Great work fixing up a great drum. They found some emerging cracks in the shell and sealed them, replaced the rings, and put a superb skin on it with super-nice rope. Beautiful and sounds world-class!

I had a custom built djembe made exactly to my specs and it turned out perfectly! Their communications with me were quick, clear and there were no problems or unexpected issues or costs. The quality and craftsmanship is second to none. I can’t recommend them more highly - thank you Matt and Sahar!

I absolutely love my repaired drum! It is a work of ART. I also appreciate the business integrity of Drum Skull for working directly with West Africa for skins and more. I now have two djembes that have been amazingly transformed by Matt, a true Master of his craft . Thank you so much! And, they sound perfect!Sequoia Lyn-James

Fantastic people. Concentrated effort on djembes. Building isnt clearly marked but I walked in on three drummers making fantastic sounds. I need to practice.And they provide group and private lessons!

I have a djembe drum that was brought back from Ghana by the daughter of a friend. After years of non-use I purchased the drum from her. I took it to several drum circles but noticed the sound was flat. After attempting to tune the drum myself, there was no improvement, so I decided to take it to a professional. I called a local music store and they referred me to Drumskull. I took the drum there and talked to Matt and Sahar. Matt described in detail how he would refurbish the drum, and Sahar explained the carved symbols on my drum even telling me what kind of wood it was made out of. I knew at once that I had come to the right place. Matt said it would take two weeks and he met his estimate.Now the drum sounds GREAT and looks like a new drum. Im very happy.Sharon Wienhoff.First picture is before. Other two are after.

Awesome work on my djembe repair, Matt. Its refreshing to know that there are folks willing to take you through the process and explain the whys; I learned a lot. Most importantly, I love how my Djembe turned out.

Excellent! Planning and design were accurate, based on what I needed. Personnel are very helpful and pleasant. Congratulations on a good team. The NGoma came out better than I had hoped for. Thank-you for the good work!

I went to Drumskull with my husband to pick up his drum, and ended up buying one myself. I have never drummed before. The passion for refurbishing and for keeping drums alive and being loved and played was so central to everything I saw, heard and felt while waiting, it pulled me in. I looked around and instantly fell in love with a small drum, one of many that had been used at a school. It was already beautiful.I got the call, my drum had been completely refurbished: the wood lovingly oiled, a new skin put on top, the perfect colored ropes affixed to it, but the fires were threatening Santa Cruz and evacuations ordered. The final act of true love - amidst all the other things that needed to be done - my drum was packed along with many others waiting for pick up and mailed safely to me rather than risking the fire ever getting to it.She is beautiful. The workmanship so expert. And now, I will learn to play her.

I received my Premium drum today and im absolutely blown away by the quality of the build. This is a real musical instrument, not a tourist drum. Ive been paying the Djembe for more than 20 years now, and during that time ive owned several good quality Lenke drums. However, the quality of my new DSD drum is on a whole new level. I would also like to mention the high level of customer service I received from DSD, they were so attentive to my needs and ensured that I received the drum that I wanted. I would highly recommend anyone to buy there drum from this company.

My spectacular new custom djembe was delivered today. Thanks to Sahar for helping with the design details & to Matt for the incredible artistry required to create this drum.

Wonderful place very smart and very thorough about every detail I def recommend

Always a pleasure there. This is the place to go for your drums! New hides going on! :)

I just got my favorite djembe back from an overhaul at Drumskull, and it sounds so awesome I feel like I won the lottery! Never had a djembe sound, like, ten times better after replacing the skin. Drumskull is the best in the West!

Repurchase several times, the quality is amazing every time！Replying to the message is fast, friendly, efficient, fast shipping, very careful packaging

Knowledgeable, friendly service! Feels like family! Absolutely beautiful repair work and amazing sounding drums. Longtime client. Highly recommend Drumskulls for your African drumming needs.

I stumbled onto Drumskull via the internet in a search for a good djembe. The reviews were positive, and they are based in Santa Cruz, CA, which seemed like a good sign. Their custom shells looked pretty good on their web site. I figured it was worth a gamble.You know that lingering doubt that can surround an internet transaction? Well, do not worry. This shop is incredible and their drums are **FAN-TAS-TIC**!The drum I received has such a perfect juicy clean and powerful sound… I’m kind of in shock when I play it. It sounds so good and it looks beautiful.It may take a few weeks to get your new custom drum made. Be patient. It will be worth the wait.Thank you Sahar!!!

Literally love coming to this shop. Matt is an amazing person and does amazing work! He’s repaired two of my Djembes and made them sound better than what I could imagine. I always leave with more merchandise than I planned.lol Sahar is great at completing orders quickly and the team does an amazing job at running the store. I would definitely recommend them for high quality repairs, service, and drums. I really appreciate their willingness to make time for me to pickup my drum. These guys do not disappoint.

Incredible attention to detail, Matt brought my early 90s djembe back to life, the tone is fantastic! Highly recommended

The drums sound and look great. Im so happy with them. You all do such a great job bringing out the spirit of the drum through your process. Thank you!!!!!

