Drum message. History of the drum kit
What do you think, what musical instruments first appeared on our planet? Right, percussion instruments! Even the chest of a person can be considered the progenitor of drums with a big stretch - ancient people beat it for various reasons, extracting a powerful dull sound. But the first real drums appeared at the dawn of mankind - it is known about the existence of drums in ancient Sumer about 3000 years ago. Drums in those ancient times were used to play music during ceremonies and rituals (for example, drums of the American Indians), warning of danger or instructing the army during battles. Rock paintings in Peruvian caves indicate that drums were most often used in religious ceremonies and to raise the spirit during hostilities.
The ancient drum is arranged in much the same way as the one familiar to us today - a hollow body and membranes stretched over it from both sides. To tune the drum, the membranes were pulled together with animal veins, ropes, and later they began to use metal fasteners. Some tribes used the skin from the body of a killed enemy as membranes, but fortunately these fun times have passed without us, and now we use a variety of plastics made from polymer compounds.
Drumsticks also did not appear immediately - initially, the sound from the drum was extracted by hand. Over time, a wide variety of percussion instruments of different peoples and civilizations appeared. How, then, out of all this diversity, so to speak, did a modern drum kit emerge, which is practically universal for music of different styles and directions?
Looking at a standard setup, you might think that tom-toms are the most common drums, but not everything is so simple. Tom-toms appeared in Africa and they were really called tom-toms then. Hollow tree trunks served as the shell of the drum, and animal skins were used as membranes. African residents used them to put their fellow tribesmen on alert. Also, the sound of drums was used to create a special state of trance during the rituals. Interestingly, it is from ritual music that rhythmic patterns originated, which became the basis of some modern styles of music.
Later, the Greeks came to Africa, and, having learned about African drums, they were very surprised by the powerful and strong sound of tom-toms. The Greek soldiers took with them several drums, but they could not find a use for them. Some time later, the Roman Empire led the fight for new lands, and the Catholics went on a crusade. Approximately 200 years BC. e., their troops invaded Greece and North Africa. More practical and quick-witted, the Romans, having learned about African drums, began to use them in military bands.
The bass drum, or as it is now called the bass drum, is the largest, low-sounding drum, which is the basis for all rhythms, one might say the foundation. With its help, rhythm is formed, it is the starting point for the entire orchestra (group), and for all other musicians. Around 1550, the bass drum came to Europe from Turkey, where it was used in military bands. The powerful sound of this instrument captivated many, it became fashionable to use it in musical works, and thus the drum spread throughout Europe.
In the 20th century, more and more people began to get involved in playing percussion instruments, many began to study African rhythms and perform them. Increasingly, cymbals began to be used for playing, their size increased, and the sound changed. Over time, the Chinese toms that were used earlier were replaced with Afro-European drums, hi-hat cymbals increased in size in order to play on them with sticks. Thus, the drums gradually acquired a modern look.
The drum set in its modern form was not invented at any particular moment - for almost the entire 20th century, the drumset was brought to perfection by both musicians and instrument manufacturers. By about the 1890s, drummers were experimenting with using military band drums on stage. By combining different placements for the snare, kick and toms, the drummers tried to find a position where one person could play all the drums at the same time.
To this end, drummers and instrument manufacturers began to develop mechanisms that allow you to control the playing of the bass drum - for example, various levers controlled by hands or feet. The first bass drum pedal, reminiscent of the modern one, was invented by William F. Ludwig in 1909. The invention made it possible to play the barrel more easily and quickly - there was some freedom of hands for concentrating on the snare drum and other instruments.
Soon (around the beginning of the 1920s) the prototype of modern hi-hat'a appeared on the scene - the Charlton pedal - a foot pedal on a rack with small cymbals fixed on top. And a little later, around 1927, the almost modern design of the hi-hat ("high hat") first saw the light - a high stand and larger cymbals allowed drummers to play both with their hand and foot, as well as combine these options.
