Orchestre Ote'a (Mono'i)

Tamariki Poerani percussion orchestra mainly consists of to’ere, puha tupai, fatete and big drums.

Tamariki Poerani percussion orchestra mainly consists of to’ere, puha tupai, fatete and big drums.
“To’ere” are wooden drums belonging to the family of idiophones, i.e. they can produce a sound by themselves, without the action of any string or membrane. To’ere are hewed from a hollowed tree trunk with closed extremities, which acts as a resonance chamber. Tey are beaten with a conical wooden stick. To’ere can produce various sounds. It all depends on how and where you beat the instrument : on the « lips », on the chamber, or on its engravings.

“Pahu tupa’i” and “faatete” are membrane drums. Their chamber are hewed in one piece from a hollowed tree trunk. In the past, the membranes of Polynesian drums were made of shark skin. Nowadays, the drum membrane consists of goat skin tautened by tension ropes fixed under the chamber through a complex lacing.
“Pahu tupa’I” are long and narrow. Their lower part is ornamented with open work and constitute the instrument’s pedestal. The upper part constitutes the resonance chamber of the drum. This drum is beaten with the hands while standing.
“Faatete” are small drums the resonance chambers of which are narrow and short. Musicians play the faatete seated with straight sticks.

Current big drums (“tari parau”) are legacy from European bands at the time of colonization. They give the tempo and are beaten with a felted mallet.

Source : Marce E. Louvat