endeavoured to persuade the Curaçao government to rethink the laws restricting Tambú. Their efforts gained a following which resulted in the government and the Catholic Church to ease restrictions. Laws were relaxed during certain months of the year (November, December and January), which is now known as 'The Tambú Season'. In contemporary Curaçao society, Tambú continues to be performed in an effort to preserve its historical significance. Special cultural events are organised during the Tambú Season to promote and represent African and Afro-Curaçao history. Tambú recordings are also played on media platforms such as the radio, and in local party scenes, becoming increasingly popular to the younger generations of contemporary Curaçao society. Instrumentation Tambú (drum) An essential element of the Tambú is the single drum which is played during a performance, called the tambú or bari (translated to barrel). The original instrument in Tambú's early years was made out of a hollow tree trunk, its opening covered with animal skin. During the early 17th century the drum took different forms of shapes, in conjunction with the restrictions. As the performance became more secretive in different locations, lighter smaller drums were used, as well as household items such as tables and chairs. Another alternative drum used was known as the kalbas den tobo (“calabash in a tub”), which was made using wooden wash tubs filled with water and a large calabash floating on top. This produced a muffled, quiet sound that allowed Tambú to be performed indistinctly. New types of drums continued to appear in Curaçao. Due to the negative environmental implications of Dutch settlement, trees became less populated on the island. The main type of bari was made from the wood of old vegetable boxes, melded into a cylinder, with sheep skin stretched over the top. This technique is used to construct the drum in modern Curaçao society. Heru Accompanying the bari, there is a collective of iron instruments known as heru. There have been five basic types of heru known as the: Agan di tres pida (“iron in three pieces”), which was made up of two iron bars and one iron tube, in which the player produces different tone variations, depending on where the bars were hit; Agan di dos pida (“iron in two pieces”), which was made up of one iron bar and one tube, and played the same way as the agan di tres pida; Triangel, where