The tongue drum is a percussion instrument in the idiophone family; this means that the material the instrument is made
out of actually also produces the sound itself, without the need for strings, a membrane, or external resonator. Other
names for it include tank drum, Hank drum or steel tongue drum.
The intuitive approach to playing the tongue drum sets it apart from many musical instruments. You don’t need any
knowledge of rhythm, percussion, or music theory to play a beautiful tune. It’s impossible to play a bad note, and they
all sound good together. You can either play it with your hands or use mallets.
The tongue drum has ancient roots, but the instrument itself as we know it now is relatively new. Dennis Havlena, an
American, developed it through some ingenious experiments involving a propane gas tank! The principle is quite simple:
cut the bottom off two tanks, weld them together, and then cut out the tongues, whose width and length define the note.
This page was created by Maria Efthymiou.