A drum kit is made up of several components, each with a different sound. When played by a skilled drummer, with the right patterns, each piece of the drum kit comes alive and brings its own unique flavor to the mix. Of course we know the thump, thump, thump of the bass drum and the ting, ting, ting of the cymbal, but what about the flashiest member of the most self-respecting drum kit? What about the snare drum?

The snare drum gets that name by its very make up. Coils or curls of materials (plastic, metal or gut cord) are stretched along the underneath of the drumhead that gives the drum its particular sound.

Different snares, used to make different types of music may have more coils or different formed coils to change the sound slightly, but the basic make up is the same. The drums themselves have a different sound quality than others, but when the drummer uses brushes other than sticks to play them, it is even more different still. Different styles of music and different drummers can make the exact same drum sound entirely different each and every time it is played.

The snare drum is nothing new, sharing a long history with other instruments including the fife when the two were paired up in the military. We all remember the famous painting from high school, right? There was the snare drum, right there, front and center, as usual. A good drummer could get by with only two pieces of his drum kit if he really had to and the safe money is that he would choose his snare and his bass.

Think about the snare drum and how often it is called upon. Need a drum roll? That is the snare. Need a rim shot for a zinger? Again, the snare drum. Versatile and flashy, the snare drum is the lead singer of the drum kit, no matter what type of music is being played with it.

While most people are fully aware of the generic snare, there are actually a number of different snare drums that vary by size and therefore the sound that they will create. The basic snare drum is just a bit over a foot in diameter at 14 inches, but the snares used by marching bands are usually deeper in size.

Other snare drum sizes, which get increasingly smaller, are used mainly for special effects and may only be seen in specialized type of play- or for comedic effect. Musicians who incorporate comedy, or comedians who incorporate music into their acts may use on of these specialized snare drums for the high-pitched sounds that they make.

The snare drum is usually the one people first thing of when they hear the word. It is usually the call to music for most beginners, the reason they want to join the marching band. It is flashy, it is brash and people always notice it when it is around. See, the snare drum really is the lead singer of the drum kit!