I love playing the dhol.. It's surprising but i learnt this very Indian instrument in UK.
The dhol is a double-sided barrel drum (straight barrels also exist) played mostly as an accompanying instrument to the traditional Punjabi dance of Bhangra.
The drum consists of a wooden barrel with animal hide or synthetic skin stretched over its open ends, covering them completely. These skins can be stretched or loosened with a tightening mechanism made up of either interwoven ropes, or nuts and bolts. Tightening or loosening the skins subtly alters the pitch of the drum sound. The stretched skin on one of the ends is thicker and produces a deep, low frequency (higher bass) sound and the other thinner one produces a higher frequency sound. In contemporary Punjabi music, dhols with synthetic, or plastic, treble skins are very common. People who play Dhol are called "Dhol Players" or "Dholis".
The drum is played using two wooden sticks, usually made out of bamboo and cane wood. The most common rhythm played on the dhol is the Chaal, which consists of 8 beats per measure. The stick used to play the bass side of the drum is a bit thicker (roughly about 10 mm in diameter) and is bent in a quarter-circular arc on the end that strikes the drum, the dagga. The other stick is much thinner and flexible and used to play the higher note end of the drum, the thili. The drum is slung over the neck of the player with a strap usually made up of ropes or woven cloth. The surface of the wooden barrel is in some cases decorated with engraved or painted patterns.
Music: The coach of Life
Music has a very healing role in our life. It's the oxygen for the soul. I have personally experienced the magic io learning a music instrument. Any instrument is not easy to play. You need patience and lots of concentration to get it right. The brain, the body and the heart have to be in sync with each other to play any instrument. If we learn an instrument, we teach our body, mind and heart to co-ordinate with each other. The more we practise the more we learn and the more our body, mind and heart learn to co-ordinate with each other.
It helps.. Next time if you are sitting in a meeting or working on a project and nothing is working out sorting things will be a piece of cake. When you are learning a new note in music and you can't get it, you have got to focus your body, mind and heart on it to get it. If we learn that, indirectly we learn how to face any challenge in our work or personal life as our mind, body and heart have learnt to blend with each other hence resolving any issues in life becomes easy.
My recommendation: If as a kid there was any instrument you wanted to learn and you did not for whatever reason.. LEARN IT.. it will helps you boost you energy to get to other dreams you want in Life...