By the 1930s, a set of drums included a bass drum, a snare drum, one or more tom-toms, Zildjian "Turkish" cymbals (better resonating and more musical than Chinese cymbals), a cowbell, and wood blocks. Of course, many drummers put together their own kits - they used a variety of vibraphones, bells, gongs and many other additions.
Over the years, percussion makers have greatly strengthened and expanded their drum kit to make the kit versatile enough to play a variety of styles of music. Around the 50s, drummers began to use a second kick, and soon the first cardan was invented by DW. At the end of the 50s, a revolution in the drum world finally took place - manufacturers Evans and Remo launched the production of membranes from polymer compounds and freed drummers from calfskins, which are so sensitive to weather changes. This is how the drumset that we use today was formed.
Percussion is the most numerous family of musical instruments today. Sound from instruments of this type is extracted by striking the surface of the sounding body. The sounding body can take various forms and be made of various materials. In addition, instead of hitting, shaking is allowed - in fact, indirect blows with sticks, hammers or mallets on the same sounding body.
The history of the appearance of the first percussion instruments
Percussion instruments are among the most ancient. The first prototype of a percussion instrument appeared when primitive people, striking a stone against a stone, created a kind of rhythm for ritual dances or simply in everyday household chores (crushing nuts, grinding grain, etc.).
In fact, any device that produces measured noises can be called a percussion instrument. Initially, these were stones or sticks, planks. Later, the idea came up to tap out the rhythm on the skin stretched over the hollow body - the first drums.
When excavating the settlement sites of the tribes of Central Africa and the Far East, archaeologists discovered samples that were already more similar to modern ones. Obviously, it was they who at one time served as an example for the creation of European percussion instruments.
Functional features of percussion instruments
The sound produced by percussion instruments originated from primitive rhythmic melodies. Jingling and ringing prototypes of modern percussion musical instruments were used during ritual dances by the peoples of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome, Asian countries.
But representatives of the ancient Arab states used percussion instruments, in particular drums, in military campaigns. This tradition was adopted by European nations much later. Not rich in melodic terms, but loud and rhythmic, the drums became an invariable accompaniment to military marches and hymns.
And in the orchestra, percussion instruments have found quite a wide application. Initially, they were denied access to European academic music. Gradually, drums found their way into dramatic music within opera and ballet orchestras, and only then did they find their way into symphony orchestras. But today it is difficult to imagine an orchestra without drums, timpani, cymbals, tambourine, tambourine or triangle.
Classification of percussion instruments
The group of percussion musical instruments is not only numerous, but also very unstable. Several different ways of classifying them have been developed, so the same instrument can belong to several subgroups at once.
The most common percussion instruments today are timpani, vibraphone, xylophone; various types of drums, tambourines, African drum tam-tam, as well as a triangle, cymbals, and many others.
What is the easiest way to get sound without the help of voice? That's right - hit something on what is at hand.
The history of percussion instruments goes back centuries. Primitive man beat out the rhythm using stones, animal bones, wooden blocks and earthenware jugs. In ancient Egypt, they knocked (played with one hand) on special wooden boards at festivities in honor of the goddess of music Hathor. Funeral rites, prayers against disasters were accompanied by blows to the sistrum - a rattle-type instrument in the form of a frame with metal rods. In ancient Greece, the crotalon or rattle was common, it was used to accompany dances at various festivities dedicated to the god of winemaking.
In Africa, there are "talking" drums that serve to transmit information over long distances in the language of rhythm and imitate traditional tone speech. In the same place, as well as in Latin America, rattles are currently common to accompany folk dances. Bells and cymbals are also percussion instruments.
A modern drum has a cylindrical wooden body (less often a metal one), covered with leather on both sides. You can play the drum with your hands, sticks or beaters covered with felt or cork. Drums come in different sizes (the largest reach 90 cm in diameter) and are used by musicians depending on what kind of sound they need to “knock out” - low or higher.
