertvillage's standards are seriously slipping... I didn't crease up giggling even once.

[vallev99]

its good to know that there is a village of experts to depend on.

[poopmcdoopdoop]

i think the other guy is better at teaching...

L0L JK

[SAHBfan]

I just don't get it! This is expertvillage - surely we only come here to laugh at the idiots who don't know what they are doing, trying to teach?

This guy is actually pretty good and can teach...

WTF?

[GroovyGuitar02]

Is this guy an acoustic guitar player ? 'cause he has nice right-hand nails ... and no nails on left hand .

So i believe he may play some classical or fingerstyle guitar .

[Moobysnax]

Is that a coke nail?

[rkbhushan]

did he take vocal lessons from chriswalken?

[rkbhushan]

did he take vocal lessons from christopher walken?

[nokreooo]

haha this is a great teacher not like the other "experts" go on johnny!

[zuma5278255424]

OR. 1 - trip -let -2 -trip -let

[JohnnyConga]

Supdog 2112 the low drum is on and 3...

[estinky]

Nice.

[supdog2112]

isnt the 4 + suppose to be played alternating back and fourth between two drums?

[vdeferens]

@supdog2112 No. You're thinking of a bolero rhythm.

[boomertee]

Great lessons and help. The guy just needs to cut the caffiene out . LOL

[Jorge6811]

Muy bien. Gracias.

Unfortunely there are people in internet that doesn't knows how to teach. Finally i've found some good. Thanks Johnny. You've make a very good lesson.

[bolero3444]

great thanks

[TamboresDeJaykub]

wow i have been doing it wrong this whole time!!! thanks for the great lesson!

[JohnnyConga]

My name is Johnny Conga

[3584817]

Thanks for this lesson!

[nazca08]

Who is this guy? In other words, what is his name? He is a very good teacher.

[PITOLOCO1]

Esta dificilllllllll

[MrVictorsalsa]

cual sentimiento...ese es un profesor!!! a menos q usted no sepa q lo q es el tumbao...no como la mano de payasos q se afichan a hacer el osooo!! ja ja ja..pongale cuidao y aprenda.

[elgallopunky]

y que sentimiento pone uhuhuh vaya... se me han quitado las ganas de tocar

[elgallopunky]

mierda de anuncios...

[CONGERORAY]

i had my congas for years & played them wrong for years & in 1/2 hr learn too play. thankyou i am 64 years old but nevery to late to learn now u can call me congeroray god blesses people with a good heart

[JohnnyConga]

It's a Conga just tuned low that's all..

[Domsta333]

Is that a Tumba or a Conga?

What's with this stupid discussion about his nails, does it really matter?

[d0minirican]

Johnny is the only expert that expert village got right

[Sherb993]

He has very long nails for a guy, but then again, so do I...

[JohnnyConga]

Thank you Brother!....it is an Art form and a Rhythmic Science to playing the Conga drum....

[swckswck]

Thanks, JC! I've learned a lot from these vids. Johnny Conga is one of the better congueros on youtube. 

[JohnnyConga]

Dile a Giovanni !

[M5497AH]

cortate las uñas

[darkhairedone1]

good simple lesson. post more. thanks a lot.

[unapolakita]

gee I thought it was easier! This goes so fast!

[vitaminvic]

:) good video for beginers!!

[Mofran56]

Cut your nails......

[MarisolMarie1]

how can i add this video on my facebook?

[collach7]

@MarisolMarie1 u must do "share" ( under the video) and after select facebook! 

[theat13]

@MarisolMarie1 copy the link> go on FB> "What's on your mind?" box>paste the link there and that's it!

[MarisolMarie1]

great lesson for beginners

[Padredequatro]

Thanks for posting lo basico...tus videos me estan ayundando tremendamente...

[JohnnyConga]

@Padredequatro  Gracias!...

[Kurisuchianu89]

Cut your nails, hippie

[Kurisuchianu89]

@JohnnyConga Whatever you say, hippie... Btw, welcome to the 21st century.

[TheChubbyButt]

@Kurisuchianu89 I can't believe you just said "welcome to the 21st century" when you've never even uploaded a video! At least @JohnnyConga knows how to do it! You're an idiot.

[boomertee]

Calm down man. You are way to hyper. off the charts. the energy this guy has is off the charts. He needs to relax and calm down. Who can keep up?

