How to Make Drums, Tomtoms and Rattles: Primitive Percussion Instruments for Modern Use: Book

This book transforms percussion education by letting students build their own instruments rather than passively receiving them. The focus on American Indian construction methods honors a rich musical tradition while teaching that powerful sound and authentic musicality don't require commercial products or expensive materials.

Building an instrument yourself reveals how much control you have over its voice. The act of construction becomes the learning; students understand resonance, acoustics, and cultural expression through their hands rather than through abstraction.

Classroom teachers seeking to integrate percussion, crafts, and cultural learning in a single unit. This book works especially well in general music, world music, or hands-on elective classes where students benefit from making tangible connections between materials, construction, and sound.

• Gather all materials before starting a construction session so students can focus on technique rather than hunting for supplies mid-project.
• Let students experiment with different materials and sizes after completing their first instrument; the variations reveal how construction choices affect pitch and tone.
• Record or document student instruments alongside traditional recordings to help students hear their creations in context.
• Involve students in decorating and personalizing their instruments as part of the cultural learning, not as an afterthought.

Embed these construction projects into a multicultural music unit or general music curriculum in the weeks before a performance or demonstration. Students can then play their handmade instruments in an ensemble context, creating a memorable assembly or concert where every drummer holds an instrument they built themselves.

• Understanding acoustic principles (resonance, pitch variation through material and size)
• Following detailed written and visual instructions
• Cultural respect for American Indian musical traditions
• Problem-solving and adaptation when materials vary
• Connecting construction to sound production