The Hang (German pronunciation: [haŋ]; plural form: Hanghang) is a type of musical instrument that belongs to the idiophone class and is based on the Trinidad & Tobago steelpan. It was developed by Felix Rohner and Sabina Schärer in Bern, Switzerland, and produced by their company, PANArt Hangbau AG. The name "Hang" comes from a Bernese German word that means both "hand" and "hillside." Although it is sometimes called a "Hang drum," the inventors believe this is an incorrect name.
The Hang is made from two half-shells of deep-drawn, nitrided steel sheet that are glued together at the edges, leaving the inside empty and forming the shape of a convex lens. The top side, called "Ding," has a central note hammered into it, with seven or eight additional tone areas around the center. The bottom side, called "Gu," is a flat surface with a rolled hole in the center. When the rim is struck, this hole produces a tuned note. The instrument uses some of the same physical principles as a steelpan but is modified to function as a Helmholtz resonator.
The Hang has gone through several versions. After production stopped in 2013, PANArt continued to create other musical instruments. Because of global interest in the Hang, similar instruments have been made and are now called handpans.
Creation and development
The Hang was created in 2000 by Felix Rohner and Sabina Schärer in Bern, Switzerland. It was first shown at the Frankfurt Trade Fair in 2001. Rohner and Schärer, who worked on it for many years, later started a company called PANArt Hangbau AG to sell the instrument. The name "Hang" comes from a word in Bernese German that can mean "hand" or "hillside," referring to its curved shape. The Hang is a registered trademark owned by PANArt. Over time, people began calling it a "Hang drum," but the creators prefer not to use this name, as they believe it is incorrect.
The Hang is a type of handpan, which is a musical instrument in the idiophone class. It is based on the Trinidad & Tobago steelpan. The instrument is 52 cm (20 in) wide and 24 cm (9 in) tall. It is made from two deep-drawn steel hemispheres that are hardened using a process called gas nitridization. The bottom side has a central opening called "Gu," which creates a bass note through a special sound effect called Helmholtz resonance. When played in a damped way, the Hang can change pitch, similar to a talking drum. The top has seven or eight notes arranged in a zigzag pattern around a central low note called "Ding." All notes are tuned harmonically, with the Ding at the center. Each Hang is numbered and signed.
From 2001 to 2005, the first-generation Hang was sold in multiple scales, with up to 45 different sound models. Its creators were inspired by musical traditions from around the world, including scales from Aeolian, Akebono, Hijaz, and Pygmy music. From 2001 to 2004, each Hang had eight tone fields in a circle. In 2005, PANArt introduced a version called the "Low Hang," where the Ding was tuned to F3, E3, or E♭3. This version had eight or seven tone fields. Each unit was numbered, labeled with the sound model name, and signed by either Felix Rohner or Sabina Schärer.
In 2006, a new version of the Hang was released. It had a surface layer of annealed brass over the nitrided steel and a brass ring around the edge. The Ding was tuned to D3, with two A notes (A3 and A4) and another D (D4) in the tone circle. Other notes were arranged in different patterns. Most second-generation Hangs had seven tone fields. Earlier models had tone fields oriented radially toward the Ding, while models from 2007 and the Integral Hang had tone fields angled at 45° from a line drawn from the Ding to the edge.
In 2008, a new version called the Integral Hang was introduced. It used only one scale with seven tone fields (D3 Ding, A3, B♭3, C4, D4, E4, F4, A4) and no other sound models. The Gu hole was reshaped to improve the tuning of three notes (D5, F5, F♯5). The Ding was changed with a textured brass indentation and a smoother transition between the Ding and the tone circle. The PANArt logo, serial number, date, and signatures of the makers were placed on the Gu side near the middle of the instrument.
By creating the Integral Hang, Rohner and Schärer focused less on making an instrument for professional musicians. Their goals were explained in a document called the "Letter from the Hangbauhaus."
In 2010, the Free Integral Hang was introduced. It had fewer changes, including the removal of the brass ring around the Ding and Gu shells. The Ding’s dome was no longer coated with brass and had a special double curve. The Free Integral Hang was tuned without special tools, and the Ding’s pitch varied slightly between instruments, centered around D3. The tone circle followed the same pattern as the Integral Hang.
Termination of Hang manufacturing and development of new Pang instruments
As of December 2013, PANArt said that the Hang would no longer be made because the company was starting to create a new instrument called the Gubal. In the years after, PANArt made several other instruments, including the Hang Gudu, Hang Urgu, Hang Bal, and Hang Gede. They also created string instruments and a type of music that is played together and made up on the spot using these "Pang instruments."
Playing
The Hang is usually played by resting it on the player's lap, with hands and fingers used instead of mallets. This method of playing creates a softer and warmer sound compared to the brighter sound of traditional steelpan instruments played with mallets.
The top side of the Hang, called the "Ding," can produce sounds similar to a harp, bells, or harmonically tuned steelpan, depending on how it is played. The notes are arranged in a cross pattern on the tone circle, from the lowest to the highest notes. By holding the Hang in a specific way, players can move up or down the musical scale by alternating between the left and right hands to strike different tone areas. Each tone area has multiple overtones, with a dome in the center. Typically, each tone includes a main note, an overtone one octave higher than the main note, and another overtone a perfect fifth above that octave. The arrangement of these overtones is consistent across the Hang, allowing players to emphasize, mute, or highlight them by striking specific areas.
The bottom side of the Hang has a round opening called the "Gu," which, along with the air inside, creates a Helmholtz resonance similar to the sound of a ghatam or an udu. In the second generation of the Hang, known as the Integral Hang and the Free Integral Hang, players can adjust the size of the Gu by partially covering it with their hands or legs. This adjustment allows a sympathetic D2 note to be produced through the resonance, adding more complex layers to the instrument's sound when notes are played on the "Ding" side. In both first- and second-generation models, a single high note with a long, sustained sound can be created by striking the edge of the Gu opening. On the Integral Hang, two notes (F and F♯) can be produced in this way. The Hang can also be used as a friction idiophone, creating shaker-like sounds by sliding a hand across its surface or producing a ringing sound like a singing bowl by using a hand or a bow.
When tuning the Hang, the focus is not on the exact mathematical frequency ratios of the tones but on the overall impact and quality of the sound produced.