Hapi Drum

HAPI Drum - E Major Penta		-$350 - will ship December - ORDER
HAPI Drum - E Minor Penta		-$350 - will ship December - ORDER
HAPI Drum - D Major Penta		-$350 - will ship December - ORDER
HAPI Drum - D Minor Penta		-$350 - will ship December - ORDER

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Our next batch of HAPI drums will ship in the month of December 2008. Every drum is hand tuned to perfection. Each one receives time and care and is given its own serial number. Please order now so that you will be next in line on our shipping list. Your credit card will not be charged until they are ready to ship. We apologize for this delay and thank you for your patience. Please feel free to e-mail us with any questions.

Shipping Info: shipping is $21 within the continental United States for 4-7 day delivery. Shipping to Alaska, Hawaii and Canada is $40 for 5-10 day delivery. International shipping is $85 for 5-15 day delivery.

HAPI Drum Sound Clips and Videos

Click Here for an MP3 of a HAPI Drum in the key of D Minor by Jay Atwood

Click Here for an MP3 of a HAPI Drum Lounge in the key of E Major by John Pascuzzi.

Click Here for an MP3 of a HAPI Drum in the key of D Minor with Stephen DeRuby on Native American Flute.

Click Here for an MP3 of a HAPI Drum in the key of E Major with bass, drums, and igil by John Pascuzzi.

Click Here for a YouTube video of a HAPI Drum in the key of D Minor

You will need javascript enabled and an MP3 player for these clips. If they don't work for you please try the firefox browser.

Custom Artwork HAPI Drum (click to enlarge the photos below)

Order your HAPI drum below, in the key that you want, and have Sara Johnson custom paint it for you! We will ship it directly to Sara in October and she will work with you on your very own custom design!

Each one that she paints is a unique work of art and will never be duplicated. Each piece is signed and dated. Her beautiful custom art work starts at $100. Sara is paid for her services through Paypal. For a quote on your project please e-mail her.

Questions? E-mail Sara Johnson.

Will ship directly to Sara Johnson in December - $350 - ORDER (price does not include artwork)

NEW! HAPI Drum Travel Bag

We just received our new custom made HAPI Drum travel bags. Sized to fit the HAPI Drum and mallets perfectly. Made from super durable nylon fabric, ultra thick padding, and heavy duty zippers. Collapsible, compact design. Comes with a shoulder strap sewn into the bag. Now you can safely take your HAPI Drum wherever you go!

$38 - ORDER

Can anyone play a HAPI Drum (Hand Activated Percussion Instrument)?

Sure! Anyone who wants an easy to play intuitive instrument can play one. You don't need a musical background to enjoy it. The HAPI drum is ideal for jamming and playing percussive beats. The note layout of the drum makes it easy to jump right into grooving rhythms. Enjoy creating a soothing harmonic journey with your HAPI drum. You will love being able to add a melodic component to your beats. An intuitive arrangement to the notes makes it easy to explore new musical horizons. The strong meditative tones are calming and great for relaxing anytime. And because of its compact design you can take it outside and enjoy it in nature. Your next camping trip will not be complete without a HAPI time around the campfire.

How is the tone created?

The unique tone of the HAPI drum is created by a tuned vibrating tongue of steel. The concept is similar to a wooden tongue drum. When a tongue is quickly and lightly struck with the finger or mallet it vibrates creating sound waves. By changing the shape and length of the tongue optimal vibration and perfect tone is achieved. By arranging the notes in our unique way each note when struck excites surrounding notes that are musically compatible with it. This adds to the harmonic spectrum of the tone. Rather than just one tone we can now create a spectrum of supporting sound for each note. The tone is similar to singing bowls or musical bells which create multiple harmonic overtones. The body of the drum acts as a resonating chamber adding depth to the note. We have carefully chosen an opening port in the bottom of the drum that serves three functions. The bottom hole allows the sound to escape and increases the volume. It releases the tone from the body so that the notes do not overlap each other too much. This is especially desirable for faster playing. It allows the player to open or close the port with their lap and chose different resonance levels for a different effect. We have added additional dampening of the notes and drum body to keep the drum from becoming discordant and “ringy”. Our breakthrough proprietary technique built into each drum provides excellent resonance while supplying the correct amount of dampening.

How is it played?

We recommend playing the HAPI drum with the pads of your fingers. A wide range of sounds can be created with different techniques. Playing by hand connects you with the drum in the way that traditional drums are enjoyed. A minimal amount of force creates a big sound on our drums. We also supply each drum with mallets designed to bring out the pure sound of each note. Our mallets eliminate “head slap” creating a very clear tone. The arrangement of the notes make going up and down the scale very easy. Also one hand can reach two or three notes simultaneously for chord playing. It is best to play the HAPI placed in your lap or on a surface that is not made of wood.

What keys are available?

The HAPI Drums are available in the E or D scale with 8 notes. We use a Pentatonic scale so that players without a musical background can play any note combination and still produce a beautiful sound. You can choose from the Major or Minor scale for each drum. The "HAPI Vibe" is in the Major Scale which produces a happy carefree sound and is suitable for playing with all sorts of instruments. The "HAPI Meditator" is in the Minor Scale which produces a soulful introspective sound. While the HAPI Meditator can also play with many different kinds of instruments it is ideally suited for playing with Native American Flute. Custom scales are available, if you require a custom scale please e-mail us. Custom scales are an additional $75 per drum.

Why is it unique?

We have created some unique design parameters that make the best possible steel tongue percussion drum. Our Patent Pending note layout adds harmonic tones to each note when played. This creates a more complex and musical tone to each note. By placing low notes next to the appropriate higher notes we can achieve multiple harmonics. Their vibrations create desirable overtones which compliment the timbre of the tone. We use a compact drum body that easily fits in your lap. The head is 12 inches across allowing for easy reach to all of the notes. A true rectangular shape rather than the usual “Tongue” shape of a note produces a clearer sound. By using an ideal height to width ratio for different notes we have been able to improve the amplitude of the note and create better balance. Tone accuracy is of the utmost importance. Each note is carefully hand tuned using a strobe tuner for complete control of the tuning process. The nature of the vibrating tongue allows for note stability which makes re-tuning unnecessary. This means each HAPI is a stable and reliable instrument.

What is the top emblem made from?

The unique HAPI drum emblem is permanently affixed to the center of the drum. It is made from dichroic glass and then fused with clear glass at 1500 degrees. NASA developed dichroic glass for use in satellite mirrors. Multiple ultra-thin layers of different metal oxides (gold, silver, titanium, chromium, aluminum, zirconium, magnesium, silicon) are evaporated on to the surface of the glass in a vacuum chamber. The resulting plate of dichroic glass can then be fused with other glass through firing. Certain wavelengths of light will either pass through or be reflected, causing an array of color to be visible. Each HAPI Drum emblem of stunning fused dichroic glass is unique and very durable. Colors will vary.

What are the specifications of the HAPI drum and what does it include?

The HAPI drum weighs 12 lbs. and the dimensions are 12" across by 8" high. Each Drum comes with a pair of hemp mallets that are specifically handmade for our drum. It also includes a handbook that outlines playing techniques. The handbook has mallet and hand playing techniques, ideal chords, as well as practice exercises.