snare drum

snare drum, military and orchestral percussion instrument having several gut, nylon, wire, or wire-covered silk strings (snares) stretched across the lower, or snare, head; the snares vibrate sympathetically with the lower head (to which vibration is transmitted from the upper, or batter, head by air vibrations inside the drum), causing a snappy, penetrating, relatively high-pitched sound. The modern snare drum has a cylindrical shell of wood, plywood, or metal 5–12 inches (13–30 cm) high and...