A kompang looks a bit like a tambourine without the metal jingles — a round wooden hoop with a flat drum skin stretched across one side. Players hold it in one hand and strike the skin with the fingers and palm of the other hand in different ways to produce high and low sounds. Each different striking technique creates a different tone.
Kompang is almost always played in a large group — sometimes ten, twenty, or even more drummers at once. The group rehearses patterns carefully so that their beats interlock and complement each other. Performances can include drummers walking in formation, moving in coordinated lines while still playing, which creates a visually exciting spectacle as well as a musical one.
You will hear kompang at weddings, festivals, official welcome ceremonies, and National Day parades in Brunei. Groups of kompang players often greet important visitors at the airport or at grand entrances. Learning kompang is something many young Bruneians do in school — it connects them with their cultural heritage and teaches them how to listen to others and play as a team.