The bass drum in an orchestra is necessary to emphasize important places in the piece - the strong beats of the measure. This is a low sounding instrument. They can imitate thunder, imitate cannon shots. It is played with a foot pedal.
The snare drum comes from combat military and signal drums. Inside, under the skin of the snare drum, metal strings are pulled (4–10 in concert, up to 18 in jazz). When playing, the strings vibrate, and a specific crackling occurs. It is played with wooden sticks or a metal whisk. It is used in orchestras for rhythm tasks. The snare drum is a constant participant in marches and parades.
PUZZLES
It's easy to go hiking with me,
Fun on the road with me
And I'm a screamer, and I'm a brawler,
I am sonorous, round ... (drum).
He himself is silent
And they beat - grumbles ...
Drum kit(drum set, drumkit from English. drumkit) - a set of drums, cymbals and other percussion instruments, adapted for the convenient playing of a drumming musician. Commonly used in jazz, rock and pop music.
Individual instruments are played with drum sticks, various brushes and mallets. Pedals are used to play the hi-hat and bass drum, so the drummer plays while sitting on a special chair or stool.
Different genres of music dictate the stylistically appropriate composition of the instruments in the drum set.
Origin of drums and percussion instruments.
So, perhaps the first prerequisites for the appearance of drums were, surprisingly, we are people! So, when our great-great-grandparents lived in caves and fought for their lives on the hunt, they beat their chests, splashing out all their emotions - they generated a dull sound. But if you think about it, we are the drummers of our time, we also splash out these same emotions, only already playing the drums. Amazing, isn't it!?
Time passed, and people gradually learned to extract sounds from improvised things, devices resembling current drums appeared. It is interesting that the first drums were arranged in almost the same way as now: a hollow body was taken as the basis and membranes were stretched on it from both sides. The skin of animals was taken as the basis of the membranes and pulled together with their own veins, later with ropes, and in our time special metal fasteners are used.
The first mention of drums.
Most recently, in the caves of South America, scientists discovered rock paintings in which people beat their hands on objects resembling drums, and during excavations in Mesopotamia, one of the oldest percussion instruments was found, made in the form of small cylinders, there are suggestions that these events are more than 6000 years old. ad.
In addition, drums found in Moravia, Ancient Egypt and Sumer date back to 5000, 4000, 3000 BC respectively.
Since ancient times, drums have been used not only to create music and accompany various ritual rites, dances and ceremonies, they were also widely used as signaling instruments for transmitting messages during military processions and actions, and even as a warning of danger. The drum was the best instrument for such tasks because it was easy to make, it made a lot of noise, and its sound traveled well over long distances.
Compound
Drum kit
The standard drum kit includes the following items:
- Dishes:
- Crash (crash) - a plate with a powerful, hissing sound.
- Ride (ride) - a cymbal with a sonorous but short sound for accents.
- Hi-hat (hi-hat) - two plates mounted on the same rod and controlled by a pedal.
- Drums:
- The snare drum (snare drum) is the main instrument of the setup.
- 3 tom-toms: high tom-tom (high tom-tom), low tom-tom (middle tom-tom) - both are colloquially called violas, floor tom-tom (or just floor tom-tom).
- Bass drum ("barrel", bass drum).
1. Plates | 2. Floor tom-tom | 3. Tom-tom
4. Bass drum | 5. Snare drum | 6. Hi-hat
The history of the drum kit as a whole.
Looking at a standard drum set is it very difficult to understand how it came about? How did it become such a single mechanism for extracting sounds? As I said, I'm surprised myself; D
Therefore, in order to structure the information in your head, first consider the drum set not as a single whole, but in parts:
Bass drum.
What immediately catches your eye when you look at the drum set? That's right it's massive" barrel » =) or in other words, a bass drum, in itself it has a rather impressive size and a low sound.
