Percussion instrument

A percussion instrument can be any object which produces a sound by being struck with an implement, shaken, rubbed, scraped, or by any other action which sets the object into vibration. The term usually applies to an object used in a rhythmic context and/or with musical intent.

The word, "percussion", has evolved from Latin terms: "percussio" (which translates as "to beat, strike" in the musical sense, rather than the violent action), and "percussus" (which is a noun meaning "a beating"). As a noun in contemporary English it is described at Wiktionary as "the collision of two bodies to produce a sound". The usage of the term is not unique to music but has application in medicine and weaponry, as in percussion cap, but all known and common uses of the word, "percussion", appear to share a similar lineage beginning with the original Latin: "percussus". In a musical context then, the term "percussion instruments" may have been coined originally to describe a family of instruments including drums, rattles, metal plates, or wooden blocks which musicians would beat or strike (as in a collision) to produce sound.

Classifications

Percussion instruments can be, and indeed are, classified by various criteria sometimes depending on their construction, ethnic origin, their function within musical theory and orchestration, or their relative prevelance in common knowledge. It is not sufficient to describe percussion instruments as being either "pitched" or "unpitched" which is often a tendency; rather it may be more informative to describe percussion instruments in regards to one or more of the following four paradigms:

By methods of sound production

Many texts, including Teaching Percussion by Dr. Gary Cook of the University of Arizona, begin by studying the physical characteristics of instruments and the methods by which they produce sound. This is perhaps the most scientifically pleasing assignment of nomenclature whereas the other paradigms are more dependent on historical or social circumstances. Based on observation and experiment, one can determine exactly how an instrument produces sound and then assign the instrument to one of the following five categories:

Idiophone

The simplest type of percussion instruments, these vibrate when struck.

Examples of idiophones:
*Wood block
*Crash cymbals
*Marimba

Membranophone

Most objects commonly known as "drums" are membranophones.Examples of membranophone:
*Tom-tom
*Snare drum
*Timpani

Chordophone

Most instruments known as "chordophones" are defined as string instruments, but some such as these examples are, arguably, percussion instruments also.
*Hammered dulcimer
*Piano

Aerophone

Most instruments known as "aerophones" are defined as wind instruments such as a saxophone whereby sound is produced by a person or thing blowing air through the object. However, the following example instruments, if played at all in a musical context, are played by the percussionists in an ensemble.Examples of aerophones:
*Whips
*Siren

Electrophone

Electrophones are also percussion instruments. In the strictest sense, all electrophones require a loudspeaker (an idiophone or some other means to push air and create sound waves). This, if for no other argument, is sufficient to assign electrophones to the percussion family. Moreover, many composers have used the following example instruments and they are most often performed by percussionists in an ensemble.Examples of electrophones:
*Computers and MIDI instruments (i.e. drum machines)
*Radios
*Theremin

By musical function/orchestration

It is in this paradigm that it is useful to define percussion instruments as either having definite pitch or indefinite pitch. For example, some instruments such as the marimba and timpani produce an obvious fundamental pitch and can therefore play melody and serve harmonic functions in music while other instruments such as crash cymbals and snare drums produce sounds with such complex overtones and a wide range of prominent frequencies that no pitch is discernable.

Definite pitch

Instruments in this group are sometimes referred to as "pitched" or "tuned".

Indefinite pitch

Instruments in this group are sometimes referred to as "non-pitched", "unpitched", or "untuned".

By prevelance in common knowledge

Although it is difficult to define what is "common knowledge", there are instruments in use by percussionists and composers in contemporary music which are certainly not considered by most to be musical instruments of any kind. Therefore, it is worthwhile to try to make distinction between instruments based on their acceptance or consideration by a general audience. For example, it is safe to argue that most people would not consider an anvil, a brake drum (the circular hub on modern vehicles which houses the brakes), or a fifty-five gallon oil barrel to be musical instruments, yet these objects are used regularly by composers and percussionists of modern music.

