Tumbi
The Tumbi (Punjabi ਤੂੰਬੀ tūmbī) is a traditional North Indian instrument from the Punjab region. The high pitched, single string plucking instrument is associated with folk music of Punjab and presently very popular in Western Bhangra music.
The instrument is made of a wooden stick mounted with a toomba or wooden resonator covered with skin. A metallic string is passed on a resonator over a bridge and tied to the key at the end of the stick. The string is struck with the continuous flick and retraction of the forefinger.
The tumbi was popularized by the Punjabi folk-singer Lal Chand Yamla Jatt. In the 1960s, 70s and 80s most of the singers used the tumbi. The most popular were Kuldip Manak, Amar Singh Chamkila and Mohammed Sadiq.
Get your freak on by Timbaland and Missy Elliott saw the introduction of the distinct tumbi sound into the popular mainstream music scene.
Mundeya to bach ke rahi (Beware of Boys) from Panjabi MC, a huge hit in the UK charts, is perhaps the most widely-known example of the use of tumbi in popular western music.
The tumbi was also featured in the hit song "20 Inch" by Master P feat: Jamaican reggae artist Cutty Ranks and rap artist Kobra Khan. The tumbi played by Toronto, Ontario, Canadian native Shawn Ramta (grandson of the famous Punjabi folk singer, Hazara Singh Ramta).
Famous Current Tumbi Players
- Lal Chand Yamla Jatt (Punjab, India)
- Amar Singh Chamkila
- Kuldip Manak
- Malkit Singh MBE(Golden Star UK)
- Manmohan Waris
- Bee2 (London, UK)
- Bittu Dhakkia Dha (London, UK)
- Waraich (Dhuri, Sangrur)
- Pardeep Sandhu (London, UK)
- Manpreet Sidhu (Brampton, Ontario)
- Jimmy Singh (GraceChurch, Brampton)
- Babu Haabi (Mumbai, India)
- Hardip Singh (Birmingham, UK)
- Pavjinder Dhalinagra (Birmingham, UK)
- Sukhshinder Shinda- (Birmingham, UK)
- Aman Hayer (Lemington Spa, UK)
- Maninder Singh (Punjab, India)
- Gurtej Singh (West Brom, UK)
- Manmohan Waris
A sample of the Tumbi
http://www.indianmusicals.com/string/gopichand/intro.htm
References
Manpreet Singh INJOY Radio
See also