Bass Drum
The bass drum in five languages — bass drum, grancassa, grosse caisse
Related
Five languages
| Language | Name |
|---|---|
| Chinese | 大鼓 |
| English | bass drum |
| Italian | grancassa |
| German | große Trommel |
| French | grosse caisse |
The bass drum is the largest drum of the orchestra, with a broad, deep head and usually no definite pitch; it is struck with soft mallets and gives weight and low-frequency power. Italian grancassa literally means "big box", while German große Trommel and French grosse caisse both mean "large drum".
Watch out: the orchestral bass drum is not the kick drum of a drum kit, which is played by pedal and often single-headed; Chinese 大鼓 can also name a Chinese barrel drum, so context matters.
Read deeper → Bass Drum
Sources
- 各语种乐器名与管弦大鼓的形制，参 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "Bass drum"；本文为原创表述
Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.