The PANArt Hang ‘Dum’ - A Wooden Accessory for the GU

PANArt Hang Drum with Dum
PANArt Hang Drum with Dum
I recently came across one of these for the first time in person, and decided that as a novelty, the ‘Dum’ is deserving of a short post of its own. A wooden accessory for the PANArt Hang that sits within the ‘Gu’ (bottom opening), the Dum is designed to lower the Helmholtz resonance of the Hang, by narrowing and extending the neck of the Gu, altering the Hang’s sound.

And while the change to the Hang’s voice isn’t earth shattering, I did quite like it, and at the price of an extra 25Euro, back in the day, when PANArt offered such accessories - believed to have been between 2004-2007 (and primarily intended for use with the GUDU Hang variation - though also compatible with any first, or second gen.), the Dum would have made a pretty cool accessory to aid with the milking of every sound possible, from any given Hang, for those who had the option. And being made from turned Pearwood, and sporting the PANArt logo etched/burnt in, the Dum is the kind of cool, rustic looking little thing-a-ma-jig, that will no doubt become something of a collectible in the future (it's believed that there were only around 200 Dum ever made). And perhaps the Dum, as an idea, in days to come, will be taken up, and evolved by other makers. And made readily available to all who crave such things, both for Hang, and for alternative HandPan (possibly).

Or failing that, should you wish to experiment with the Dum, you could always try reading (and possibly resurrecting) the following thread over at HandPan.org: Halo Dum. And have a go at making one for yourself.

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