Snare drum
The
snare drum or
side drum is a tubular
drum made of
wood or
metal with skins, or
heads, stretched over the top and bottom openings.
A cluster of snares made of curled metal
wire, metal
cable, plastic
cable, or
gut cords is stretched across the bottom head. When the top head is struck, causing a sudden increase in pressure within the instrument, the snares vibrate against the bottom head. This produces a short, distinctive, snap-like sound. The snares can be disengaged if this effect is not wanted. Snare drums come in many different sizes as well, which ultimately changes the way the drum will sound. Snare drums that are shallow in size will give a higher "crack" sound, while the deeper ones will give a heavier and thicker tone. The same is true of drums with a smaller diameter. Many drummers opt to have more than one on their drumset for a more dynamic setup.
The snare drums used in a
pipe band are unique in having a second set of snares on the bottom (internal) side of the top (batter) head.
The drum can be sounded by hitting it with a
drum stick or by using brushes, which produce a softer-sounding vibration from the wires. When using a stick, the drummer may strike either the head of the drum, the rim, or the shell. When the drummer strikes both the rim and the head, this is known as a
rimshot. Because of the dramatic, sudden vibration on the shell of the drum, the rimshot is generally louder than other snare drum sounds.
Originally, snare drums were
military instruments originating from Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries. They were commonly called a
tabor and were used with the fife in the
Swiss military. Today, the snare drum can be found in nearly every form of
western music. Snare drums are used by fife and drum corps,
marching bands and
drum and bugle corps to provide a steady source of
rhythm. The sound of a marching snare is a classic military sound. The snare drum was incorporated into
classical music to provide color, or timbre, for
march-like segments of music. It is used in
popular music styles like
rock and roll and
jazz to provide an accented backbeat. In jazz styles, the snare drum is often used for "comping", or accompanying, supporting, and interacting with another musician's part. The snare drum (specifically, a
caixa) is the driving force in
samba music:
ghost notes are played continuously with accented strokes outlining the
rhythm. The snare is also used extensively in
extreme metal, to provide a "
blast beat": a rapid alternation of snare and
bass drum beats.
Jazz: In jazz brushes are often used. To compensate for the lower volume coming from the brushes, drums are not too thin. Jazz requires some volume but a sensitivity is also important ruling out very deep drums. Since jazz varies so widely, there is no "standard" jazz drum. But, a 14" x 5.5" could be suggested to a beginner. Rock: This doesn't refer to metal. Rock snares are usually wide and fairly deep, maybe a 14" x 5" to 14" x 6.5".Metal: The genre being very dynamic and powerful, the snare drum must correspond; wide and deep, maybe a 14"x6" or even as deep 8" (Joey Jordison's signature Pearl snare drum is of a 6.5" depth, but a 13" diameter, thus making it sound high and heavy, referred to as the "power piccolo"). Metal drummers often use materials other than wood for higher volume output. Metal, in particular brass, bronze, and aluminum, are popular. Some snares are made of unusual materials like acrylic plastic of carbon fiber.Punk: Early punk music sounds as though the snare is quite weak and in most punk music is just as loud as the hi-hats, and is hard to trace (with all due respect this may be down to the drummers' quality of playing, but more probably the production quality of the record or the tuning of the drum), though commonly the dimensions are the same to those of rock: 14" x 5".Funk: Funk snare drum work is very accented and syncopated, so in order for this to stand out, a higher snare sound is required. 13" diameters are common in funk, though 14" is equally popular (funk-drumming legend Dennis Chambers' signature Pearl snare drum's diameter is a 14"). The depth of snare drums used in funk can vary greatly. Some drummers, for example Amir "?uestlove" Thompson of The Roots, use a thin "piccolo" snare for a dry pop. Others, such as the aforementioned Dennis Chambers, opt for a 14" x 6.5" snare with tighter tuned heads in order to get a sound with more body but still a lot of crack.*
drum kit*
drum roll| Audio samples | | Component | Content | Audio (Ogg Vorbis) |
|---|
| Snare | Unmuffled snare drum | |
| Muffled snare drum | |
| Rim Click on a snare | |
| See the Drums page at Wikipedia Commons for more |
*[https://www.brazilianpercussion.com/english/instrumentos/Tipos.asp?Tipo=7 See Brazilian Snare Drum photos and listen to it]
*
Drums at Wikiot.com - A wiki devoted to music. Has a collected of rudiments, excercises, and ideas to improve snare technique.