For a long time, the bass drum was an element of various orchestral performances, and was used in military operations and marches.
In the 1500s, the bass drum was brought from Turkey to Europe, where it became very popular due to its powerful sound, and later it began to be used at various musical events.
Tom-toms and snare drum.
M Many people looking at tom-toms can say that these are the most ordinary drums, in part they are. Tom-toms appeared in Africa and they were called at that time tom-toms . They were made from hollow tree trunks, which served as the shell of the drum, and animal skins were used as membranes. The sounds made by tom-toms were used to put their fellow tribesmen on alert or to create a special state of trance during rituals and ceremonies.
But as for the snare drum, it is known that its prototype, which is often called a military drum, or a snare drum, was borrowed from the Arabs who lived in Palestine and Spain. In the future, it became an integral attribute during military operations.
The drum kit has changed a lot over time and is constantly changing. A significant role in the development is played by popular musical styles, famous musicians and designers, as well as the development of instrument production technology.
Jazz emerged at the end of the 19th century. Around 1890, drummers in New Orleans began to tailor their drums to suit the conditions of the stage so that one performer could play several instruments at once. Early drum kits were known by the short promotional name "trap kit". The bass drum of this setup was kicked or a pedal without a spring was used, which did not return to its original position after being hit, but in 1909 F. Ludwig designed the first bass drum pedal with a return spring.
In 1920, Gretsch began to manufacture drum bodies using multi-layered wood lamination technology. The first shells were three-layer, later this technology was improved: in the early 1940s, the company changed the structure and method of connecting the shells, this method is still used today.
In the early twenties, the "snowshoe" or Charleston was popular - a foot pedal consisting of two foot-sized plates with two cymbals attached to them. Around 1925, drummers started using "low boy" or "sock" cymbals. These paired cymbals were located on a short rod and were also controlled by the foot. In 1927, the first "high boys" or "high hat" appeared, allowing the performer to play it with both a pedal and sticks, or a combination of both methods.
In 1918, the first Ludwig "Jazz-er-up" drum kit went on sale. The set-up included a 24'x8' bass drum (with mallet and attached wood block), a 12'x3' snare drum, and an outboard cymbal. Drummers began to use customizable tom-toms, racks for mounting various instruments. In 1931, Ludwig and Slingerland began making die-cast drum fittings. The components of the installation were selected and developed, the assembly became better.
In 1935, Gene Krupa, drummer for Benny Goodman's orchestra, first began using a "standard" 4-drum kit made by Slingerland. The technique of playing developed, Jin performed for the first time as a full-fledged soloist of the orchestra.
In 1940-1960, another significant change occurs - jazz and rock drummers add a second bass drum to their kit. Around the same time, another event occurred: Chick Evans and Remo Belli independently invented plastic drum heads to replace leather ones. New heads made it possible to tune the drum more accurately, were not affected by the weather, humidity fluctuations.
In 1962-1964, Ringo Starr, as part of The Beatles, appeared on American television on The Ed Sullivan Show. Beatlemania began. Ludwig Drum Production Doubled
The next stage (1970-1980) is associated with the birth and development of hard rock. The musicians began to search for a new drum kit sound: they began to use toms without resonant heads, increase the depth of the drum and add new drums to the kit. The sound became louder, punchier. Drum recording technology began to develop widely. Drum synthesizers, drum machines appeared, but they could not replace live drummers.
The first double bass drum pedal was released by Drum Workshop in 1983. Now drummers do not have to use two bass drums, but just put one on and play it with two pedals at once.
1990 Pearl and Tama invent the RIMS Mounting System, which attaches the tom to the stand without drilling an additional hole in the drum. This avoids unwanted vibrations and an extra hole in the case.
Hi-hat and other cymbals.
In the early 1920s, the first prototype of modern hi-hat appeared, the so-called " Charlton Pedal "- a device that combines a foot pedal on a rack with small cymbals fixed on top. Other names" short boy " or " sock plates ».
