A Short History -
The
timpani have been around for centuries. Descended from a small pair of
drums called "nakers", they developed over time into the
instruments we know today as the orchestral timpani. They were brought
to western Europe by King Henry VIII of England, who used them mounted
on horseback for ceremonial occasions. Together with trumpets, they
added much color to the various ceremonials associated with the
monarchy. Eventually, the drums found place in the various court
orchestras (no longer mounted on horseback), but still used together
with trumpets.
The music of the
great Baroque composers J. S. Bach and G. F. Handel is
full of this type of writing for the instruments.
With the music of
W.A. Mozart, F. J. Haydn and L. van Beethoven, things
began to change with regard to composing for thetimpani. Up until this
time, the timpani were tuned in the interval of a fourth or fifth.
Beethoven was an innovator in this respect as he scored for the
timpani in octaves (F-f) in his Eighth and Ninth Symphonies, and a
tritone (A-e-flat) in his opera"Fidelio". Other composers, such as
Weber,
Mendelssohn, Brahms, Schumann, and Liszt, to
name only a few began to write interesting parts for the timpani, but it
was the music of such composers as Berlioz, Wagner,
Bruckner,
Mahler, and Richard Strauss that really helped to make the
timpani an integral part of the orchestra. Another factor to be
considered in this regard was the devlopment of
machine-tuned
timpani.
Up until
the end of the nineteenthcentury,most drums were of the hand-tuned type.
The invention of the pedal-tuned timpani enabled the composer to be much
more creative in writing for the timpani. Our century saw the rapid
developmentof both the pedal-tuned timpani and the music of the
century's greatest composers, forexample,. Bartok, Stravinsky,
Britten,
Debussy,Ravel, Elgar, Sibelius, and
Nielsen.
Nomenclature -
The name timpani
is actually the plural Italian name of the instrument. To find out
what they are called in English, German, Spanish, French, etc., see
below:
English: kettledrums (plural);
kettledrum (singular)
German: pauken (plural): pauke
(singular).
Italian:timpani (plural);
timpano (singular)
Latin: tympani (plural);
tympano (singular)
Spanish:timbales (plural);
timbale (singular)
French:timbales (plural);
timbale (singular)
In the United
States, Canada and Britain, it has become the rule to use the Italian
name for the instruments. The British even shorten that, calling the
instruments "timps".
Sizes and Ranges -
For many years, the
average set of timpani consisted of a pair of drums. These averaged in
size from about 28 inches for the larger drum, to about 25 inches for
the smaller. As composers became more comfortable with writing for the
instrument (particularly after the advent of the pedal tuned timpani),
an extra drum was added.
Today, the average
set of timpani consists of either four or five drums. This is due to the
many contemporary compositions which demand the use of four or more
timpani. The sizes of the drums are as follows, starting with the
largest: (NB!! Size varies according to manufacturer, although from
such firms as American Drum Manufacturing Co., you can order almost any
size you want!)
For those of you who
are new to the world of timpani, the music for the instrument is written
in the bass clef.
Size: 32 inch (or
31 inch). Range: Low D to A
Size: 29 inch (or
28 inch). Range: Low F to c sharp (or d)
Size: 26 inch (or
25 inch) Range: B flat to f (or f sharp)
Size: 23 inch (or
22 and 1/2) Range: d to a (or high b flat)
Size: 20 inch
Range: f to high c
Up until a few years
ago, the number of timpani varied, according to the type of ensemble.
Junior High and Elementary
School
bands used the basic pair of timpani, mamely the 26 inch and 29 inch
drums, adding the outside drums (either the 23 inch or the 32 inch) when
they could afford to. High School Bands were more likely to have the two
basic drums as well as at least one extra drum. Colleges and
professional organizations always had at least the two basic drums plus
the two outside drums. Nowadays, almost all high schools are equipped
with four drums, and colleges and professional ensembles have the full
set of five.
This photograph was taken during a series of rehearsals of the Oslo
Philharmonic Orchestra. The above musician was timpanist of that
orchestra for 15 years, from 1983-1998. Here he is shown demonstrating
the 13th variation (***) of Sir Edward Elgar's "Enigma" Variation. In
this variation, the composer asks the player to use snare drum sticks
near the edge of the head to simulate the sound of a liner's engines.
The dynamic is pianissimo, and sticks always seemd too loud! Here, the
player is trying a different approach: Sticks with a coin on the head!
The drums being used are a 31 inch Light chain timpano, and a pair of
Hinger timpani, sizes 28 inch and 25 inch.
Above are a pair of Light Continental Chain timpani. They are
obviously the outer pair of timpani, most probably sizes 23 inch and 31
inch. I used a 31 inch Continental chain drum with calfskin during my
years in Oslo, and it had plenty of projection.
23 inch Stotz-Anheier timpano made for the
Oslo Philharmonic by Brian Stotz in 1994. The instrument had a very
clear pitch, and was relatively easy to tune and maintain.