One might assign various percussion instruments to one of the following categories:

Conventional/Popular

*Drum kit
*Tambourine
*Gong

Unconventional

(Sometimes referred to as "found" instruments)
*spokes on a bicycle wheel
*a shopping cart
*metal pipes
*clay pots
*garbage cans
*any thing

John Cage, Harry Partch, Edgard Varèse, all of whom are notable composers, created entire pieces of music using unconventional instruments. Beginning in the early 20th century, perhaps with Ionisation by Edgard Varèse which used air-raid sirens (among other things), composers began to require percussionists to invent or "find" objects to produce the desired sounds and textures.

By cultural significance/tradition

This topic should be investigated with caution so as to avoid being politically or historically incorrect. Nevertheless, it is not uncommon to discuss percussion instruments in relation to their cultural origin which has led to a dualism between instruments which are considered "common" or "modern" and those which have a significant history and/or significant purpose within a geographic region or among a specific demographic of the world's population.

"World"/"Ethnic"/"Folk" drums

This category may contain instruments which have special significance among a specific ethnic group or geographic region. Such as:
*Bodhran
*Djembe
*Gamelan
*Steelpan
*Latin percussion

"Common" drums

This category may contain instruments which are widely available throughout the world and have experienced popularization among a variety of world populations. Such as:
*Drum kit
*Orchestral percussion instruments
*Snare drum

Function

Percussion instruments play not only rhythm, but also melody and harmony.

Percussion is commonly referred to as "the backbone" or "the heartbeat" of a musical ensemble, often working in close collaboration with bass instruments, when present. In jazz and other popular music ensembles, the bassist and the drummer are oftened referred to as the rhythm section. Most classical pieces written for full orchestra since the time of Haydn and Mozart are orchestrated to place emphasis on the strings, woodwinds, and brass. However, often at least one pair of timpani is included, though they rarely play continuously. Rather, they serve to provide additional accents when needed. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, other percussion instruments (like the triangle or cymbals) have been used, again relatively sparingly in general. The use of percussion instruments became more frequent in the twentieth century classical music.

In almost every style of music, percussion plays a pivotal role. In military marching bands and pipes and drums, it is the beat of the bass drum that keeps the soldiers in step and at a regular speed, and it is the snare that provides that crisp, decisive air to the tune of a regiment. In classic jazz, one almost immediately thinks of the distinctive rhythm of the hi-hats or the ride cymbal when the word "swing" is spoken. In more recent popular music culture, it is almost impossible to name three or four rock, hip-hop, rap, funk or even soul charts or songs that do not have some sort of percussive beat keeping the tune in time.

Because of the diversity of percussive instruments, it is not uncommon to find large musical ensembles composed entirely of percussion. Rhythm, melody and harmony are all apparent and alive in these musical groups, and in live performance they are quite a sight to see.

Percussion music

Music for pitched percussion instruments can be notated on a staff with the same treble and bass clefs used by many non-percussive instruments. Music for percussive instruments without a definite pitch can be notated with a specialist rhythm or percussion-clef; More often a treble clef (or sometimes a bass clef) is substituted for rhythm clef.

Names for percussionists

The general term for a musician who plays percussion instruments is percussionist.
*drummer: someone who primarily plays drums including the drumset and hand drums.
*timpanist: a timpani player
*marimbist, marimbero: a marimba player
*balafonist: a balafon player
*vibraphonist: a vibraphone player
*timbalero, timbero: someone who plays timbales
*congalero, conguero: someone who plays congas
*bongocerro: someone who plays bongos and usually cencerro, a cow bell, too
*xylophonist: a xylophone player

Percussionists are also called upon to play a variety of instruments which are not percussive or are not generally thought of as percussion instruments. These include the lion's roar, wind machines, whistles and duck calls, air raid sirens, doorbells, car horns, pistols, typewriters, and the glass harmonica.

Because percussion covers such a diverse range of musical styles, rhythms, melodies, and harmonies, percussion virtuosi are often some of the most widely skilled and accomplished musicians in the music industry.

External links

*PercussionMedia.com - Watch and upload percussion videos
*pas.org - Percussive Arts Society
*Dave's Percussion Library Online

Percussion instrument: Encyclopedia BETA

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