[XIS99]

Thanks very helpfull

[Hacienda25]

Hi Was wondering if anyone can help me , ive just started getting into the congas can anyone recommend what order these online lessons should be done in , any help would be much appreciated

[ElInkieto631]

Very well explained my brotha. Nice timing good technique and broken down easily to understand. Hopefully new congeros run into this clip before some of the other ones out there (if you know what i mean). Thank you

[boomertee]

drink a redbull dude. LOL

[boomertee]

drink a redbull dude. LOL

[palitos23]

why dont people teach the tumbado in relation to the clave and why is it that you havent added the conga or tumba to show the full pattern in relation to the clave cuase this is the reason why many people cant play they think they got the pattern but all of them get crossed and its crucial to understand the pattern in relation to the clave. the rest is ok. your quinto needs a skin change by the way. good luck

[bboystitch]

I totally agree latin rythms like Salsa; it gets complicated with the clave

[palitos23]

@bboystitch it may feel its complicated but the clave is what dictates the direction of the patterns in every percusive instrument and also on piano and bass it dictates what chord progression they are in and if you dont understand it you will cross the pattern and make it sound horrible. The clave is the key to unlock all the secrets of Cuban music which u ppl keep refering to as salsa. learn to respect the traditions and you will become a better player garanteed

[bboystitch]

@palitos23 hey hey I do understand, I grew up around musicians playing this type of music , But Im not saying that Salsa isnt cuban or anything like that, Salsa is salsa

[ElInkieto631]

@palitos23 @palitos23 Hey my bro, in conga playing you have to start from the base. In a conversation I had with Jerry Gonzales last weekI cannot stress the importance in learning first how to play on only 1 drum. You do not need 2 drums to play "in clave". Specifically marking the 3 side of the clave with 1 conga is the key and in my opinion should come after this video, not before.

[ElInkieto631]

I teach all my students basic tunbao pattern first as a 1 bar pattern like demonstrated in this video. Introducing the clave to the tumbao is a 2 bar pattern. Yes, people get confused with the clave and it's nobodys fault but the ones who taught them. We need good teachers out there to raise up a generation of educated players.

[ElInkieto631]

And regarding the skin which really is insignificant here because the brother gets a good sound out of the drum, yes, is old but some skins when they're broken in after a while sound better than brand new heads.

[jettblood109]

HA its a paradidle cool maybe i'll get some congas to add to my kit

[tto173]

that's nice! very good for me to know how to play conga basic.

[Pyxotinha]

Massa Vei. Ameii *-*

[misterfinca]

muy bueno, lo felicito !!!

misterfinca

[fsl001]

Awsome, mastering the basics..you will hear more from me on the soulful house mix :-)

[1973woodman]

hey man, i see that long ass pinky nail... sniff sniff

[cholochuto]

muy bueno carambola

[jimmyome]

ok,i undesrtaind but somes people can't speack english. im from dominican rep

im a singer and play i litle of tambora guira y conga i like so much perscusion,thanks for videos..

[jimmyome]

a really master but why

esta hablando de musica latina en ingles...

[JohnnyConga]

Gracias Jimmy!....well it was for an American company that i did this with...as all of the instructors for Expert village. We are still in America as well, and it is still the main language here...

[miroslavsafin]

ya guey . . . que pedo?

[profilcool]

thank u you desserve it

[akdomak]

hey johhny, good thing you joined the expert village crew......

[JohnnyConga]

Mongo Santamaria played 'open slaps' just chek his videos here on you tube...and you can get a "closed slap" and "open slap" and a "bata/patato slap-left hand top of drum head"..."JC" Johnny Conga

[TiqueO6]

I shouldn't have said nobody plays open slaps but it's rarer.

Should be mentioned that Mongo's technique might have caused his problems with his fingers.

I shook hands with Ricarco Abreau (Papin of Los Papines) and his hands were nearly as soft as a non-player. I asked him what was up with that - His answer : Techique!

You don't have to beat up you hands to produce excellent tones at almost any volume. Not that you won't be sore but a least not so injured.

+ shave down big calluses on joints!

[Sirchcis]

@TiqueO6 cool my teacher taught us open slaps its pretty amazing i can still get the slaps sound without ruining the dynamics of certain songs it is amazingly useful

[TiqueO6]

It's really best to know how to do all the traditional sounds on the congas.

Learn closed slaps for a classic "tapáo" used in so many kinds of cuban based and salsa. Learn open slaps as well. Learn the choked open tone (which is in-between a dry muff sound and an open tone).

Fingertips on edge-ringing tones are often used by novices but very rarely by advanced players.

Use the palm of the hand more than the very heel for bass tones and dry "toe-heel-toe" and such.

[seanlukas]

thank you for the lesson, christopher walken! but where is the cowbell?

[violafabio]

chiarissimo...bravo!

[UncleTito72]

Does the pattern start with the the heel or with the tip?

[MongasTDM]

Heel Tip Slap Tip Heel Tip Open Open

[jesamani75]

my first virtual conga teacher.,saludos johnny conga.

[frankietimbalero]

great conga player and the lessons are very helpful.

[Cezacez]

he has a 100,000 hits , he's doing something right !!! .

[ak7834]

very good lessons, very clear and helpful, thanks a lot!

[underprog]

he talks like a hippie

[JohnnyConga]

if u paid more attention to the lesson rather than the way he talks you might learn something, same goes for all u "nail lovers"....

[JohnnyConga]

u might want to pay attention to the lesson rather than the way he speaks....

[underprog]

i was paying attention to both...

hes a great conga player btw...

[experience123456]

this is probably one of the few better expertvillage videos lol

[puronicoya]

that drum is so out of tune, dang

[salserogermano]

thats just the camera sound, stupid!

it is really a brilliant lessons by one of the rare guys on u-tube who DO know their stuff!

my 2 thumbs up, Johnny Conga!