However, this invention was very low and the plates were of small diameter, which in itself is very inconvenient, and already in 1927, an improved hi-hat model appeared, popularly called it " tall hats ».
Now the hi-hat stand is taller and the hi-hat cymbals are larger, allowing the drummer to play with his foot, hands, or a combination of performance options, which means complete freedom of action.
Against the backdrop of all this, more and more people began to get involved in playing percussion instruments. New people and new ideas, as a result, new types of cymbals began to appear, playing on which drum patterns were well “decorated”, experiments were carried out with various sizes and shapes of cymbals, and later alloys, thereby obtaining more and more new types of extracted sounds.
Bass drum pedal.
To this end, drummers and instrument manufacturers began to develop mechanisms that allow you to control the playing of the bass drum - for example, various levers controlled by hands or feet.
The first bass drum pedal, reminiscent of the modern one, was invented by William F. Ludwig in 1909. The invention made it possible to play the barrel more easily and quickly - there was some freedom of hands for concentrating on the snare drum and other instruments.
You will not believe! But the very first pedal was invented and patented as early as 1885 by George R. Olney.
Up to this point, a full performance required at least 3 drummers: one of whom played the snare drum, another to play the cymbals and a third to beat the bass drum.
Olney's device was a pedal that was attached to the rim of a bass drum, and a leather strap attached the base of the pedal to a ball-shaped mallet. By pressing the pedal, the strap dragged the beater behind it, which in turn beat the bass drum.
The history of pedals does not end there, already in 1909, William F. Ludwig and his brother Theobald patented a completely new pedal model for the bass drum, which forever changed the drum world.
It was the first raised-shaft floor pedal with unique features such as:
- return beater,
- direct drive system (in modern language - direct drive) pedal plates.
An additional beater for the cymbal, it was connected to the pedal, but it was possible to change its position to allow the drummer to play only the bass drum. In the future, other models of pedals appeared, such as Ludwig - Super Speed, New Speed (the use of bearings in the shaft began with them).
Drumsticks.
A few words about drumsticks. Drumsticks as such did not appear immediately - initially, the sound from the drums was extracted by hand. Later, they began to use drum sticks wrapped in thick cloth on one side.
Drum sticks as we see them now appeared not so long ago, only in 1963, when Everett " Vic» Firth (Vic Firth), seeing how uncomfortable and large they are, and often different in weight, proposed a new standard for sticks, distinguished by the fact that the sticks were made even and the same, both in size and weight, and it is important that each of a pair of sticks produced a sound of the same tonal coloring and timbre when struck.
Now the choice of sticks on the market is huge, every drummer can find a suitable pair of sticks for himself.
Kinds
Installations are conditionally divided in terms of quality and cost:
- sub entry- not intended for use outside the classroom.
- entry level- Designed for beginners.
- student- good for practicing, used by non-professional drummers.
- semi-pro- quality of concert performances.
- pro- the standard for recording studios.
- custom hand built drumsets- The best sound, look, wood, quality, attention to detail. Drum kits, assembled specifically for the musician.
According to the mechanism of sound extraction drum sets are divided into the following types:
Electronic drums Roland V-drums
Drum set muted for practice
Hydrogen Drum Machine
Sound extraction occurs due to air vibration created by the membrane and reinforced by the drum body.
ElectronicInstead of instruments, more compact and silent pads are used. The pad is similar to a cylinder, 6 to 12 inches in diameter, and 1 to 3 inches high, in which is located a sensor (or several) that “removes” the blow. The signals from the sensors are sent to an electronic module that processes shocks. The module can generate the sound itself or send MIDI data to the sequencer. It is convenient to practice electronic drums at home, as they are silent and it is possible to adjust the volume of the sound.
Electronic single-module
The implementation scheme is the same as in electronic drums. Only everything is implemented in one small case within 20x10x5 inches.
