THE PERCUSSION FAMILY

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THE PERCUSSION FAMILY
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INTERESTING FACTS

• Percussion instruments produce sound when they
  are struck or shaken. The name, percussion, means
  "the hitting of one body against another."
• Percussion instruments are made from many
  materials, but usually consist of either a solid
  material or a stretched membrane (thin material).
  Drums, the most well-known members of the
  percussion family, come in many shapes and sizes,
  but are all constructed with a membrane stretched
  across a frame or hollow container.

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• Percussion instruments are classified as tuned
  or un-tuned.
  
  Tuned instruments play
  specific pitches or notes, just like the
  woodwind, brass and string instruments. Un-tuned
  instruments produce a sound with an indefinite
  pitch, like the sound of a hand knocking on a
  door.
• The percussion are an international family, with
  ancestors from the Middle East, Asia, Africa, the
  Americas and Europe representing musical styles
  from many different cultures.
  

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• The following instruments
• are the most
• familiar members
• of the percussion section

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TIMPANI

• The timpani, also known as kettledrums, are
  constructed of a large copper bowl with a
  drumhead made of animal skin stretched across the
  top. They are struck with felt tipped wooden
  sticks. Timpani are a tuned instrument and
  produce a specific pitch that is determined by
  the drum's size.

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SNARE DRUM

• The snare drum has a crisp un-tuned sound that is
  used by the military and in marching bands.
  Sometimes called the side drum, the snare drum
  has two heads made of skin stretched over a
  hollow metal frame. The top head is struck with
  wooden drumsticks, and is called the batter-head.
  The bottom head or snare-head, has catgut or

metal strings called snares stretched tightly
across it. The snares produce a rattling sound as
they vibrate against the head.
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BASS DRUM

• Constructed like a snare drum, but without
  snares, the bass drum is larger and is played on
  its side, so that both heads may be struck. The
  beater for a bass drum is large with a soft
  material such as sheep's wool covering the end.
  The bass drum has a deep, booming un-tuned sound
  that is felt as well as heard.

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MALLETS

• Glockenspiel Also called bells, is made of
  steel plates of different lengths that are
  arranged like a piano keyboard and struck with
  wooden hammers. The sound from the tuned
  instrument is bright and penetrating.

• Xylophone Consisting of hardwood bars in
  graduated sizes, this tuned instrument is struck
  by hard mallets to produce a bright, sharp sound.
  The bars are arranged like a piano keyboard

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MORE MALLETS

• Vibraphone Is similar to a xylophone except it
  has medal bars. Inside the vibraphone is a disk
  (motor) which rotates and allows the notes hit to
  vibrate. Much like an opera sing.

• Marimba Is similar to a xylophone, it is
  pitched an octave lower than the xylophone. Much,
  much lower!

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AUXILIARY ACCESSORIES

• Chimes
• Gong
• Congas
• Bongos
• Triangle
• Guiro
• Cymbals
• (hi-hat, suspended, crash)
• Claves

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MORE AUXILIARY ACCESSORIES

• Bell Tree
• Wind Chimes
• Woodblock
• Ratchet
• Sleigh Bells
• Castanets
• Maracas
• Tambourine