Daff, Duff or Tar

This type of frame drum is used from the Sudan through North Africa across the Middle East and is called a daff, duff, or tar (from the Arabic.)

Single-headed with a narrow edge, the shape resembles that of a shallow pan. Faisal Zedan demonstrates his percussion work on a tar here. Karim Nagi plays a similar drum called a duff, and Pejman Hadadi talks here about how to play the daf.

Frame drums are ancient instruments that are generally associated with Islamic culture, although drums of similar shape and design are also found in Japan, Ireland and Russia. A European version is the tambourine.