I had a very positive experience sending my djembe shell to Drumskull drums to have them build her for me. My drum came back to me truly amazing. I am shocked how well she looks and sounds. I have a hard time taking a break from playing her. Much thanks to the Drumskull team!!

I have purchased multiple djembe drum products from Drumskull over the past year. They are always very professional with me in the ordering and delivery of their products. Im especially thankful in my dealings with Sahar. Ive got no compliants and truly enjoy our relationship. Ill be making additional purchases once the Covid-19 pandemic is over. Many thanks to all their staff!!

The quality of the instruments that Matt and crew build are top tier. Id never go anywhere else. The quality and sound produced is nothing short of beautiful.The friendly, family atmosphere in the shop is refreshing and inspirational.

World renowned drum shop. Matt makes the best drums. But equally important is how incredibly welcoming and kind Matt and everyone in the community is. Come here and drum!

There is no better craftsmanship in the African Drum Industry. I have purchased multiple drums from Drumskull. And every one is a work of art. The tone quality is amazing. Nice pitch highs, and solid lows. You will not be disappointed with any drum you get from these guys. I you are ever in the Santa Cruz area, make sure you make a stop and check out there shop. The Owner is passionate about what he does.

Love it love it love it always, got my drum redone and going in the spring to resting my drum, great energetic spirit, thank you

Drumskull Drums is the premier shop for djembes and other African instruments. Recently, I sent my djembe in for a new skin. Living in New York, I knew it would be a big undertaking with shipping and packing. I received the djembe back yesterday and I couldnt be happier. The drum looks and sounds amazing! After I sent it in, I was told the wood type, Iroko, and the most likely country of origin, The Ivory Coast. Besides having a new skin, a piece of rubber was installed at the bottom of the drum to keep it from slipping when performing on a stage. The shell was oiled and a new goat skin was installed. The drum is tuned perfectly!Sahar, my contact, was informative and timely. She kept me updated along the way and answered all of my questions. I highly recommend Drumskull Drums. I wish I lived closer so I could visit their shop.

This place is amazing! Matt runs a great shop there ... Def. the go to place for all things Djembe, Dune-Dune, Conga, and similar... Repairs, tune-ups, purchase, or have something custom made.

My drum arrived safely in Harrisburg today! I am very pleased with the reheading/rubber bottom/tack work/skin. Matt is the BEST!I also want to commend you on your great customer service. I have bought several drums from Drumskull Drums and had a few reheaded. I always got great customer service, whether it was for buying new drums or reheading one of my drums (Drumskull or Non-Drumskull).Thank you so much. Very nice doing business with you! Best wishes!Lilo

The drumskull drum’s customer service is awesome with sahar’s great help. matt’s build is top tier because of his wood work is authentic, mainly bearing edge, surfacing, sanding and oiling, which is out signature and makes him and his crew unique from everyone else in the market.fyi, i am deaf and beginner djembe drummer. sahar never look down at me because she has respected and understood my needs when i’ve asked her about what is right djembe for me. i’ve been enlighted better to understand something new about djembe’s woods to be connected with spirit and respect the west africa’s history with a great courtesy.she has helped with my decision to choose the right one easier. i only regretted by hesitating and waiting longer for the price to be drop a little on sale one day but someone else already had DIBS on these two djembe drums twice for full price before too late for me to make final decision to cough up my dough. :(i recently happened to see the djembe gele wood shell on the market then that wood already has whispered my name, i was jumping to place a order at drumskull drum quickly. when my wife found out about my order without her consent behind her back, ive tried to talk her out of cancelling my custom line djembe drum. thank god, she finally understood my true feeling and let me to keep my backorder after able for her to see my love for that gele wood djembe.i am very pleased how they’ve helped with my choice on specification of skin, ropes, etc.. i LOVE the details and whole on my djembe that make my day in lifetime! i highly recommend you to the drumskull drums without a doubt. they brought good karma to my life. KUDOS to matt and sahar!

Wow! I just got my profeesional djembe restored with new rings, ropes and head. I can’t keep my hands off of it! From the customer service to the finished product I could not be more happy. Thank you Drumskull for bringing my drum back to life!!

Recently I flew to San Jose, CA and then drove to Santa Cruz to Drum Skull. I had the pleasure of meeting the team and learning about their process for repairing Djembes. I left my Djembe toI have a new skin put on and when it was returned two weeks later, OMG, Wow, what a difference in the sound. There is a local drum store in my area thats replaced the head on my other drum and there is a wortld of difference in the quality of workmanship. Highly, Highly recommend Drum Skull.

I bought my first real djembe from Matt & Ryan way back in 1996 (after I was informed that my Remo djembe was....ummm, kinda lame”, when I first met Matt & Ryan they worked out of a little dirt floor shack off of Hywy 1 in Aptos. Still have the djembe from way back then.Might be about time to visit Matt and have him tune it up for me(again). I’m somewhat afraid to go there because there’s a 85% chance I’ll see something in there that I fall in love with and wanna buy...another djembe? Maybe a set of dununs? Ya’ never know til ya’ get there.

Very cool drum shop in Santa Cruz. Lots of djembes.

Youre the best around the world...Drumskulldrums...

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