Rapai is one of the striking musical instruments from Aceh, made of hard wood and goat skin. The woods that are often used are merbau and tualang, the bodies of which are dredged to make a hole in the middle which is called 'baloh'. The 'baloh' is round like a circular ring, the upper diameter is larger than the bottom diameter. The ring sizes are different, there are rings 10, 12, 14, and even 22.
The strings are attached to the goat skin which has been preserved and attached to the top of the baloh with a bamboo clamp clamped.
To tighten the strings, a little finger-sized rattan is inserted between the strings and the 'baloh' or lower body so that the sound is loud.
Rapai is played at traditional and religious ceremonies, wedding ceremonies, welcoming births, and entertainment for the people after the rice harvest.
How to play it by tapping with your bare hands with a certain bar.
Usually there are matches between groups from the surrounding villages. This is played by groups of 12 to 25 players per group. The leader is called a 'sheikh'.
So first, let's continue and I'll introduce you to other traditional musical instruments.
Greetings of arts and culture.