Composers of the early twentieth century sought out further percussion instruments to add to their sound palette. Berg’s Three Pieces for Orchestra (1913) requires a xylorimba: a composite instrument, with a top end sounding like a xylophone, the bass end like a marimba. Walton’s Façade (1926) requires wood blocks: stemming from Africa, these are a series of resonant ...
inside the body of the drum, which can be heard a mile or more away. Lambeg drums are played with curved canes, rather than traditional beaters. Introduction | Percussion Instruments Instruments | Frame Drum | Percussion ...
worldwide popularity. Within a handbell choir, each player will play four or five bells from a chromatic set of bells that could span up to three octaves. Introduction | Percussion Instruments Instruments | Tubular Bells | Percussion ...
chords with great agility. The celesta is used extensively in Bartók’s music, in Mahler’s Sixth Symphony and in ‘Mercury’ from The Planets (1914–16) by Gustav Holst (1874–1934). Introduction | Percussion Instruments Instruments | Mbira | Percussion ...
, maracas, guiro and claves. Bongos also are played in salsa, rumba, mambo, and cha-cha music. Within an ensemble, the bongo player leads the other percussion with improvised solos and decorations on the main rhythm. Throughout Latin America, the term ‘bongo’ is also used for timbales, a pair of single-headed cylindrical drums invented in ...
rivets to the circumference of a suspended cymbal makes a sizzle cymbal. When struck, the rivets vibrate against the cymbal creating a continuous buzzing or sizzling sound. Introduction | Percussion Instruments Instruments | Gong & Tam Tam | Percussion ...
is laced to the drum body with cords running vertically down the drum. More cords are woven horizontally through the vertical cords to tighten the head. Djembes made by western percussion companies may have fibreglass or metal bodies, or wooden bodies made from glued-together slats, skin or plastic heads, with a metal ring holding the drum head in ...
and gongs. Drum-Kit History The drum kit originated in the multiple drum sets played in theatre and music-hall pits at the end of the nineteenth century. The drummer played the percussion part on a combination of bass drum, snare drum, cymbals and tom toms, and added in special effects on a range of other instruments, including woodblock ...
tone when struck. Master drummers working in this style have developed an exacting and complex performance technique for the changgo that takes years of careful practice to attain. Introduction | Percussion Instruments Instruments | Friction Drum | Percussion ...
to the tar and is a round drum with a double row of jingles like a tambourine. Playing Techniques Archeological evidence suggests that the daf and riq were the chief percussion instruments for much of recorded history in the Middle East, with the dumbek becoming popular only in the twentieth century. When playing both the dumbek and frame drums, ...
in long) played under the arm and squeezed to alter the tension and pitch of the drumheads. This creates high and low sounds that imitate tonal African languages. Introduction | Percussion Instruments Instruments | Drums of the Middle East | Percussion ...
bells attached to the crossbars. The bodhrán is played in Irish traditional music and in Celtic folk-rock music. It also appears in Peter Maxwell Davies’ (b. 1934) Fifth Symphony. Introduction | Percussion Instruments Instruments | Drums of the Far East | Percussion ...
by wet or rosined fingers. The lion’s roar may be used as a lure in lion-hunting as it produces a sound similar to that of a female lion. Although not percussion instruments, friction drums are similar to the bullroarers that originated in Australia. There are pieces of flat wood attached to a cord, which are whirled in the air. ...
The gamelan is a percussion ensemble played throughout Indonesia, especially in Bali and Java. A gamelan comprises mainly metallophones, xylophones and gongs. It may also include vocals, the rebab (a two-stringed spike fiddle), the keprak (a slit drum), and the kendhang (a set of three or four double headed, barrel-shaped drums). The kendhang sets the tempo and ...
insane – perhaps fuelled by Viennese psychiatrist Franz Mesmer’s (1734–1815) use of the instrument in his demonstrations of mesmerism – caused the glass armonica to wane in popularity. Introduction | Percussion Instruments Instruments | Latin-American Percussion in the Samba Band ...
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