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Why can a tambourine be classified as both a membranophone and an idiophone?
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musical instrument
Children playing musical instruments.
The classification of a tambourine as both a membranophone and an idiophone depends on the specific method used to produce sound, as defined by the Hornbostel-Sachs system of instrument classification.1
- Membranophone: The tambourine is classified as a membranophone when the player strikes its skin head, as the sound is produced by the vibration of the stretched membrane.1
- Idiophone: The instrument is classified as an idiophone when it is shaken to produce sound from its attached jingles. In this instance, the skin head is irrelevant, and the sound is generated by the vibration of the resonant solid material (the metallic disks) itself.1
Because many musical instruments can be played using multiple systems of tone production, they may reasonably appear in several subcategories depending on how they are manipulated by the performer.1