Musical Instruments
| Timpani | Drum Set | Gong | Cymbal | Triangle |
| Xylophone | Glockenspiel | Bass Drum | Snare Drum | Tambourine |
Tambourine
One side of the tambourines could be layered with skins. The skins are mainly made of animal leather (goat or cow leather), and are sometimes made of plastics. The heads of the most modern drums are made by plastics, but since a special performance technique is done by scratching the tambourine heads with wet thumbs, making broken but concentrating sounds, animal leathers are still used in tambourines due to their effects.
Origin
The origin of tambourines is hard to prove. According to the historical records or unearthed relics in Central Asia, Central Europe, Portual and India, tambourines have appeared hundreds of years ago in these areas. The term "tambourine" in English was from the French term "tambourin,"which referred to a kind of narrow drum in Provence in the ancient Roman period. The word "tambour" comes frome "tunbur," the arabia word for drums, and the suffix is added to express the small size.
Performance Methods
There are many skills for the performance of tambourines. Each skill make unique sound.
Strike
The most common way to play the tambourine is to hold the frame with one hand and tap the heads or the frame with the other hand. One could also fixate the tambourine in the tambourine clamps and strike it with both hands or mallets. When playing rapid rhythm, one could also put the tambourine between the hand and the thigh, which enables more times of striking within shorter periods of time.
Roll
Rolling makes the metal jingles continue striking and produce unending sounds. This si done by holding the tambourine and move the wrist back and forth to rock the tambourine, which leads the striking of the metal jingles. The faster the movement, the faster the jingle sounds; the bigger the wave, the louder the sound it makes.
Thumb Roll
Thumb roll is a more advanced performance technie. It is done by using the thumb (or the point or middle finger) to scratch the heads. The fingers and the heads are about one centimeter apart. The scratch could produce rolling effect by vibrating the metal jingles rapidly. Players apply wax or water to the fingers to get better friction before performance. Sometimes, they would move the finger in an 8 pattern to make long thumb rolls.
Source: Innovative Musical Notes
Do you want to learn more?
Interview with concertmasters
You-Chen Ye, bass drum, gong, cymbal, triangle, and tambourine concertmasters
