Timpani

The timpani (kettledrums) have been used in celebrations and in the military for centuries. During the middle ages they were called nakers. In the crusades they mounted them on horseback! Imagine that! The common technique used in Europe was fastening the kettle drum on the waist of the player. Of course those kettle drums were not the same size as today’s standard timpani. Timpani’s were much smaller averaging 16” to 20” (About as big as a large floor tom). They were also the first percussion instrument to be used in orchestral music.

The Timpani Setup

The diagram below shows the standard setup when using four timpani’s. If you are playing only two timpani’s the setup is the same as the middle two kettle drums shown in the picture below (sizes 29 and 26). Make sure that when you are setting up the position of kettle drums you are able to strike each of them in the correct area (shown in the “playing area” section of the page). It should feel natural (with practice) since you will be reading music and only being able to use your peripheral vision to see the kettle drums.

Playing Area

The most common mistake a percussionist makes when striking a timpani is to hit the middle of the drum head. You must always be conscious to stick the timpani only a few inches away from the lip of the bowl (as shown in the diagram). This becomes particular hard when reading fast phrases and especial when more then two timpani are being used. You must learn to use your peripheral vision to read phrases and play the correct distance away from the lip. Make sure you learn and memorize the place to strike with your right hand and your left hand because they have a specific tone. Also be sure to return to the same playing areas when moving from drum to drum.

Tuning the timpani

It is extremely important to have each kettle drum’s base pitch in tune because if its base pitch is not in tune every pitch that you try to create with the drum will also be out of tune.

Directions:

Release the pedal so that the drum head has reached its lowest pitch. Now you will tune the head to its fundamental note shown in the following diagram

To maintain this pitch and to make sure the drum head is on evenly you must play around the drum in a symmetrical pattern hitting the edges and turning the tension rods to what the edges pitch dictates. If the edges pitch is sharp, decrease the tension. If the pitch is flat increase the tension. Follow the Diagram shown below. You can obtain the references pitch (shown in the above diagram) with a pitch pipe, harmonica or tuning fork, but I recommend using a digital tuning because the harmonics and overtones of the drum can be deceiving to the ear. 

Timpani Ranges

It is extremely important to know the ranges of each kettle drum. You must also learn to sing the standard intervals so that you can quickly and correctly configure any tuning changes within a piece of music.

Standard Intervals

2^nd   Do – RE (from singing solfege)

3^rd   Row Row Row your BOAT

4^th   Here COMES THE BRIDE

5^th    Oh when the SAINTS (or The Star Wars Theme)

6^th    N B C (from the television station)

7^th   My BODY lies over the ocean

8^th  Some WHERE over the rainbow