Track 7 from Saydisc "Percussion Around the World" - notes from Maureen Hanke.

'Ansam' is an example of Arabic music. The Arabian Gulf is an important geographical and trading link between the Mediterranean and the Far East. It is an area of rich demographic diversity with a commensurate variety of music.

Ansam features the darbuka and dholak.The darbuka is a type of single headed goblet-shaped drum. It is made from pottery, wood or metal and can be played either under the arm or resting on the player's knees. The base is hollow and the skin is attached by nails or glue.The darbuka originates from the Arabic region and the dholak from North India.

The piece of music opens with a solo flute. At the end of the flute statement there is a pause and the rhythm is clearly stated. The piece unfolds as an improvisation over and around the basic rhythm.
It might be helpful to think of improvisation as the equivalent of talking in language development. Improvising means making up as you play, listening to what you are playing as you go. As the piece develops, the improvisations by the darbuka and dholak become increasingly elaborate and exciting: each skin adding its own colour to the piece. As you keep listening try tapping the rhythm throughout.
Throughout the course of the piece all the instruments have a go talking over the rhythm.

( in a music session everyone could tap the basic rhythm and two people with different drums could take it in turns to improvise.)

In this recording the players start their improvisation by playing the rhythm exactly, then they gradually change parts of it; first just a beat, then a couple of notes, then half a phrase etc. This way the music has a feel of unfolding.