Acoustic with electronic componentsSound extraction is the same as in acoustic ones, however, sensors are attached to the membranes that convert the vibration of the membrane into an electrical signal, which can then be processed (recording, amplification, distortion). It is also possible to use the components of the electronic installation together with the acoustic installation.
TrainingThey look like electronic ones. Instead of pads, rubberized metal plates are used, or acoustic drums with silent heads and plugs. They do not have an electronic module and do not make sounds, since the main goal is training. Often used at home for activities that do not interfere with others. For training, you can use an electronic one with headphones, but the training set is much cheaper.
DigitalMost often, this is a set of MIDI sounds in special programs or hardware-software complexes (drum machine). Even those who don't know how to play drums can pick up a drum part and use it live or for recording. As a rule, all individual drum machines (one program) are of poor quality [source unspecified 1798 days] that's why there are special VST plugins for programs like Cubase or FL Studio. Currently the most advanced VST plugin is Superior Drummer.
The role of the drum set in music
The main function of the drummer as part of the rhythm section of a musical group is to create a rhythmic pattern (together with the bass guitar, keyboards). As a rule, drummers use repeatedly repeated figures. The basis of the rhythm is the alternation of a low sound of the bass drum and a high, sharp sound of the snare drum.
In addition to this main function, the drummer embellishes, emphasizes the main accents and changes in the melody. In this case, mainly cymbals are used, especially crash, or shot on the snare drum. Some pieces include drum solos, at which time the rest of the instruments fade into the background.
Mickey D, drummer of Motörhead, said in an interview:
On stage, the energy and the stage show itself are as important as the act of playing the instruments. Drumming is only part of being a drummer, you have to be a showman to be expressive, and I always remember that when I'm playing. The audience wants to see a show, not just a group of musicians performing some body movements.
Drum part differences in different styles
Jazz is distinguished by complex patterns, small breaks and sections of compositions specially reserved for solos.
drum parts rock more expressive, strong, with large breaks and energetic transitions.
For metal playing at high speed, using a blast beat, two bass drums or a double pedal is characteristic.
In styles such as progressive rock and progressive metal, drummers experiment extensively with time signatures, complicating meter and rhythm.
IN hip hop, rap the rhythm is often programmed with a drum machine or sampled.
IN pop music drums are used very limitedly, at the same volume and in perfect tempo.
Notation (notation in notes)
Initially, the drum set was notated in the bass clef. At present, a neutral key of two parallel vertical lines is commonly used. On a standard stave, the part of the drum set can be written in various notations. Usually, at the beginning of each batch, a decoding of the location of the instruments and all the signs encountered is given. In some cases (quite often - in exercises), fingering is indicated - the order of alternation of hands during strikes. Below is the most common version of drum notation.
drums
Dimensions
Sonor 1007 drum set with Paiste 101 cymbals
Drum size is usually expressed as "diameter x depth", in inches. For example snare drums are often 14×5.5. Some manufacturers use the reverse order, depth × diameter, such as Drum Workshop, Slingerland, Tama Drums, Premier Percussion, Pearl Drums, Pork Pie Percussion, Ludwig-Musser, Sonor, Mapex, and Yamaha Drums.
Standard rock kit sizes are: 22" × 18" bass drum, 12" × 9", 13" × 10" rack toms, 16" × 16" floor tom and 14" × 5.5" snare drum. Another common combination is "fusion". It includes a 20" × 16" bass drum, 10" × 8", 12" × 9" rack toms, a 14" × 14" floor tom and a 14" × 5.5" snare drum. Jazz drum kits are often missing the 2 mounted tom.
Bass drum sizes also differ for different styles. In jazz, bass drums are used in small sizes, as the role of this drum in jazz is more of a placement of accents than a heavy beat. And for metal, hard rock, very large bass drums (often several) are used for a heavy, resonant tone.
Plate sizes are also measured in inches.
The smallest cymbals are splash (6-12 inches), the largest are ride (18-24 inches)
Percussion instruments are the most ancient on the planet.
