1. By David

2. Drum
 The drum is a musical instrument in the
percussion family. They are generally
made by stretching a drumhead or drum
skin over a shell. The shell is the outer
piece of the drum, and the drumhead is
the part that you hit with your drumstick
or mallet. Drumhead
A snare drum. Shell

3. History of Drums
 Drums have been around for a very long
time. Humans learned that if you hit an
object with a stick or your hands, it would
create a sound. They learned that you
could construct an instrument that would
do the same thing. Some animals have
also noticed this, and drum on their chests,
clap their hands, or hit objects. In Africa,
drums were used to communicate by
signal, and over a long distance.

4. History of Drums Continued
 Drums were more recently used in warfare.
In China, they used taigu drums to help
motivate their troops, and set a marching
pace. They were also used to give orders
in the English Civil War. Swiss infantry
used a drum like the modern snare drum.
In the 17th century, the five line music
notation had begun to be used. It is what
we use today. Drum kits began to become
popular in the 20th century, and now
electronic drums are becoming more used.

5. Different Types of Drums
 There are many different types of drums,
from some used in heavy metal music such
as the snare drum to others used by
Japanese drummers such as the taiko. In
the drum kit, there tends to be a snare
drum, a hi-hat cymbal, a bass drum, two to
three tom-toms, and a ride cymbal. There
can be other drums or more drums in the
kit, but that is the basic set-up. The
Japanese taiko is a big drum made out of
one hollowed-out piece of wood.

6. Different Types of Drums
Continued
 The djembe is a drum from Africa that is
played with your hands. It looks like a big
goblet, with a piece of leather pulled over
the top. The bass drum is a massive,
hollow drum. It is played with a soft mallet,
or with a kick pedal, like the ones on a
drum kit. The hi-hat is a pair of cymbals
that fit on top of each other. They can be
opened or closed by a foot pedal. The
snare drum is a typical drum, but there are
strands of wire called snares that give the
drum a “buzzing” sound when struck.

7. Different Types of Drums Part 3
 The tom-tom is a drum shaped in a
cylinder. It is deeper than a snare drum,
and doesn’t have the snares. It
produces a deep bass tone when struck.
There are different versions with
different sounds, and a variation of the
tom-tom is the floor tom. It is bigger and
lower in tone than the other toms, and it
is mounted on three legs on the floor.

8. Drum Pictures
Bass Drum. Drum kit. African Talking Drum. Snare Drum
Tom-Tom. Daiko.

9. Music Drums are Used In
 Drums are used in many different kinds
of music. They are used in classical
music, and are also used in rock bands.
Drums are used in classical music, jazz,
rock, pop, tribal music, marching bands,
metal, country, and folk songs. The role
of the drummer is usually to provide a
tempo and keep time. They are also
used for to sound good.

10. Construction of Drums
 Drums tend to have a cylindrical shell,
and two heads, one of which you usually
hit. They can also have one side open,
such as the timbales. The drum can
have a metal shell, or a wood shell.
Around the drumhead there is a rim or
‘counterhoop’. To tune the drum, there
are sets of tension rods which you can
turn to make the drum sound tighter or
looser.

11. Construction of Drums
Continued
 On the snare drum, instead of having to
use the tension rods to make it sound
differently, there is a device that will let you
make the snares tighter or looser. It is
called a snare strainer. Turning the tension
up will make the drum sound crisp and
higher pitched. Turning it down will make
the drum sound deeper and less ‘buzzy’.
There is also a switch that can turn off the
snares, and make the drum sound like a
tom-tom.

12. Conclusion
 Drums are very interesting musical
instruments. They have been around for
thousands of years, and have been
important in music to keep a steady
pace. There are many different kinds of
drums, and all of them are unique in
their own way.