Kotsuzumi
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The Kotsuzumi is a small hourglass-shaped drum used in Japanese noh drama. The instrument is held over the right shoulder and the front head is struck with the fingers of the right hand. By pressing with the left hand on the lacing, the player can tighten the heads and therefore raise their pitch. Occasionally the player improves the sound quality of the drum by attaching thin strips of paper to the rear head.
| Family |
| Percussions |
| Pitch range |
| None. |
| Material |
| Wooden body, often lacquered cherrywood, with horsehide heads. |
| Size |
| Approximately 10 in (25 cm) long. |
| Origins |
| The kotsuzumi is a Japanese drum played in dance-drama and dance music. The earliest depiction of the instrument was in a tomb of the 6th or 7th centuries A.D. One example in the Shosoin Museum in Nara, Japan is considered to have been in use by the 7th century A.D. |
| Classification |
| Membranophone: an instrument that produces its sound by the vibration of a stretched skin. |
| And also... |
| This drum has a subtle sound, and the instrumentalist has to adjust the heads of the drum while playing it. |
