Usage

The bass drum is used in orchestral music, concert band music, marching music, and throughout 20th century popular music as a component of the drum set for jazz and rock styles.

In popular music, the bass drum is used to mark time. In marches it is used to project tempo (marching bands historically march to the beat of the bass). A basic beat for rock and roll has the bass drum played on the first and third beats of a bar of common time, with the snare drum on the second and fourth beats, called "back beats". In jazz, the bass drum can vary from almost entirely being a timekeeping medium to being a melodic voice in conjunction with the other parts of the set. In classical music, the bass drum often punctuates a musical impact, although it has other valid uses. This instrument is used in many orchestras.

Orchestral bass drum

An orchestral, or concert bass drum is quite large, about 36" in diameter, and is played with one or sometimes two large, padded mallets. Usually the right hand plays the drum and the left hand muffles it. When played with both mallets, a knee or forearm can be used for damping.

Many different timbres, or sound-colors result depending on how and where the drum is struck. Implements used to strike the drum may include bass drum beaters of various sizes, shapes, and densities, as well as keyboard percussion mallets, timpani mallets, and drumsticks. Concert bass drums can sometimes be used for sound effects. e.g. thunder, or an earthquake.

Drum kit bass drum

A kit bass drum is played using a pedal-operated mallet or beater. A right-handed drummer will usually operate a pedal with the right foot.

In a drum kit, the bass drum is much smaller, most commonly 22" or 20" in diameter. Sizes from 16" to 26" diameter are quite normal, with depths of 16" to 22", 18" or 16" being normal. The standard bass drum size of years past was 22" x 14", with 22" x 16" being the current norm. Many manufacturers are now popularizing the 'power drum' concept similar to what tom-toms have gone through, with an 18" depth (22" x 18") to further lower the drum's fundmental note.

Sometimes the front head of a kit bass drum has a hole in it to allow air to escape when the drum is struck for shorter sustain. Muffling can be installed through the hole without taking off the front head. The hole also allows microphones to be placed into the bass drum for recording and amplification. In addition to microphones, sometimes trigger pads are used to amplify the sound and provide a uniform tone, especially when fast playing without decrease of volume is desired.

The kit bass drum may be more heavily muffled than the classical bass drum, sometimes through the use of a pillow or a blanket against the batter head to produce a shorter "thud."

Bass drum pedal

William F. Ludwig made the bass drum pedal system workable in 1909, paving the way for the modern drum kit.A bass drum pedal operates much the same as a hi-hat, a "footplate" is pressed to pull a chain, belt, or metal "drive" mechanism downward, bringing a "beater" or mallet made of felt, wood, plastic, or rubber attached to a "shaft" forward into the drumhead. The pedal and beater system are mounted in a metal frame and like the hi-hat, a "tension unit" controls the amount of pressure needed to strike and the amount of recoil upon release. A double bass drum pedal operates much the same way only with a second footplate attached by rod to a remote beater mechanism.