Music Sound

The tumbi is a traditional South-Asian instrument form the Punjab region. The high pitched, single string plucking instrument is associated with folk music of Punjab and presently very popular in Western Bhangra Music.

The tumbi was popularized by the Punjabi folk-singer Yamla Jatt (also spelled 'Jamla Jatt'). The instrument is made of a wooden stick mounted with a Toomba or wooden resonator covered with skin. A metallic string is passed on a resonator over a bridge and tied to the key at the end of the stick. The string is struck with the continuous flick and retraction of the forefinger.

"Get your freak on" by Timbaland and Missy Elliot saw the introduction of the distinct tumbi sound into the popular mainstream music scene.

"Mundeya tou bach ke rahi" (Beware of Boys) from Panjabi MC, a huge hit in the UK charts, is perhaps the most widely-known example of the use of tumbi in popular music.