Photos: My drums

My first drum made by Natalio "Junior" Tirado Ruiz.

My father bought it for me in 1973, this photo was taken in 1973, when I was 20 years old.
Sitting on a bench in front of Lake Pontchartrain
in New Orleans.

He bought a second one for me in 1974

(My father and I playing in my apartment in New Orleans)

21 years old,
Central Park, N.Y.C.

Three Mahogany drums made by  
Natalio "Junior" Tirado Ruiz.

An 11½' inch Tumbadora made in 1973, a 10¼' inch Tres Dos made in 1981 and a 9' inch Quinto made for me in 1994. The 10¼' Tres Dos was originally stained black, as Junior sometimes used stave's where the colors of the wood didn't match and he would stain the wood so the "off colors" wouldn't show. (As he also did with the Bongoes he made below)
I took it to 'Jay Bereck' and had him remove the black stain and re-finish the drum, which allowed the true beauty of the Mahogany wood to show.

My 11½' inch Tumbadora made in 1973  
by Natalio "Junior" Tirado Ruiz.
I used to have another like this one, but sold it to a student of mine.

"Junior" Tirado in his early drum making days made the "V" in his hardware very wide, a full ½' inch.

A 12' inch Oak Tumbadora made for me by 'Jay Bereck' in 1980.

Jay Bereck's Oak 12' inch Tumbadora,
"Junior" Tirado's 9' inch Quinto and 10¼' inch Tres Dos.
 This is a drum my father bought in Havana for $35. in 1957.

Made of Cedar wood (Cedro). With a 10½ inch head. The lug plates look like stars with six points. The original bands were replaced with "brushed" aluminum bands.

Bongoes made of Mahogany by Natalio "Junior" Tirado Ruiz.

These were originally "painted" red not stained, to conceal the different color stave's he used. I used paint remover to take the red off, then sanded them and gave them a very light coat of wood sealer. 7½ inch Macho and 8½' inch Hembra.

These are my favorite bongoes, made in Cuba in the early to mid 1950's by drum maker and bongocero Candido Requena. Made of Cedar (Cedro). 6¼' Macho and 7' inch Hembra.
I recently sent them to master drum maker 'Matthew Smith' to have them re-finished.

I prefer to use only natural or white (bleached) "Cow" skin, which is impossible to find here in New York City.

I prefer the sound of "Cow" skin, very different than Mule. I don't like skin that you can see your hand through (opaque skin). The majority of skins (hides) sold commercially now are mostly inferior bull hide, steer hide, deer hide, horse hide, mule hide, and the cheap shitty "honey colored" skin (that you can read a newspaper through) that comes on every drum made by *Lp®.
(*Don't "trust the leader")

Los cueros - Cuba.
(Pancho Quinto; Iya - Martha Gallaraga; singer)
No "honey colored crap" for this young drummer!
Ni plastic synthetic shit either.