Tabla & Mini-Congas

Pictured here are a set of North Indian hand drums called tabla along with a pair of mini-congas, which were made by cutting a single conga in two and reheading in a traditional fashion. Invented by Collin Walcott in the 1970s. While touring with Oregon, Walcott solved the performance problem of having to switch from standing up to play congas to sitting for tabla by cutting a conga in half. While sitting on the floor, these congas sound exactly like full size drums. The LP mini-congas were modeled after Collin Walcott's idea. These drums were given by the Walcott family to Rich Goodhart, Walcott's student at the time of his death in 1984.