HANDDRUMHUB
Find the groove — hand drums, tuning, and world percussion.
From converting tempo to note length and tuning a drum head to generating a polyrhythm, keeping the beat with a metronome, sizing a djembe skin, and counting a tapped groove, HandDrumHub pairs free hands-on percussion calculators with clear guides and a richly illustrated museum. Find the groove, then understand it.
Drum & Percussion Calculators
Free tools for hand drums and world percussion — BPM & tempo calculator, drum head tuning calculator, polyrhythm generator, metronome, djembe head size calculator, and a beat & tap tempo counter.
BPM & Tempo Calculator
Convert a tempo into the exact millisecond length of every note value, and see its standard tempo marking.
Drum Head Tuning Calculator
Turn a target note into a frequency, then into the membrane tension your head needs to reach it.
Polyrhythm Generator
Lay two rhythms of any ratio onto a shared pulse grid with exact millisecond timing.
Metronome
A free browser metronome with an accented downbeat, adjustable tempo and time signature.
Djembe Head Size Calculator
Turn a shell's bearing-edge diameter into a recommended raw skin size for rope tuning.
Beat & Tap Tempo Counter
Tap along to a groove to measure its BPM and track your position in the bar.
World Percussion Museum
Wander an immersive, richly illustrated collection — djembe and West African drumming, cajón and hand percussion, congas and Afro-Cuban rhythm, and taiko and frame drums from around the world, each in its own gallery. Every entry, image, and fact is drawn from Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons.
Tour the museum →From the Journal
Clear, worked guides on tuning a head, understanding tempo and polyrhythms, choosing your first hand drum, and the world traditions behind the instruments — reading to pair with the calculators above.
How to Tune a Djembe: A Step-by-Step Guide
A practical walkthrough of rope-tuning a djembe — reading the Mali weave, pulling tension evenly around the rim, and knowing when to stop.
Understanding BPM: A Practical Guide to Tempo
What beats per minute actually measures, how it relates to note values in milliseconds, and how to use a tempo number in real practice.
What Is a Polyrhythm? 3-Against-4 Explained
A clear breakdown of what a polyrhythm is, how 3-against-4 actually lines up mathematically, and how to practice it without getting lost.
Goatskin vs Synthetic Drumheads: What Actually Changes
A practical comparison of natural and synthetic drumheads — tone, tuning stability, durability, and how to choose between them.
A Beginner's Guide to Practicing With a Metronome
How to actually get better with a metronome instead of just turning it on — starting tempo, common exercises, and habits worth building early.
Cajón vs Djembe: Choosing Your First Hand Drum
Two of the most popular entry points into hand percussion, compared on sound, technique, portability, and what a beginner should actually expect.
Keep Learning
Plain-language explainers on the building blocks of rhythm — drum anatomy and tuning, the ideas behind polyrhythm and groove, and the world drumming traditions that carry them — everything you need to go deeper with confidence.
Visit the Learn hub →