Tambourines
About Tambourines
The tambourine is a musical instrument consisting of a frame with pairs of small metal jingles, which are also called zills. Even though it is an instrument in the percussion family, it might not always come with a drumhead.
The word tambourine conventionally denotes an instrument with a drumhead, although some versions do not have a head at all. The tambourine is a part of the standard percussion set. Some people even use it as part of a drum kit and play it with drum sticks like a snare drum. But the most common use of it is as a hand percussion instrument. That means you hold it instead of placing it on a stand and use the hands to play it instead of drumsticks. So, how do you choose a tambourine that is right for you? While picking a tambourine, there is a slew of factors to consider. Read this article to learn more about them. Having a better understanding of these instruments will help you make the right choices while shopping for them.
A beginner’s guide to buying tambourines
In order to choose the tambourine that is right for you, you should consider the type of music you want to play. This will help you decide whether to buy a headless model or the one with a drum head and also choose the right material, design and size. There is also the price. This guide will take you through the process of selecting the instrument that suits your needs. Despite being a simple instrument, there are several styles of tambourine to choose from. Often, they can look and sound very different from each other.
Tambourine types
Similar to most other categories of instruments, tambourines also come in a few different types. These include variations in style, tone, and shapes. There are also those that you can play with your hands and those that you play with your feet. Models that are designed to be played by feet are used by guitarists and drummers while performing as a one-man-band. Some of them will have other features and extras, like bells and chains for extra sound effects. Surprisingly, some tambourines do not have heads. Depending on the type of the tambourine you chose the way to play it also changes.
Tambourines with drumhead
The average tambourine with a skinhead will resemble the snare drum in a drum set. Traditionally, the heady would consist of a natural skin stretched across a wooden frame similar to a regular drum. However, some modern models use synthetic skins and steel frames. That being said, natural skin will give you the best sound quality. You can play the tambourines with skinheads using your fingers or the heel of your palm. However, never play them using the knuckles. Because knuckles are harder than fingers, playing with knuckles can damage the drumhead overtime.
Tambourines without drumhead
Not all tambourines come with a drumhead. Some of them will just have a rim and jingles. This rim can be of wood, steel, or any other synthetic materials, like Formica. Because of the lack of a drumhead, the sound of the instrument will be completely different from that of a tambourine with a drumhead. Because of this difference in the fundamental nature of the instrument, some people do not consider headless tambourines to be tambourines and refer to them as jingles. Moreover, they do come in shapes other than circles. These include semi-circles, triangles, strat shapes, and squares.
Jingles and rims
Both headless tambourines and those without drumheads have rims and jingles. The number of jingles on the instrument depends mostly on the size. However, you will always find them in pairs. Therefore, there will be six, seven, or eight pairs of them. Smaller jingles will have a diameter of eight inches, and larger ones will be around ten inches. And just like drumheads and rims, jingles also come in various materials. Not surprisingly, the tone of the instrument changes with the material. However, you can also find tambourines without jingles.
Tips on how to buy Tambourines Online
Shopping for a tambourine can be an exciting experience. But finding the right one of them can be harder than you might think. This is because there is so much variety within tambourines. Depending on what model you buy, it can be incredibly useful to you if it can be an expensive paperweight. However, finding the right one can be easier if you know what factors to consider in them. Here are a few things to keep in mind while shopping online for tambourines.
- Drumhead – Firstly, you have to choose between tambourines with drumheads and those without drumheads. Both of them are completely different when it comes to the sound and also the way you play it. While models with drumheads are useful in folk and country music, those without drumheads are more popular in the rock genre.
- Skin material – If you decide to go for the model with a drumhead, now you have to choose between various skin materials. Natural skin will give you the best sound quality of all the materials. But natural skin drum heads are not that durable. Therefore, synthetic skin drum heads are more suitable if you are looking for an affordable option.
- Size – Because the size of the drumheads changes with the size of the instrument, it can affect the tone. As the size of the instrument increases, the tone shifts to lower octaves and makes the instrument sound more bassy. For professional tambourine players, the tone is going to be really imperative, and so is the size of the instrument.
- Number and type of jingles – Jingles on tambourines are always in pairs. Having more jingles means that you get more volume. So, if you have ten pairs of jingles on the tambourine, the metallic cling of the jingles will be more pronounced as compared to those models that have only six pairs of jingles.
Other factors like price and colour of the instrument need to be done as per your choice & budget. So, have you decided which type of tambourine you wish to buy? Not yet! Then browse on Shops.ae. We are the best retail search engine with reputed brands allied with us. Thus, you can choose to compare the prices and features of different products and pick the best one among them. Apart from that, you can check other brilliant products from the musical instruments category.
Question & Answer
How is a timbrel different from a tambourine?
The timbrel is a percussion instrument similar to the tambourine. But both of them are not the same. There are some key differences between a tambourine and a timbrel. While it is true that timbrel is one kind of tambourine, the former has existed thousands of years before the modern tambourines. They are so old that there are mentions of timbrels in the bible. One of the first things that you will notice about a timbrel is that they are much simpler than tambourines. Also, the frame of a timbrel will be of wood rather than steel. In some cultures, these are known as the deffs.
How does a tambourine produce sound?
The tambourine is a percussion instrument similar to a drum. But there are many obvious differences. For one thing, tambourines have an open back design. This makes them less loud and will make the sound resonate more than a closed back drum. Secondly, tambourines have jingles that make metallic clinging sounds as you play the instrument. The sound of the tambourines is similar to other similar instruments that are common in folk music, like guiros and shekeres. When you play the tambourine, either the sound of the drumhead or the sound of the jingles will be prominent depending on the size and number of jingles.
Where to buy tambourine online in the UAE?
The cost of a tambourine ranges from as low as thirty dirhams to upwards of six hundred dirhams. A custom-designed one will cost you even more. Because it is necessary to ensure the quality before shelling out your money, you have to buy it from a good store as well. Fortunately, there are plenty of places to buy them. However, the best place to buy one online is, of course, Shops.ae. It is incredibly easy to find your favourite model using our retail search engine. Moreover, on Shops.ae, you will get them for the most affordable prices. As for the brands, the ones you can consider include Remo, LP, Meinl, Rhythm Tech, DW, Toca, and Ludwig.