Drums appeared at the dawn of mankind, and the history of their creation is very interesting and too voluminous, so let's pay attention to its most basic aspects.
Various civilizations have used drums or similar instruments to play music, warn of danger, or instruct armies during combat. Therefore, the drum was the best instrument for such tasks, because it is easy to make, makes a lot of noise and its sound travels well over long distances.
For example, the American Indians used drums made of gourds or hollowed out of wood to perform various ceremonies and rituals or to raise morale in military campaigns. The first drums appeared around 6000 BC. During excavations in Mesopotamia, some of the oldest percussion instruments were found, made in the form of small cylinders, and the origin of which dates back to the third millennium BC.
Cave paintings found in caves in Peru indicate that drums were used for various aspects of social life, but most often drums were used in religious ceremonies. The drum consists of a hollow body (it is called a kadlo or a tub) and membranes stretched on both sides.
To tune the drum, the membranes were pulled together with animal veins, ropes, and later they began to use metal fasteners. In some tribes, it was customary to use skin from the body of a killed enemy to make membranes, since these times have gone into oblivion, and now we use a variety of plastics made from polymer compounds.
At first, the sound from the drum was extracted by hand, and later they began to use rounded sticks.
The tuning of the drum was carried out by tightening the membranes, as mentioned above, with veins, ropes, and later with the help of metal tension fasteners, which tightened or loosened the membranes, and due to this, the sound of the drum changed its tone. At different times and different peoples had instruments that were completely different from each other.
And in this regard, a reasonable question arises, how it became possible that completely different cultures, with their unique drums, united in one, so to speak, “standard” set that we use today, and which is universally suitable for performing music of different styles and directions. ?
Snare Drum & Tom-toms (Snare Drum & Tom-toms)
Looking at the standard kit, probably many people think that tom-toms are the most ordinary drums, but not everything is so simple. Tom-toms originate from Africa and were actually called tom-toms. The natives used their sound to put the tribes on alert, convey an important message, and also to perform ritual music.
Drums were made from hollow tree trunks and animal skins. And the most interesting thing is that the Africans created various patterns of rhythmic patterns, many of which became the basis for the various styles of music that we play today.
Later, when the Greeks came to Africa, about two thousand years BC. they learned about African drums and were very surprised by the powerful and strong sound of tom-toms. They took some drums with them, but did not find much use for them. They did not use drums very often.
Some time later, the Roman Empire began to fight for new lands, and the Catholics went on a crusade. Approximately 200 years BC. e., their troops invaded Greece and North Africa.
They also learned about African drums and unlike the Greeks, they actually found a use for the drums. They began to be used in military bands.
But at the same time, when using African drums, the Europeans did not use their rhythms, because they did not have such a sense of rhythm that the Africans developed in their music. Times have changed and bad times have come for the Roman Empire, it collapsed, and numerous tribes invaded the Empire.
Bass Drum
This is the largest, low-sounding and vertically set drum, which is the basis for all rhythms, one might say the foundation. With its help, rhythm is formed, it is the starting point for the entire orchestra (group), and for all other musicians.
We should be grateful for such a tool to the Hindus and Turks, who have long used it in their practice. Around 1550, the bass drum came to Europe from Turkey.
In those days, the Turks had a large kingdom and their trade routes ran all over the world. The military bands of the Turkish army used a big drum in their music. Its powerful sound captivated many, and it became fashionable to use this sound in musical works, and thus the drum spread throughout Europe and conquered it.
Since 1500 AD, most Western European countries have tried to conquer America in order to establish their settlements there. Many slaves were sent there from their colonies for trade: Hindus, Africans, and thus many diverse peoples were mixed in America, and each had its own drum traditions. In this large cauldron, a lot of ethnic rhythms and percussion instruments themselves were mixed.
Black slaves from Africa mixed with the local people, as well as with everyone who arrived in this country.
