My Own Experience with Surdos

Occasionally, someone who visits this website asks me about my own surdo collection. So, I finally got around to posting photos and descriptions of my own drums.

1999--I purchased my first surdo, a Contemporanea 20", from a respected percussionist named Mark Lamson. He makes occasional trips to Brazil and brings back Contemporanea instruments.

This was a good choice for my first one. It has the flexibilty to be played in a low or high drum part, and is not as clumsy as a 24" or 28" behemoth. The drum came equiped with a napa head, which was my first experience with one.

I traded this drum for the Bahia 24" below. It is now used to teach samba in Ensenada, México.

1999--I was very happy in my new role as a marcador in my samba band, but became more insterested in a larger drum. I ordered a 22" Bauer, formerly Raul. I had heard of Raul timbals and congas as being of high quality, so I ordered one without ever seeing it.

The red napa head in the photo was temporary. I eventually switched to an Aquarian head. The combination of a Bauer with an Aquarian is perhaps the finest sound I've ever heard from a surdo.

Shortly thereafter, I sold it to a fellow band member, who still uses it. 60cm (24") deep surdos are too tall for me.

2000--My favorite bands were from Bahia, and they all played a shallower surdo than the ones I had. I saw the advantages of the smaller size for portability and the ability to wear it lower on the body than the tall models from São Paulo.

The Long Beach California samba school, SambaLá, sold costumes and instruments made in-shop. Alavaro Aguiar is a Brazilian musician, and manufactured his own drums. I ordered a steel 22" surdo from him. I chose 22" because I wanted to play the lead parts in samba reggae. It has become my standard instrument.

I have tried many heads on it, but it seems happiest with a black Evans Hyrdaulic in the photo.

2001--The 22" Bauer could not quite fulfill the role of the low marcação. When I tuned it down too much, the tightening lug nuts vibrated off. I hoped to find a 24" to reach the lower sounds I craved.

I was so happy with my first Bahia-styled drum, I decided my 24" had to be of the same type. A guy in México had two 24" surdos straight from Salvador. We decided on a trade. I let go of my precious first drum, the 20" Contemporanea, for one of his 24-inchers.

This drum is the authentic thing: a crude steel drum made on the streets of Salvador, almost exactly what Olodum plays. I used it for the background of this website. Alas, after years of good service, I recently sold it to make way for the Bauer 24" below.

2001--This Contemporanea 16" surdo from Mameluco Trading is great at small parties and intimate jams. I also use it at political demonstrations. My girlfriend has pretty much taken it over recently.

This is the only wooden surdo I have ever owned. I love the sound of wooden drums, but I like my surdos to have the volume possible only with metal.

In the photo, my 16" has calfskin heads. It sound really nice so-equiped. But it usually has a Remo Pinstripe.

2003--The beauty of RMV's Nordestre line is their weight. This is an extremely light drum. It makes marching in parades a lot less of a chore. It sounds nice, too.

I use this 20" as my lead samba-reggae drum. With tight tuning, it cuts above the larger surdos with clear staccato rolls. I've heard mixed reviews on the quality of RMV drums. This one has been great so far. We'll see how it holds up over time.

I thought this would be the last surdo I would buy, but fate brought me a surprise.

2003--There is quite a story behind the surdo at right. This is a Bauer 24". I had always hoped Bauer, my favorite Brazilian manufacturer, would produce a Bahia-style surdo. Well, here it is, special order from São Paulo, courtesy of Espirito Drums. It is 45cm (18") deep.

Bauer is making an attempt to expand its line of samba drums, and this drum represents the company's recognition of the popularity of the shallower surdos. This is an early model with a seem; but I have heard that future production models will have the seemless shell that Bauers are famous for.

Currently, I have a Remo Pinstripe head on this drum, and I play it as the lowest marcação (Fundo I). It sounds really good.

At this writing, I own the four surdos in the photo under the title. With a 20", 22", and 24", I can play any part in a samba reggae line-up, or even a Rio samba. My girlfriend likes the light weight and small bulk of the 16" and has adopted it.

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