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This is a 'list of membranophones' divided along various classification schemes. Musicologists divide drums and other membranophones into groups based on their shape and the method by which sounds are produced. Distinctions may also be made between drums based on other social and cultural markers, such as the use of particular animal skins, colors, sewing styles.

Contents

Hornbostel-Sachs

Shape and technique

Traditional classifications

Other categories

References and notes

Hornbostel-Sachs

The Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification divides membranophones in a numeric taxonomy based on how the sound is produced:

★ '21': by hitting the drumskin with a hand or object (most common form, including the timpani and snare drum)

★ '22': by pulling a knotted string attached to the drumskin (common in Indian drums, and can be considered an example of a chordophone as well)

★ '23': by rubbing the drumskin with a hand or object

★ '24': by modifying sounds through a vibrating membrane (unusual form, including the kazoo) ^[1]

Shape and technique

Membranophones can also be divided into large divisions based on shape and manner of sound production:^[2]


★ 'Tubular drums' include a wide range of drum shapes, like ''waisted'', ''long'', ''footed'', ''cylindrical'', ''conical'' and ''barrel''

★ 'Kettle drums' and 'vessel drums' are characterized by the presence of rounded bottoms.

★ 'Frame drums' consist of a membrane stretched across a frame.

★ 'Friction drums' produce sound by rubbing a stick through a hole in a membrane stretched across a grame.

★ 'Mirlitons' and 'kazoos' vibrate by blowing air across a membrane. These are the only membranophones that are not truly drums.
SIL International maintains a classification system based largely on shape: ^[3]

★ 'Cylindrical drums' are straight-sided, and generally two-headed. A buzzing, percussive string is sometimes used. Examples include the bass drum and the Iranian ''dohol''.

★ 'Conical drums' are sloped on the sides, and are usually one-headed. Examples include the Indian ''tabla'' and the Venezuelan ''chimbangueles''.


★ 'Barrel drums' are normally one-headed, and may be open at the bottom. They bulge in the middle. Examples include the ''bendre'', made by the Mossi of Burkina Faso out of a large calabash, and the ''trong chau'' of Vietnam.

★ 'Hourglass drums' (or '''waisted drums''') are hourglass-shaped and generally two-headed. The drumheads are laced onto the body, and the laces may be squeezed during performance to alter the drum's pitch. Examples include folk drums in India (like the ''damaru'') and much of Africa, as well as some talking drums.

★ 'Goblet drums' (or '''chalice drums''') are one-headed and goblet shaped, and are usually open at the bottom. Examples include the Arab ''darabukka'', and a range of similar instruments from Armenia, Azerbaijan, North Africa, Southeastern Europe and the Middle East.

★ 'Footed drums' are single-headed and are held above the ground by feet. The space between the drum and the ground provides extra resonance. Examples include a range of East African and Polynesian drums.

★ 'Long drums' are a diverse category, characterized by extreme length. Examples include the single-headed hollow tree trunk drums of Africa and the ornately carved and dyed ''gufalo'' of the Nuna in Burkina Faso.

★ 'Kettle drums' (or '''pot drums''' or '''vessel drums''') are frequently played in pairs, and have a vessel or pot body, and are usually one-headed. Examples include the timpani.

★ 'Frame drums' are composed of one or more membranes stretched across a frame. Examples include the tambourine and bodhran.

★ 'Friction drums' produce sound through friction, such as by rubbing a hand or object against the drumskin. Examples include the Brazilian ''cuica'' and the Spanish ''zambomba''.

★ 'Mirlitons' and 'kazoos' produce sound by blowing air across a membrane.

Traditional classifications

The traditional Chinese method of classifying instruments by composite material renders the following categories of drums:^[4]

★ ''Jin'': Metal drums, along with bells and gongs

★ ''Ge'': Leather-headed drums

★ ''Mu'': Wood drums and blocks

★ ''Tu'': Clay drums, as well as some kinds of clay ocarinas
Traditional Japanese and Korean instrument classification schemes use essentially the same scheme.^[5]
The traditional classification of Indian instruments include two categories of membranophones.^[6]

★ ''Ghan'': Percussion without membranes, such as chimes, bells and gongs

★ ''Avanaddh'': Percussion with membranes, such as drums with skin heads

Other categories

The '''predrum''' category consists of simple drum-like percussion instruments. These include the ''ground drum'', which, in its most common form, consists of an animal skin stretched over a hole in the ground, and the ''pot drum'', made from a simple pot.^[7]
''Water drums'' are also sometimes treated as a distinct category of membranophone. Common in Native American music and the music of Africa, water drums are characterized by a unique sound caused by filling the drum with some amount of water.^[8]
The ''talking drum'' is an important category of West African membranophone, characterized by the use of varying tones to "talk". Talking drums are used to communicate across distances.^[9]

★ ''See also: List of Caribbean drums''

References and notes

1. Glossary#Membranophone
2. Classifying Musical Instruments: Membranophones Catherine Schmidt-Jones
3. 534m Membranophones
4. Silk and Bamboo Gregory Youtz
5. The Earliest Japanese Music Richard Hooker
6. Indian Musical Instruments David Courtney
7. Modern Instruments and their Families: Symphonic Classifications in Western Music Virginia Tech Department of Music
8. Tuning the Water Drum Claire King
9. Drum Telegraphy