The tumbi or toombi (, pronunciation: ''tūmbī''), also called a tumba or toomba, is a traditional musical instrument from the

Punjab region Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

of the northern

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

. The high-pitched, single-

string String or strings may refer to: *String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...

plucking instrument is associated with

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...

of Punjab and presently very popular in Western Bhangra music. The tumbi was popularized in the modern era by the Punjabi folksinger Lal Chand Yamla Jatt (1914-1991). In the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s many Punjabi singers adopted the tumbi, notably

Kuldeep Manak Kuldeep Manak, also spelled as Kuldip Manak (born Latif Mohammed Khan; 15 November 1951 – 30 November 2011), was an Indian singer best known for singing a rare genre of Punjabi music, ''kali'', also known by its plural form ''kalian'' or kal ...

, Mohammed Sadiq, Didar Sandhu, Amar Singh Chamkila, and Kartar Ramla. Other users include Punjabi Sufi singers such as Kanwar Grewal and Saeen Zahoor. The instrument is made of a wooden stick mounted with a gourd shell resonator. A single metallic string passes across the resonator over a bridge and is tied to a tuning key at the end of the stick. Players strike the string with a continuous flick and retraction of the first finger to produce sound.

Use in Western music

*''

Get Ur Freak On "Get Ur Freak On" is a song by American rapper Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott. It was written and produced by Elliott and Timbaland for her third studio album '' Miss E... So Addictive'' (2001). Based on heavy bhangra elements, a popular music an ...

'', 2001 hit single by

Missy Elliott Melissa Arnette "Missy" Elliott (born July 1, 1971), also known as Misdemeanor, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. She began her musical career as a member of the Contemporary R&B, R&B girl group 4 All the Sistas Arou ...

produced by

Timbaland Timothy Zachery Mosley (born March 10, 1972), known professionally as Timbaland, is an American record producer and rapper. Born and raised in Norfolk, Virginia, he is widely acclaimed for his distinctive production work and "stuttering" rhythm ...

, saw the introduction of the distinct tumbi sound into the popular mainstream music scene. *'' Mundian Ton Bach Ke Rahin (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. *'' 20 Inch'' by

Master P Percy Robert Miller (born April 29, 1967), better known by his stage name Master P, is an American rapper, record producer, record executive, dancer, actor and entrepreneur. He founded the record label No Limit Records in 1991, which was relau ...

(featuring Jamaican reggae artist Cutty Ranks and rap artist Kobra Khan) included tumbi played by Toronto, Ontario, Canadian native Shawn Ramta (grandson of the famous Punjabi folk singer, Hazara Singh Ramta). *'' Baby Doll me Sone di'' features tumbi throughout the song.

Players

* Lal Chand Yamla Jatt * Mohammed Sadiq *

* Didar Sandhu * Amar Singh Chamkila * Manmohan Waris *

Sarbjit Cheema Sarbjit Singh Cheema is an Indian-Canadian singer and actor who associated with Punjabi language music and films. He made his singing debut with the album ''Yaar Nachde'' and He started his film career with '' Pind Di Kurhi''. Early life Sarb ...

* Sukshinder Shinda * Saeen Zahoor * Sangtar

Use in Western music

Players

See also

References

Further reading