NamiPan F#2 Pygmy Embersteel

The Nami handpans contain the power of the ocean and the east wind. These special musical instruments are born on the cliffs of an island in the Atlantic Ocean. Each instrument is created under the influence of the elements and in harmony with nature. The harmony of the rolling waves of the sea flows into the sound of these instruments just as much as the whispering of the wind. The sounds of the Nami handpans invite you to surf on them and melt into the melody. The sound of handpans promotes concentration, mental relaxation, strengthens the immune system and creates a wonderful feeling of joy and well-being.

The sea gives the sound artist Daniele new inspiration every day, which he incorporates into the construction of the handpans.

Nami Handpans from Ember Steel:
The extremely long reverberation brings with it an extreme richness of overtones. These handpans are probably the instruments with the most sustain that we know of. The more pronounced crosstalking effects make the whole instrument seem to sing along. This creates a versatile carpet of sound that is particularly inviting for slower, meditative playing. This extremely mystical, spherical sound lets the player dive into other spheres and can lead to trance-like states. The handpan gloves provided can be used to reduce the sustain and the extreme richness of overtones a little and also make medium-fast playing possible.

The Nami handpans are made of both nitrided steel and ember steel of the highest quality. Custom-made handpans with special tunings or with additional tone fields on the bottom are possible after consultation with us.

Diameter: 53 cm
Height: 26cm
Weight: approx. 4kg
Material: Embersteel

Tuning name: Pygmy
Standard pitch sequence: F#2/ F# G# AC# EF# G# A
Atmosphere: Meditative - Introverted - Floating
Tonal Center: DING
Mode: Aeolian minor
Tone range: Pentatonic

Semitones: 2- 1-4-3-2-2-1-4

Mood description Pygmy:

Pygmy is an extremely popular scale. Apart from the name, this scale only has the number of notes up to the octave in common with pygmy music (pentatonic). The equi-pentatonic scale, which some African peoples traditionally use, would probably also be very unusual for our western ears. Nevertheless, this hemitonic pentatonic scale is very good for both rhythmic patterns and melodic phrases.

A special feature of both Pygmy versions is that four of the five tones are present again one octave higher, allowing the overtones to be amplified well (cf. natural scale).

Pygmy is often referred to as Dorian pentatonic . We don't understand this term because there is no sixth degree. The term Dorian pentatonic probably came about in analogy to church scales. In connection with pentatonics, this approach makes little sense because in this example the major sixth note, which is absolutely important for the Dorian mode, is missing. Apart from that, Pygmy is a very cool sounding scale!

The special thing about this Pygmy tuning is that it is a hemitonic pentatonic. This means that, unlike a normal major or minor pentatonic (anhemitonic pentatonic), there is also a semitone. This is between the first and second tone, so the first three tones of the natural minor scale (Aeolian) are present in Pygmy without a jump. In the example F Pygmy, that would be FG-Ab. From this tone, there is a jump of a major third (also called a major third) to the fifth tone (in the example: tone C). This is followed by a minor third jump and a whole tone step that leads to the octave. From here, there is the same sequence of tones up to the twelfth tone (fifth tone in the upper octave).

Despite the presence of a semitone and its potential for friction, Pygmy is very easy and intuitive to play. Clearly recommended even for beginners!

Possible tone sequences:

Scale with 9 notes: F#2/ F#3 G#3 A3 C#4 E4 F#4 G#4 A4

Scale with 10 notes: F#2/ F#3 G#3 A3 C#4 E4 F#4 G#4 A4 (B4)


Scale with 11 notes: F#2/ (D3 E3) F#3 G#3 A3 C#4 E4 F#4 G#4 A4


Scale with 12 notes: F#2/ (D3 E3) F#3 G#3 A3 C#4 E4 F#4 G#4 A4 ( B4)

Scale with 13 notes: F#2/ (D3 E3) F#3 G#3 A3 C#4 E4 F#4 G#4 A4 (B4 C#5)


Scale with 14 notes: F#2/ (D3 E3) F#3 G#3 A3 (B3) C#4 (D4) E4 F#4 G#4 A4 (B4)

Scale with 15 notes: F#2/ (D3 E3) F#3 G#3 A3 (B3) C#4 (D4) E4 F#4 G#4 A4 (B4 C#5)

* Bottom notes are additional tone fields on the bottom of the handpan and are written in round brackets e.g. (DE).

Mutant handpans have additional notes on the upper shell in the second row - between the chorus and the root note. Mutant notes are written in curly brackets, e.g. {DE}.

→ You can read a detailed article about Mutant & Bottom Note Handpans here: Blog post

→ Discover our full range of Mutant & Bottom Note Handpans here

We only list the standard layouts under "Possible note sequences". On request, our handpans can also be made with other notes and in other arrangements. Simply write an email with your request to: service@handpan.world