Drum kit

A drum kit (or drum set or trap set) is mostly a collection of drums, cymbals and sometimes other percussion instruments arranged for convenient playing by a drummer, usually for jazz, rock, or other types of contemporary music.

The drummer uses drum sticks to strike the drum skin and to create a vibration. Drum sticks come in all different weights and sizes.

History

Early drum kits were known as trap kits (short for contraption) and are one of the most contemporary members of the membranophone family. They usually consisted of a bass drum, a snare drum on a stand, a small cymbal and other small percussion instruments mounted on the bass drum or a small table, all played with drum sticks or brushes except for the bass drum. The bass drum was sometimes kicked to produce a sound, and is occasionally still called a kick drum, though bass drums are now nearly always pedal-operated, and sometimes even played with two pedals to allow for greater speed. Trap set survives in the term trap case still given to a case used to transport stands, pedals, sticks, and miscellaneous percussion instruments.

Modern kits and components

The exact collection of components to a drum kit varies greatly according to musical style, personal preference, financial, and transportation resources of the drummer. At a minimum a kit usually contains a bass drum sitting on the floor and played with a pedal, a snare drum on a stand, two or three tom-toms, some of which are mounted on top of the bass drum (or sometimes positioned on a snare stand) and the largest typically free-standing alongside it (on the floor - hence the word "floor tom"), a hi-hat (sometimes known as a 'sock' cymbal) comprising two small cymbals played by means of pedal usually with the left foot for a right handed player, a ride cymbal and a crash cymbal arrangement.

The hi-hat started out life in Dixieland drumming and was called a "snowshoe cymbal beater", and was operated in a similar way as it is today. At the same time another drum company was developing a similar product called a "low boy", at a lower position compared with a modern hihat. This then developed into the hihat as we know it today.

One cymbal which was once commonly integrated into rock or jazz band's drum sets, but fell out of popularity, was the sizzle cymbal, which was a cymbal with holes punches around it, with small rivet-like pieces of metal stuck in them loosely, so that when the cymbal was struck, a sustained sizzling noise would ensue.

Kit additions and variations

Some drummers may add a second bass drum (played by whichever foot that controls the hi-hat), double bass pedals (a single unit setup employing two pedals hooked together and two beaters fixed up to a single bass drum, which is played with both feet), additional toms, more cymbals, tambourines, wood blocks, cowbells, electronic pads that trigger sampled sounds, or any of a whole galaxy of accessory instruments. Some drummers, such as Billy Cobham, Dave Lombardo, Virgil Donati, Neil Peart, Terry Bozzio, Keith Moon and Mike Portnoy have gone to extreme lengths and built massive kits including features such as ranges of tuned tom-toms, allowing them to contribute melodically as well as rhythmically. These huge kits reached their zenith in the arena rock of the 1980s, and the trend since then has been towards a smaller instrument such as John Bonham's five-piece set.

Electronic drums

The first electronic drums were used in the early 1970's (and recorded by Carl Palmer of Emerson, Lake and Palmer) with the development of the synthesiser, it was inevitable that the drums would eventually be incorporated into the electronic sound. During the early 1980's drummers such as Bill Bruford of King Crimson incorporated large electronic setups within their acoustic setups and in Bruford's case almost completely diminished the need for acoustic drums. These drums were primarily made by the now defunct Simmons company and later by Tama of Japan. Although many criticised the use of electronic drums; there is a wider level of acceptance now and indeed some drummers such as Akira Jimbo and Tony Verderosa incorporate electronics into their sets in an interesting and innovative way.

Yamaha, Roland and many others have created electronic drum sets which use pads or triggers (mounted on acoustic drums) to play sampled or synthesized sounds (see DTX). The trend in electronics since the late 1980s has been away from overtly electronic sounds and more towards an intensified acoustic sound.

Not only has the sound of electronic drums changed considerably towards a more naturalistic approach, indeed the 'feel' of electronic pads has also changed. With companies like Roland and Pintech offering their popular 'Mesh' or 'V-drum' pads; designed to emulate the 'feel' of a real drum head. Yamaha offers rubber pads also designed to mimic the feel of 'real' drums. Originally, the feel of electronic pads was very hard and unforgiving and as a result many drummers suffered from wrist pains and other related injuries.

Rick Allen, drummer of hard rock band Def Leppard, had a custom electronic drum kit made after a car accident in 1984 in which he lost his left arm. A later kit was made, one that played back the sound of the pre-recorded components of his acoustic drum kit whenever he struck each respective pad.

Drum set notation

Notation of drum kit music once commonly employed the bass clef, but a neutral staff of two parallel vertical lines is usually preferred now. Many different conventions exist for the notation of different elements of the kit on the stave, and it is usual to label each instrument and technique mark the first time it is introduced, or to add an explanatory footnote, on any score to clarify this. Below is common convention. Most variations follow a similar style.

Drums

Cymbals

Other

Mounted triangle: leger-line high C with X. Maraca: high-B with "+" replacing notehead. Mounted tambourine: high-B with "x" through notehead.

Techniques

Rolls: three diagonal lines across stem (or above whole note) a roll is played by leting the stick bounce on the skin before playing the next stroke. Open hi-hat: o above high-G X. Closed hi-hat: + above high-G X. Rim click: X in E snare space. Stick shot: diagonal slash through note head. Brush sweep: horizontal line (replacing note head) in E snare space with slur to show brush is not lifted.

Dynamic accents

Anti-accents

slightly softer than surrounding notes: u (breve)
significantly softer than surrounding notes: ( ) (note head in parentheses)
much softer than surrounding notes: (note head in brackets)
also known as "ghost notes" on the drum set.

Audio samples
Component	Content	Audio (Ogg Vorbis)
Snare	Unmuffled snare drum
Muffled snare drum
Rim click on a snare
Bass drum	Muffled bass drum
Toms	8-inch rack tom
12-inch rack tom
Floor tom
Hi-hat	Closed hi-hat
Open hi-hat
Hi-hat being opened and closed by its foot pedal
Crash	Crash cymbal
Ride	Hit normally
Hit on the bell of the cymbal
Hit on the rim
Beat	A typical rock beat on hi-hat
Typical rock beat on ride cymbal
See the Drums category at Main Page for more

External links

Drumming Community- Large drumming community and manufacturer resource.
Drummerworld.com - A site full of videos and pictures of famous jazz and rock drummers. Also includes a forum.
DrumSoloArtist.com - Extensive Resources for Drummers including over 1000 drummers biographies lots of drum techniques, drum forums, and musicians community portal.
DrumTips.com- Over 1000 Drum Tips.
Tab Hall - Drum Music
Assemble a Drumset - How to Set Up a Drumset
Pearl Drummer's Forum - Includes tips, lessons, and an open chat. Run by Pearl but free to use for anybody using any brand.
The Drum Forum - Friendly forum dedicated to drums, with a lounge-type atmosphere.
Indianapolis Drum Forum - A drum forum based in Indianapolis, IN, but with members all over the world. Members have yearly regional get-togethers and a mature forum environment.
Drum FAQ - Common questions about drums, hardware and cymbals
Drums at Wikiot.com - A music based wiki contain drum tabs and tutorials.

Percussion instruments

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