But they weren't allowed to play their indigenous music, which is why they had to create some kind of drum kit with their national instruments added. And no one could guess that these drums are African in origin.
Who needs slave music? No one, and therefore, while no one knew the true origin of the drums and the rhythms that were played on them, black slaves were allowed to use such drum sets. In the 20th century, more and more people began to get involved in playing percussion instruments, many began to study African rhythms and perform them because they are very good and incendiary!
Increasingly, cymbals began to be used for playing, their size increased, and the sound changed.
Over time, the Chinese toms that were used earlier were replaced with Afro-European drums, Hai Het'a cymbals increased in size in order to play on them with sticks. Thus, the drums have been transformed and look almost the same as we have now.
With the advent of electric musical instruments, like the electric guitar, electric organ, electric violin, etc., people also came up with a set of electronic percussion instruments.
Instead of wooden shells with a different set of skins or plastic membranes, flat pads with microphones were made, they were connected to a computer that can play thousands of sounds imitating any drums.
So you can choose from the data bank those sounds that you need for your style of music. If you combine two sets of drums (acoustic and electronic), you can mix both of these sounds, and get unlimited possibilities for creating a sound palette in a piece of music.
From all of the above, we can draw an unambiguous conclusion: the modern drumset was not invented by some individual at a certain time, in some place.
This line developed during the early part of the 20th century, and was perfected by musicians and instrument makers alike. By the 1890s, drummers were adapting traditional military band drums to play on stage. Experimented with placing the snare drum, kick drum and toms so that one person could play all the drums at the same time.
At the same time, New Orleans musicians were developing a style of playing based on collective improvisation, which we now call the word Jazz.
William Ludwig 1910 Snare Drum Master Ludwig's Pedal
In 1909, drummer and percussion maker William F. Ludwig made the first true bass drum pedal. While other foot or hand-operated mechanisms have existed for several years, the Ludwig pedal has made it possible to play bass drums with the foot more quickly and easily, freeing the player's hands to concentrate on the snare and other instruments.
By the 1920s, New Orleans drummers were using a set consisting of a bass drum with a cymbal attached, a snare drum, Chinese tom-toms, cowbells, and small Chinese cymbals.
Similar sets, often with the addition of sirens, whistles, birdcalls, etc., were used by drummers playing in vaudeville, restaurants, circuses, and other theatrical performances.
In the early 1920s, the "Charleston" pedal appeared on the stage. This invention consisted of a foot pedal attached to a stand, on which small cymbals were placed.
Another name for the pedal is "low boy" or "sock cymbal". From about 1925, drummers began to use the "Charleston" pedal for playing in the orchestra, but its device was very low and the cymbals were small in diameter. And now, starting in 1927, improved "high hats", or Hi Hats, appeared. The het'a stand became taller and allowed the drummer to play with his foot, hands, or a combination of performances.
By the 1930s, a set of drums included a bass drum, a snare drum, one or more tom-toms, Zildjian "Turkish" cymbals (better resonating and more musical than Chinese cymbals), a cowbell, and wood blocks. Of course, each drummer could put together his own combination. Many used a variety of accessories such as vibraphones, bells, gongs and more.
During the 1930s and 1940s, drum makers more carefully developed and selected drum kit components to meet the demands of popular drummers. Racks became stronger, suspension equipment more comfortable, pedals worked faster.
In the mid-1940s, with the advent of new musical trends and styles, minor changes were made to the drum set. The bass drum has become smaller, the cymbals have slightly increased, but in general, the kit has remained unchanged. Drumset began to grow again in the early 1950s, with the introduction of a second bass drum.
In the late 50s, Evans and Remo mastered the production of plastic membranes, thus freeing drummers from the fads of weather-sensitive calfskins.
In the 1960s, rock drummers began to use deeper, more voluminous drums to increase the sound of drums that were drowned out by guitars connected to amplifiers.
