Hypertext Webster Gateway: "tympani"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Kettledrum \Ket"tle*drum`\ (-dr[u^]m`), n.
1. (Mus.) A drum made of thin copper in the form of a
hemispherical kettle, with parchment stretched over the
mouth of it.
Note: Kettledrums, in pairs, were formerly used in martial
music for cavalry, but are now chiefly confined to
orchestras, where they are called {tympani}.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Tympano \Tym"pa*no\, n.; pl. {Tympani}. [It. timpano. See
{Tympanum}.] (Mus.)
A kettledrum; -- chiefly used in the plural to denote the
kettledrums of an orchestra. See {Kettledrum}. [Written also
{timpano}.]
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
tympani
n : a large hemispherical brass or copper percussion instrument
with a drumhead that can be tuned by adjusting the
tension on it [syn: {kettle}, {kettledrum}, {tympanum}, {timpani}]
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