The final part in our series about the Western Orchestra explores the percussion section. Despite being hidden at the back of the orchestra, the timpani (timps), drums, cymbals and other percussion instruments can always be clearly heard.
The word “percussion” means hitting, and so percussion instruments create sound by being struck, shaken or scraped. Percussion instruments are divided broadly into two groups: “pitched”, which can play specific notes or pitches, and “unpitched”.
History of percussion instruments
Drums are thought to be the oldest instruments created, and they are found in most cultures around the world. They come in different shapes and sizes and can be made of different materials.
It is believed drums were first included in orchestras in the early Baroque period by composers such as Montiverdi. However there is no written music for percussionists from this period, as players learnt the parts by ear and seemingly kept them secret. Timpani were often paired with trumpets, taken from the military traditions of the medieval period.
During the Classical period, composers such as Haydn and Mozart included written parts for timpani, and the instrument became a regular feature of the orchestra. Haydn even featured the timpani with a solo at the beginning of his “Symphony No. 103 in E-flat major” – given the nickname “Drumroll”.
These composers also sometimes required bells, rattles and snare drums (also known as side works).
The use of timpani was developed by Beethoven, who included them as a key instrument within the ensemble. He also expanded the percussion section by using other drums, crash cymbals and triangles – and he was precise with his requirements in his written parts.
Further developments were made by Berlioz, who was the first composer to specify which type of sticks should be used on the timpani. He also increased the number of instruments in certain pieces, requiring eight musicians playing sixteen timpani in his “Requiem” in 1837.
Further into the 1800s, extra instruments were added more regularly to the percussion section, such as snare or side drums, crash and ride cymbals, castanets, tambourines, tubular bells, xylophones and glockenspiels. Johann Strauss used the bass drum and crash cymbals in an effective way in his “Unter Donner und Blitz (Thunder and Lightning Polka)”.
In the 20th century, composers became even more creative, taking inspiration from around the world to include instruments such as gongs or tam tams.
Wider sound effects were created using sirens, pistol shots, and even a typewriter in Satie’s “Parade” in 1913.
Use of the percussion section continued to develop, and a key innovator was Varèse. His piece “Ionization” written in 1930 was the first orchestral piece written entirely for the percussion section.
It utilised 13 musicians playing 37 instruments – from those typically found in the traditional percussion section to instruments more commonly found in jazz and Latin American ensembles.
How sound is produced on percussion instruments
Sound is mainly created by striking, scraping or shaking percussion instruments.
Drums are classified as “membranophone” instruments – the sound is created by a stretched membrane vibrating. Most orchestral drums are struck with drumsticks, with a wide range of sticks available depending on the type of drum and what sound is needed.
To create sound with orchestral cymbals, they can either be played with sticks, or held in the hands and brought together to make a “crash”. This crashing sound also gives them the name “crash” or “clash” cymbals.
Most pitched instruments such as xylophones, glockenspiels and marimba are hit with beaters, and are known as mallet instruments.
Timpani
The timpani are the most common form of percussion found in the orchestral percussion section. The bodies of the drums are hemispherical (half a bowl shape) with a head stretched across the open part of the sphere, held in place by screws called “tension rods”.
They can be made with copper, fibreglass or aluminium. The tone of each drum is affected by the material it is made with, as well as the exact shape of its body.
Timpani come in different sizes, with larger sizes able to play lower pitches. Drums are tuned to specific notes by adjusting the tension of the head.
Other orchestral percussion
Mounted Orchestral Bass Drum
Pearl Snare Drum
Triangle and beater
Bass drums
Orchestral bass drums vary in size, often depending on the composer’s wishes. They are usually hit with soft headed drumsticks, and are typically used to create drama at key moments.
Snare drums or side drums
The snare drum has a “snare” (a set of metal wires) stretched across the bottom of the drum to add a rattle sound. This can also be silenced to create a pure drum sound.
Perhaps the most famous snare drum part in the orchestral repertoire is Ravel’s ‘Bolero’, where the snare drum is played continually throughout the piece, repeating the same rhythm.
Cymbals
Cymbals are typically found in two forms, “crash” or “clash”, and “suspended” or “ride”.
Crash or clash cymbals, as the names suggest, are mainly crashed or clashed together to create sound, but they can also be rubbed together.
A suspended or ride cymbal is mounted on a stand and hit with a stick.
A pair of clash or crash cymbals.
Suspended cymbal
Triangles
Triangles are often used for dramatic effect in music, being played at key moments, often as a solo.
Can you hear the triangle solo in the last movement of Dvorak's Cello Concerto?
Tuned (pitched) percussion and mallet instruments – vibraphones, xylophones, marimbas, glockenspiels, tubular bells
Tuned percussion instruments that are used for melodies include vibraphones, xylophones, marimbas and glockenspiels. Their use increased in the 20th century. Tubular bells are often used to represent clocks chiming.
Pianos and other keyboard instruments
Pianos, and certain other keyboard instruments such as celestes, are classed as percussion instruments, as the sound is made by hammers hitting strings. Composers such as Mozart and Beethoven featured the piano as a solo instrument in the 1700s, when it was newly-invented, However, in the 20th century it began to be used as part of the percussion section as well.
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