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Tuesday, May 15, 2007


[[ InStRuMeNt 0f ThE wEeK - SNARE DRUM ]]




The snare drum or side drum is a tubular drum made of wood or metal with skins, or heads, stretched over the top and bottom openings, and with a set of snares (cords) stretched across the bottom head.

A cluster of snares made of curled metal wire, metal cable, plastic cable, or gut cords is stretched across the bottom head. When the top head is struck, causing a sudden increase in pressure within the instrument, the snares vibrate against the bottom head. This produces a short, distinctive, snap-like sound. The snares can be disengaged if this effect is not wanted. Snare drums come in many different sizes as well, which ultimately changes the way the drum will sound. Snare drums that are shallow in size will give a higher "cracking" sound, while the larger ones will give a deeper, heavier, and thicker tone. The same is true of drums with a smaller diameter. Many drummers opt to have more than one on their drumset for better dynamic setup.

The snare drums used in a pipe band are almost unique in having a second set of snares on the bottom (internal) side of the top (batter) head. Some military side drums have this feature as well.
The drum used in pipe and tabor traditionally has a single snare on the outside of the head that is beaten.

The drum can be sounded by hitting it with a drumstick or any other form of beater, including brushes and rutes, which produce a softer-sounding vibration from the wires. When using a stick, the drummer may strike either the head of the drum, the rim, or the shell. When the drummer strikes both the rim and the head at the same time, this is known as a rimshot. Because of the dramatic, sudden vibration inflicted on the shell of the drum, the rimshot is generally louder and more distinct than a regular strike on the drumhead, and is usually used for accented notes. The closer the bead of the stick is to the rim itself when a rimshot is struck, the higher the tone of the rimshot will be.

Originally, snare drums were military instruments originating from Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries. They were commonly called a tabor and were used with the fife in the Swiss military. Today, the snare drum can be found in nearly every form of western music. Snare drums are used by fife and drum corps, marching bands and drum and bugle corps to provide a steady source of rhythm. The sound of a marching snare is a classic military sound. The snare drum was incorporated into classical music to provide color, or timbre, for march-like segments of music. It is used in popular music styles like rock and roll and jazz to provide an accented backbeat. In jazz styles, the snare drum is often used for "comping", or accompanying, supporting, and interacting with another musician's part. The snare drum (specifically, a caixa) is the driving force in samba music: ghost notes are played continuously with accented strokes outlining the rhythm. The snare is also used extensively in extreme metal, to provide a "blast beat": a rapid alternation of snare and bass drum beats.
A drum roll is a method a percussionist employs to produce a sustained sound on a drum. Rolls are used on other percussion instruments as well, such as the marimba and xylophone, to sustain the sound, where it can be likened to tremolo on string instruments.

The most common snare drum roll is the closed (or "buzz") roll. The open roll (or "double-stroke roll") is played with double strokes alternating between the left and right hands; the closed roll or multiple-bounce roll is produced by applying slightly more pressure to the fulcrum upon impact which allows for the stick to bounce many times on the drum head. One stick hits the head slightly before the other bouncing stick is pulled up from the head. This produces a near continual sound when the technique is mastered.

Other than the open, double-stroke roll there are many other rolls and rudiments that sound like rolls when they are played fast enough (like the freehand technique or single paradiddle). In the table below, lower-case letters represent grace notes(drags, flams etc) and hyphens represent rests.

Rudiment
Sticking pattern
Single-stroke rollRLRLRLRLRL
Double-stroke rollRRLLRRLL
Triple-stroke roll (or French Roll)RRRLLLRRRLLL
Single paradiddleRLRR LRLL
Double paradiddleRLRLRR LRLRLL
Five-stroke rollRRLLR-LLRRL
Seven-stroke rollRRLLRRL- LLRRLLR-


Also, the six-stroke roll, perhaps a misleading name, is often used in snare solo and marching percussion situations. It has four variations; each is a quarter note in length and consists of two double strokes (RRLL) and two singles (R L). Doubles:
rolls
Six-stroke
R L RRLL L R LLRR
R LLRR L L RRLL R
RRLL R L LLRR L R
RR L R LL LL R L RR


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