Evolution of the drum; from bang bang to instrument

  • 100

    Drums existed

    Drums existed
    Drums existed since ancient times.
    Drums consist of at least one drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a drum stick, to produce sound. They are the oldest instruments and can be dated back to 5500BC!
    They were originally made with alligator skin, then people
    started using other animal's skins and eventually developed plastic drumheads. The shell is mostly made of wood or plastic.
  • Jan 1, 1300

    First Snare drum

    First Snare drum
    For many years there were a variety of drums made out of whatever materials the builder could find. The first modern snare drum was created in medieval Europe.
  • Jan 2, 1300

    First snare stick

    First snare stick
    There is little evidence of man using drum sticks from the ancient days; however, it is likely they were used. Some of the earliest known drum sticks were from the 1300's, used to beat snare drums called Tabors, and they were made from wood.
  • Apr 4, 1400

    Timpani

    Timpani
    The timpani drums are a group of drums that each have a different pitch. They were brought to Europe sometime during the 1400's, but weren't used widely until the 1600's.
  • Apr 4, 1400

    Bass drum

    Bass drum
    Another modern drum is the bass drum. Bigger than the snare drum, it was brought into Europe during the 1400's, and is sometimes called the Turkish drum.
  • Drum sticks evolve

    Drum sticks evolve
    Over time, different woods were used for different drums. Beef wood was popular in the 1700's, and throughout the 1800's a popular choice for military drums was ebony.
  • Bongos

    Bongos
    Drums remained mostly unchanged for many years, but new drums were found when modern people began exploring more and more of Africa and Cuba. The bongo drums are traced to these cultures, and are always a set of twin drums.
  • Drum

    Drum
    Today a popular item is the drum set. People can now purchase sets of drum, and the first kit began selling in the early 1900's. The are made up of cymbals, snares, bass, tom toms and are played with hands and feet.
  • Nylon tip sticks

    Nylon tip sticks
    Musicians often complained that the tips of their drum sticks wore down. A man named Joe Calato invented a drum stick with a nylon tip to help prolong the life of a drum stick, and the idea was a success.
  • Modernization of drumset

    Modernization of drumset
    As individualism took hold of America and the world, drums sets became even more popular. The modern drum set emerged with more cymbals, and bass drums.
  • electric drumset

    electric drumset
    A man named Karl Bartos invented a new type of drum—the electric drums. His invention did not produce a quality sound at the time, but it was an idea that would grow and take hold of musicians in the future.
  • More electronic designs

    More electronic designs
    The electric drum has continued to evolve over the years. Major electronic brands such as Yamaha jumped on board with electric drums, and Roland introduced its now-famous TD-10 model in 1997. Today drums are used in orchestras, bands, and sometimes even choirs and are a vital part of music, independent of the genre.