Tassa family keeps tradition going

Boodoo Singh cried tears of joy when members of the Petrotrin Boodoosingh Tassa Group won the Republic Bank Tassa Taal competition held in Penal recently. For him it was not just another crown taken by the group for excellent tassa drumming but moreso an achievement he had been striving for all of his life.

Singh, 63, said he believes that the tassa drum is the heart beat of the East Indian community. “The sound that emanates from the tassa is powerful and rhythmic. The sweet sound of the tassa tells that something great is about to happen. In the case of a wedding, two people have pledged their lives together and the families prepare for months for this event and the tassa drums tell of the greatness of this event,” Singh said,  speaking passionately about the tassa. Singh who lives at School Road, Santa Flora, was originally from Williamsville and took up tassa drumming from his father, John Kumarsingh. He was determined to pass it on to his sons and his grandchildren.

 “In the early 1940s when I was just a little boy my father would be occupied day and night preparing the drums for the many weddings in villages in and around Williamsville. He was well known for his skill in beating the tassa. As a child I never thought I could take his place and make the drums ‘sing’ like him. But I had to assist him in everything he did and from this closeness that we shared I grew close to the drums.” He noted that the tassa drums have ‘mellowed’ him as a man. “I use to be an aggressive person in my 20s but I believe the tassa really helps an individual to get hold of their temper. When you put all your physical and mental strength in beating the tassa, you are drained. You must become calm to collect yourself in order to move on.”

With some 50 years experience with the tassa drums to his credit Singh and his family are versed not only in the art of playing, but making the drums as well. His sons Lenny, Suresh, Monesh, together with his grandchildren have taken over the drums and have been creating a sensation where ever they play. Suresh and brother Monesh play the small drums. Lenny beats the base and nephew Mark beats the jaal. The group has been in existence for the past 15 years and during this time they have won more than 40 major awards. They play out every week from Friday, Saturday and Sunday at weddings and public and private functions. Singh noted that while many people’s children live away in many parts of the world, he can boast that his sons have stayed together because of the need to provide tassa-drumming to the many people who request it.

His second son, Suresh who is a contractor with Petrotrin, said that for him the drum is life. “As a youth coming up in this deep south village, there’s not much to look forward to in terms of entertainment. I realised that the tassa drum is not just a musical instrument it is something that is sacred and very much part of the Hindu religion. And this is why I guess my brothers, their children and I, have been around to carry the tassa forward into the next generation,” he said. He too noted that while many parents would find great difficulty in bringing their children together, the tassa drums are responsible for keeping the Singh children united. His father would spend long hours demonstrating how to use the sticks on the drums.

Singh said a complete tassa side contains two small tassa, a heavy bass and the “jaal” (flatten brass instruments that are knocked together). “The two small tassa drums really bring out the sweetness that is heard. With the heavy bass complementing the two small drums, the brass jaal adds a different sound to bring out the complete tassa rhythms,” he said. The various rhythms that can be played on the drums include, tikora, nagara, chowbola, sumarie, steelpan, wedding hand, dingolay and tarada. Apart from these regular sounds, Singh has been experimenting with the classical sound of the old traditional songs such as gazals, tumree, drupad and tilanas. 

 The rhythms are created by knocking the different sides of the round-shaped tassa drums. The centre of the drums gives a hollow sound while the sides give a steep and sharp sound. The drum’s heavy bass is made of wood with the goat’s skin. However, it is prepared with massala which is pasted on the inside to hold the sound and make it more powerful than the smaller drums. The wood tends to keep the sound from scattering as one will hear in the small drums. This is why you get the “boom boom” sound from this drum. Suresh spends several hours building the drums, an art which he leant from his father. As well, he conducts classes with his daughter, Ade, five, and her cousins Alisha, Mark, Vishal, Tenele and Jason.

“These younger ones know how important the tassa drums are and they have shown great interest in beating on their own,” he said. Suresh would like the Government to build an institution in the deep south for children and the young people who are interested in learning to play tassa. Now that he has ensured the tassa legacy will go one,  Singh hardly takes up the drums, instead he is usually seen admiring his offspring who are now pushing his art into the future.