DRUM

(Dan. trorame.) In Architecture, the upright part of a cupola either above or below a dome. The same term is used to expre the solid part or vase of the Corinthian and Composite capitals. Drcm. In Music, an instrument of percu ion, formed by stretching a piece of parchment over each end of a cylinder formed of thin wood, or over the top of a cauldron-shaped ve el of bra ; the latter is hence called a kettle drum. The large drums which are beaten at each end are called double drums, and are used chiefly in military bands. Kettle drums are always used in pairs; one of which is tuned to the key note, the other to the fifth of the key. It is principally used for military purposes, especially for exciting the soldiers under the fatigue of march or in battle. The drum is supposed to be an eastern invention, and to have been brought into Europe by the Arabians, or perhaps the Moors. The kettle drum, the ba drum, and tambourine, are common in the East. [s. 379]