Membranophone

A membranophone is any musical instrument which produces sound primarily by way of a vibrating stretched membrane. It is one of the four main divisions of instruments in the original Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification.

membranophone

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.[7]

A membranophone is a musical instrument in which the sound is produced by vibrating a stretched membrane. Based on the preserved iconographical and written material, the depictions of musicians playing the membranophones either interact with the membrane by hitting it with a stick or by hand.

Four different instruments belong to the category of membranophones. Research indicates that the most frequently observed instrument was the double-skin barrel-drum, then the tambourine, the nakers and rarely the single-membrane bowl-shaped drum.

The nakers (or kettle drums) are hemispherical membranophones made from baked clay or wood. A membrane is tightened around the rim which is then pulled to the back of the bowl. From the vast selection of illuminated manuscripts is evident that the nakers are usually played in pairs, with the musician holding two sticks in order to produce the sound.

The drum itself is struck with a drumstick, so it can be classified as a struck membranophone. However, since the characteristic sound of the drum is the sound of the snare wires rattling against the drumhead, they could also be considered friction membranophones.

A tenor drum is a type of large membranophone that varies in diameter from 6 to 14 inches. The tenor drum is often a single-headed drum simply meaning that it has a only single drumhead on the top of the drum.

Bongo drums are another type of membranophone except are unique in that they are actually two drums joined together. Bongos are single-headed, which means they only have drumheads on top of the drums.

The djembe drum is another membranophone that is played with the hands and is similar in size to the conga. Djembe drums can be over 2 feet long or they can very small (10 inches tall). Their drumhead diameter is typically larger than a conga drum.

Certain types of tambourines are membranophones, while others are simply idiophone (something in which the body makes the sound, like a cymbal or a bell). Tambourines have jingly cymbals on them that when shaken ring with that classic tambourine sound.

A membranophone, in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, is an instrument that produces sound through the vibrations of a membrane. Membranophones, in some form, have existed for more than 4,000 years. Usually a membranophone is a drum which makes a sound when the membrane is hit by hands or sticks. Some drums can be set to different pitches by tightening or loosing the tension on the skin.

Kazoos are also considered among the membranophones because the sounds they generate are the result of a vibrating membrane stretched. This places in a class of instruments known as mirlitons.

Membranophones are musical instruments that generate sound by vibrating stretched skins or membrane. Notable membranophones include drums, marimba, and some gongs. The following instrument, Shereke, is not a membranophone. 041b061a72