Kettledrum, percussion instrument in which a membrane is stretched over a hemispheric or similar-shaped shell and held taut, usually by a hoop with rope lacings, adjusting screws, or various mechanical devices; in some varieties the lacings may pierce the skin directly or the membrane may be tied on with a thong. When struck by sticks or, less commonly, by the hands, the membrane produces a sound of identifiable pitch. The form of the sound wave is not completely known, nor are the acoustic roles of the shell’s shape and the volume of air it encloses.
The kettledrum apparently originated in the Middle East, but its age is not known with certainty. It is speculated that its precursors were primitive pot drums formed by holding or fastening a skin over a clay pot. Arabic writings from the 10th century ad mention varieties of large and small kettledrums, and the Persian reliefs at Ṭāq-e Bostān (c. ad 600) show a small, shallow version sometimes called a bowl drum. The earliest known pictures of large, deep kettledrums date from 12th-century Mesopotamia. The early flat-bottomed varieties developed into the now typical egg-shaped and hemispherical types; and metal, as well as clay, shells were used.
Kettledrums spread with Islamic culture through Africa, Central and South Asia, and Europe. In these areas they are often associated with trumpets as symbols of royal power and status. They are usually played in pairs, with the two drums tuned to different pitches. Large kettledrums may be paired on horses, elephants, and camels in military regiments (including European cavalry and artillery) and civil ceremonies. Smaller instruments may appear in chamber music (e.g., the Indian tabla) and dance accompaniments.
Small paired kettledrums called naqqāra reached Europe by the 13th century via the Crusades and became known as nakers. In the mid-15th century the large paired kettledrums of the Ottoman Turks were taken to Europe, principally by way of Hungary and Germany. By the 16th century, screws were placed around the circumference of copper shells to control tensioning and tuning of the calfskin heads. By that time trumpet and kettledrum players were established in most important noble households, and players of both instruments belonged to the same exclusive guild.
No written kettledrum music survives from the 16th century, because the technique and repertory were learned by oral tradition and were kept secret. An early example of trumpet and kettledrum music occurs at the beginning of Monteverdi’s opera Orfeo (1607).
During the 17th and 18th centuries kettledrumming developed into an elaborate and ostentatious ceremonial art that used complicated drum patterns based on the multiple tonguing technique of trumpeters. Kettledrums entered the orchestra in the mid-17th century; orchestral kettledrums are commonly called timpani (q.v.).