Australian Army Museum of Western Australia > Records

Pre 1914, Timpani or Kettle Drum

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Overview

Timpani or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper. Thus timpani are an example of kettle drums, also known as vessel drums and semispherical drums, whose body is similar to a section of a sphere whose cut conforms the head.

Historical information

In military use, the most visible timpani are found on the Drum Horses in British ceremonial use, particularly Trooping the Colour. To date no documentation has been found for the use of Drum Horses in the australian Army.

The Drum Horse breed is named after the type of work that it traditionally performs. This breed carried a rider and set of kettledrums during the Queen of England’s Band of the Life Guard processions. The horses paraded through the street, navigating large crowds. Most impressively, because the rider had to play the drums, the horses were controlled by reins that were attached to a rider’s feet.

The Drum Horse had to be impressively tall and strong to carry the weight of the drums through long processions. Horses also had to be sensible, calm, and good-natured to willingly respect and respond to the non-traditional rein steering used. To achieve this, breeders typically crossed Clydesdale, Gypsy Cob, and Shire breeds. The result is a large, docile, and good-tempered horse that made an impressive appearance during processions.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-32-54-427

Inscriptions and markings

The Australian Army Museum of western Australia has two timpani of unknown provenance in its collection.

Contextual Information

This object is displayed in the music corner of Pre 1914 Gallery at the Australian Army Museum of Western Australia

Australian Army Museum of Western Australia

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