Tsuzumi

The 'tsudzumi' or 'tsuzumi' (鼓) is a Japanese hand drum of Chinese/Mongolian/Indian origin. It consists of a wooden body shaped like an hourglass, and it is taut, with two drum heads with cords that can be squeezed or released to increase or decrease the tension of the heads respectively. This mechanism allows the player to raise or lower the pitch of the drum while playing, not unlike the African talking drum.