An Ilú or Ilu is the Yoruba name for a type of Brazilian wooden folk drum, found characteristically in the northern provinces of Pernambuco and Ceará.
It has a cylindrical shape with skins at the top and bottom and is normally played with hands. It is mostly used in religious rituals, coming usually in three sizes, curved or flat-shaped. This makes these drums sound slightly different from each other, and to allow performers to play on a standing position. They are built on a cross-shaped base.Stanley Sadie, The New Grove Dictionary of Musical Instruments Macmillan, 198. 4"Ilu"vol.2, p. 284
The same term was earlier used for double-headed barrel-shaped drums, a similar drum from southern Brazil is known as a Tambu.Gerard Béhague. "Brazil." Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. Oxford University Press. 9 Sep 2013.
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