[Jonnsonyvaio]

Fucking google, get the bloody ads out of the way, it gets kind of annoying u know....

[cadencia3d]

yes, the adds are flipping annoying you can also click the X that appears in one of the corners and you will get rid of them. You can also turn off the captions. In the right down corner there is a traiangle pointing up. Hover over it w/ your mouse and it will give u the option to turn off the captions.

[SamuelGriffin]

dude, clip your fingernails...it's disgusting.

[tadams1111]

u need to tune ur drum bro

[nightcafe]

u need to be quiet a bit..what s so funny about that video man?

[dwsabianguy]

in what way? I think it sounds perfect, how a conga should sound.

[Dannysgurl002]

Congas sound like that when recorded by certain cameras. Try to record yourself playing and hear the difference between a recording and live conga playing.

[mvsaturno]

Thanks for the tips, helped me a lot!

[2001cinthya]

cual es la silla ideal,,para uno tocar congas???? a que altura debe uno estar,,,,,???????? gracias,,,,

[robert182rtm]

regularmente se tocan las congas de pie, debes buscar que te queden a una altura que no te canses, yo personalmente las toco aprox una cuarta arriba del ombligo (jaja parece albur)

[MrNao22]

Thanks! Excellent ! I loved it!

MUY BUEN MAESTRO-WOW!!!!!!!!!

[Synphasic]

Thanks for breaking this down, My Brother!

[bocanada81]

you ads are boring Google.

[2encanto007]

Chevere brother!!!! muy bueno gracias..

[smilllypunkimwitagun]

thanks so much its going to help in the long run.

[mrstrings65]

This is the stuff...good instruction!

[9caleno]

nice tanx

tabueno

[orteoete]

muy bueno y practiko!

[jessekl5593]

Hey, I upload this video, you can download it at tinyurl (dot) com/video29  You can put that on your ipod or whatever...

muy bueno el videobr/el bkn esa ardilla la lleva jajaja el video original es? uno de los mejores jajaja

[waltersam938]

Hey, I upload this video, you can download it at tinyurl (dot) com/video29 You can put that on your ipod or whatever...

This is awesome! I wonder if? these people were the people who did the dancing along side of Michael in Thriller.

[loredit]

This is great!

[Samshadabam]

thank god...i understand now.. thank you

[Kermit4Prezident]

The only respectable drummer on expertvillage. xD

Good job, man. The other expertvillage Latin drummer suggested I steal fills from you, so that's what I'm doing. xD

[sirasy]

very good!

Could U please explain the Guanguango?

[busapp]

Hey Maestro, Thanks for the heads up. I play the sax, and I really appreciate seeing how you groove your thing. It helps me understand the beat.

[kingchaos103]

i play that at school no lie i swear!!

[therealTOTOfan]

his hand looks a bit weird when p laying the open tone, also it's more essential to do the slap with the fingers floating than pushing the rhythm hand down very strong

[JohnnyConga]

my hands falls funny do to a 'hand fracture' some years ago..."JC" Johnny Conga

[TiqueO6]

there are many slaps, some very dry, seco, which require pressure (by the slap hand of if possible with muting by the opposite hand) others are wetter or more open, some have called this the "african" slap which is played way off the head. That kind has many overtones.

[TiqueO6]

For Tumbáo-'normál' you'll want a dry slap.

Some get a clean "pop" sound like a woodblock and that's very popular.

Listen to many good salsa and cuban records to hear the possibilities.

nobody plays open slaps for Tumbáo though

[ortsac101]

Thank you Maestro!! I just got my first conga and you are the best teacher on Youtube Gracias.. muchas gracias... whats your website u got any dvds

[aalves1]

Great teacher.

Congratulations.

[BoyetTinga]

great

[BethAnne5146]

Great stuff!!

[opus88888]

Buen video

[wilfredocampos]

Thank you, maestro...I love how you play and teach................Willy

[dafflor]

great vid. You sound like chris walken on the word 'tumbao' at 7 seconds!!

[xojbabyxo]

I have the African Drums I brought a while a go. Different sound to it but all drums have different sounds!Thank you for posting though!Very helpful, may get these kind of drums soon!

[fredjijilo]

Very good-"Thank you!!!"

[EZgoN2]

You are one of the best teachers here on the tube. I have been playing for years but its nice to pick up new beats. Keep up the good work. Jimmi

[tewfighter21]

thanks alot for your lessons they help alot.

[BBEchloe08]

boring!!!

[bongomanfromdalou]

Thank you, thank you, thank you! I've played bongos and congas for years, and the basic "tumbao" beat has eluded me from the start! In fact, I've been playing it exactly sideways (with the pinky side and thumb of my left hand!), but now I'm finally getting it right! Keep the beat goin'!

[cuvah]

wow thanks!! very helpful

[lillyraelene]

Thanks heaps!

[808beatbox]

Thank you for your lessons. They are very helpful. This one of the things I love about youtube! Good music instruction & instructors. :^)