Everything about The Drum totally explained
The
drum is a member of the
percussion group, technically classified as a
membranophone. Drums consist of at least one
membrane, called a
drumhead or drum skin, that's stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with parts of a player's body, or with some sort of implement such as a
drumstick, to produce
sound. Drums are the world's oldest and most ubiquitous musical instruments, and the basic design has remained virtually unchanged for thousands of years. Most drums are considered "untuned instruments", however many modern musicians are beginning to tune drums to songs;
Terry Bozzio has constructed a kit using diatonic and chromatically tuned drums. A few such as
timpani are always tuned to a certain pitch. Often, several drums are arranged together to create a
drum set that can be played by one musician with all four limbs.
Construction
The shell almost invariably has a circular opening over which the drumhead is stretched, but the shape of the remainder of the shell varies widely. In the western musical tradition, the most usual shape is a
cylinder, although
timpani, for example, use
bowl-shaped shells. Other shapes include a frame design (
tar,
Bodhrán), truncated cones (
bongo drums,
Ashiko),
goblet shaped (
djembe), and joined truncated cones (
talking drum),
Drums with cylindrical shells can be open at one end (as is the case with
timbales), or can have two drum heads. Single-headed drums normally consist of a skin which is stretched over an enclosed space, or over one of the ends of a hollow vessel. Drums with two heads covering both ends of a cylindrical shell often have a small hole somewhat halfway between the two heads; the shell forms a
resonating chamber for the resulting sound. Exceptions include the African slit drum, made from a hollowed-out tree trunk, and the
Caribbean steel drum, made from a metal barrel. Drums with two heads can also have a set of wires, called snares, held across the bottom head, top head, or both heads, hence the name
snare drum.
On modern
band and
orchestral drums, the drumhead is affixed to a
hoop (also called a "rim"), which in turn is held onto the shell by a "counterhoop", which is then held by means of a number of tuning
screws called "tension rods" (also known as lugs) placed regularly around the circumference. The head's tension can be adjusted by loosening or tightening the rods. Many such drums have six to ten tension rods. The sound of a drum depends on several variables, including shape, size and thickness of its shell, materials from which the shell was made, type of drumhead used and tension applied to it, position of the drum, location, and the velocity and angle in which it's struck.
Prior to the invention of tension rods drum skins were attached and tuned by rope systems such as that used on the
Djembe or pegs and ropes such as that used on
Ewe Drums.
Sound of a drum
Several factors determine the sound a drum produces, including the type of shell the drum has, the type of
drumheads it has, and the tension of the drumheads. Different drum sounds have different uses in music. For example, a
jazz drummer may want drums that sound crisp, clean, and a little on the soft side, whereas a
rock and roll drummer may prefer drums that sound loud and deep. Because these drummers want different sounds, their drums will be constructed differently.
The drumhead has the most effect on how a drum sounds. Each type of drumhead serves its own musical purpose and has its own unique sound. Thicker drumheads are lower-pitched and can be very
loud. Drumheads with a white
plastic coating on them muffle the
overtones of the drumhead slightly, producing a less diverse
pitch. Drumheads with central silver or black dots tend to muffle the overtones even more. And drumheads with
perimeter sound rings mostly eliminate overtones (Howie 2005). Some jazz drummers avoid using thick drumheads, preferring double ply drumheads or drumheads with perimeter sound rings. Rock drummers often prefer the thicker or coated drumheads.
The second biggest factor affecting the sound produced by a drum is the tension at which the drumhead is held against the shell of the drum. When the hoop is placed around the drumhead and shell and tightened down with bolts, the tension of the head can be adjusted. When the tension is increased, the
amplitude of the sound is reduced and the
frequency is increased, making the pitch higher and the volume lower.
The type of shell also affects the sound of a drum. Because the vibrations
resonate in the shell of the drum, the shell can be used to increase the volume and to manipulate the type of sound produced. The larger the
diameter of the shell, the lower the pitch of the drum will be. The type of
wood is important as well.
Birch generates a bright, crisp, and clean sound,
maple reproduces the frequency of the drumhead as it resonates and has a warm, wholesome sound while
mahogany raises the frequency of low pitches and keeps higher frequencies at about the same speed. When choosing a set of shells, a jazz drummer may want smaller maple shells, while a rock drummer may want larger birch shells. For more information about
tuning drums or the physics of a drum, visit the external links listed below.
Uses
Drums are usually played by the hands, or by one or two sticks. In many traditional cultures drums have a symbolic function and are often used in religious ceremonies. Drums are often used in
music therapy, especially hand drums, because of their tactile nature and easy use by a wide variety of people.
Within the realm of
popular music and
jazz, "drums" usually refers to a
drum kit or a set of drums, and "
drummer" to the actual band member or person who plays them.
History
The earliest known drum-like instrument is from Mezhirich, near Kiev,
Ukraine, and dates back to approximately 15,000 years ago. The instrument was found at the site of the oldest known house, constructed of mammoth bones. They were found in 1965 by a farmer digging a new basement six feet below the ground. The drum-like instrument is a hollow mammoth skull with signs of wear from being hit by mammoth bones decorated with red paint.
In the past drums have been used not only for their musical qualities, but also as a means of
communication, especially through signals. The
talking drums of Africa can imitate the inflections and pitch variations of a spoken language and are used for
communicating over great distances. Throughout
Sri Lankan history drums have been used for communication between the state and the community, and Sri Lankan drums have a history stretching back over 2500 years. Japanese troops used
Taiko drums to motivate troops, to help set a marching pace, and to call out orders or announcements. Fife-and-drum corps of
Swiss mercenary foot soldiers also used drums. They used an early version of the
snare drum carried over the player's right shoulder, suspended by a strap (typically played with one hand using
traditional grip). It is to this instrument that English word "drum" was first used.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Drum'.
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