Drums

Drums are usually made up of a frame of some kind that has a head stretched across the top. Conga drums, smaller bongo drums, tom-toms, and timbales are built this way. Some drums have a top head and a second head on the bottom. Snare drums have a set of snares (wires) stretched across the bottom head of the drum. The tension in the head determines whether the drum has a high sound or a low sound.

Drums are found around the world. Japanese taiko drumming has been in existence for 1400 years. African drumming incorporates complex rhythm patterns.

Marching bands have expanded the types of drums that might be carried while marching. New harnesses and carriers had to be developed in order for marching drummers to carry multiple tom-toms, called tenor drums. The largest drums, the bass drums, now come in a variety of sizes to provide different sounds for the marching drum line. Typical marching drum lines contain snare drums, bass drums, tenor drums, and cymbals.

Drums can be heard in most popular music ensembles as well as orchestras and bands. The drum set that has become a staple of popular music contains all unpitched percussion instruments including bass drum, snare drum, cymbals, and tom-toms of varying size.

Study the images provided and listen to the sound sample of the drums to gain an understanding of these instruments.

Listen to a sample of a drum line: