How are drums made? Hi, welcome to curious kids every day. I'm Josh. How are you doing today? It's so good to hear from you. Hey, do you know what this sound is? Yep, that is the sound of drums being played. Have you ever played the drums before? We don't have a drum set at our house, but some of our friends do. And we have this music store by our house that has drums you can try. And my kids love playing the drums. The drums are such a unique instrument, aren't they? The whole point of the drums is that you hit them hard. I always wonder how they don't break. Whenever I go to a concert and I see the drummer back there just wailing away. I always wonder how are those drums still going? He's got to do that every night. Don't they break? They must make drums really strong. Have you ever wondered how they make drums? Let's figure it out today. When a factory makes a drum, it usually starts by making the shell. The shell is the round body of the drum. Many drum shells are made from thin layers of wood glued together. Those thin layers are called plies. Can you say plies? A factory may use woods like maple or birch or beech or oak. And that wood is cut into thin sheets. Those sheets are layer and glued and are shaped into a circle. Then the shell is pressed so it holds that round shape. Some drums are made from metal instead of wood, but the idea is still the same. Make a strong round shell that can vibrate well when it's hit. After the shell is formed, workers or machines make it smooth and even. They sand it, trim it, and they cut the top and bottom edges very carefully. Those edges are called bearing edges. Can you say bearing edges? Bearing edges are the part where the drum head touches the shell. Oh, and the drum head is the part that you hit. Those bearing edges matter a lot because they affect how the drum sounds. If the edge is shaped evenly, the drum head can sit properly on top and vibrate the way it's supposed to. Next, the shell gets holes for the hardware. Hardware means the metal parts attached to the drum. That includes things like lugs, which are the little metal pieces around the sides, and hoops, which are the round rings that hold the drum head down. A snare drum also has extra parts underneath called snares. Those are the curly metal wires stretched across the bottom head that give a snare drum its sharp buzzing sound. You ever notice that a snare sounds a little bit different? That's because it's got that metal wire piece underneath it. Then the factory finally adds the drum heads. Remember, this is the part you hit. Now, most modern drum heads are made from a very thin, but strong plastic film called polyester film. But you might have heard it called mylar. Here's why drum makers love this stuff. It's very thin, but it's very tough and flexible. That means when you hit it, it stretches just a tiny bit and snaps back quickly without tearing. It also handles changes in temperature and humidity better than older drum heads that were made from... Wait for it...animal skin. Yeah, drum heads used to be made of animal skin. Drummers would bang on animal skin to play the drums. Wow. But now they use plastic. The drum head is stretched inside a metal ring, placed on the drum, and tightened with tension rods. After that, the drum is tuned and tested. Yep, just like you have to tune a guitar or a piano, you tune your drums too. Tuning means tightening or loosening the drum head to change the pitch, or how high or low it sounds. So, a factory makes drums by shaping a shell, smoothing the edges, adding hardware, stretching on drum heads... and testing everything to make sure it all sounds right. And those drum heads are made of a very special kind of plastic film that can be hit over and over and over and over and over and over and over again without breaking. That is how factories make drums. Alright, let's have a quick quiz. What is the round body of a drum called? It's called the shell. And what are the thin layers of wood in some drum shells called? They're called plies. And what is the stretched part called that you hit? The drum head. And what do we call changing how tight the drum head is to change the sound? We call that tuning. Let's play true or false. True or false. Drum shells are always made of plastic. No, that's false. They're often made of wood, and some are made of metal. True or false. The bearing edge is where the drum head touches the shell. True or false. The bearing edge is where the drum head touches the shell. Yep, that's true. True or false. A snare drum has metal wires underneath that help make its buzzing sound. Yep, that's true. Would you rather play the drums, the piano, or the guitar? Now, I live in Nashville, Tennessee, and another name for Nashville is Music City. Because there is a lot of music here in Nashville. And so because of that, I learned to play the guitar when I was a kid. When I was growing up, people always asked me, do you play any instruments? And I would say, I play the guitar, but everybody in Nashville plays the guitar. So I already know how to play the guitar, and I learned piano a little bit, but I never sat down and learned how to play the drums. I just never quite understood how you get that rhythm. So if I had to choose one, I think I would choose the drums, because that's the one I have the least experience with, and I would love to sit down if I had the time and learn how to do it. Alright, let's play a round of what am I? What am I? I am stretched, tight. You hit me to make the sound. And I sit on top of the shell. What am I? I am the drum head. Okay, I've got one more game today. This game is called Wood, Metal, or Plastic. I'm going to name something related to a drum set, and you tell me if it's made of wood, plastic, or metal. Are you ready? What about the drum head? That is made of plastic. What about the hoop that helps hold the head down? That's made of metal. What about the shell of the drum? That can be wood or metal. What about the snares under a snare drum? That is made of metal. And here's one more. We didn't talk about the cymbals, but just listen to this sound. Do you think that the cymbal is made of wood, metal, or plastic? Yep, it's made of metal. Drums are such a unique instrument, and now we know why. There isn't really another instrument that is made quite like a drum set. It has to be really, really durable. If I hit my guitar as hard as you're supposed to hit the drums, I don't think it lasts 10 seconds. So next time you see a drummer playing really, really hard on the drums, now you know why they're able to do it. Drums are made to be hit. Over and over and over and over and over again. What kind of question do you think we'll ask tomorrow on Curious Kids every day? I can't wait to find out so until then, keep asking questions and stay curious kids. And we've got a few birthdays today. Today is Elliot's birthday. Elliot is from Maryland, and Elliot is turning nine. Happy birthday, Elliot. Kate is from Maryland, and she's a little girl. Happy birthday, Elliot. Kayden is from Michigan, and Kayden is turning four. Happy birthday, Kayden. Delilah is from Victoria, Australia, and Delilah is turning seven. Happy birthday, Delilah. Jigme is from California, and Jigme is turning seven. Happy birthday, Jigme. Hokeyma is from New Mexico, and Hokeyma is turning nine. Happy birthday, Hokeyma. Luis is from Ohio, and Luis is turning four. Happy birthday, Luis. Barnaby is from England, and Barnaby is turning seven. Happy birthday, Barnaby. That name always reminds me of the movie Hello Dolly. Barnaby. Happy birthday, Barnaby. Harper is from Wisconsin, and Harper is turning six. Happy birthday, Harper. To all the grown-ups listening, if you're a Curious Kid once they're birthday mentioned on the show, please visit supportcuriouskids.com and join the Curious Kids Club. That's supportcuriouskids.com. See you tomorrow!
