Tambourines: a long musical history

A member of the percussion family, tambourines have historically been made by mounting a single drumhead (often made of thin animal skin) on a ring that has pairs of metal jingles strung around the sides of the drum. It should be noted, however, that not all tambourines use a leather or animal skin head. In some cases, there are jingles strung in the center of the tambourine frame. The instrument was then used by hitting the drum head, shaking the jingles, or striking the instrument against a part of the body to obtain a simultaneous drum tone and jingles.

Historically, the tambourine has been identified in many forms of music, including Persian, classical, gospel, and pop music. The tambourine dates back to most ancient civilizations, including India, China, Rome, Egypt, and Greece, where it was generally used during celebratory periods. Frame drums like the tambourine as some of the oldest identified percussion instruments. They originated in the ancient Middle East and eventually reached medieval Europe. In fact, the tambourine began to appear in operas, ballets, and compositions more and more throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. Used as an accompaniment to other musical instruments or dancers, the tambourine has developed a large following for use in spiritual or ritual activities even now.

Different countries have slight differences in the construction of the instrument, but the basics remain generally the same. For example, the tambourine is closely related to the Riq which is used in countries like Egypt, Iraq, Syria and other Arab countries. In Russia, Ukraine, Slovia, Czechoslovakia and Poland, it is known as Buben. In the countries of the Balkans, Persia, and Central Asia, the instrument is known as the Dajre. In South Indian societies, the instrument is known as the Kanjira. They are all equally accepted as an acoustic percussion instrument that has the primary use of maintaining rhythm and timbre within the piece of music during which it is being played.