People have made musical instruments out of all kinds of materials. Sometimes they find unique ways to reuse common objects and turn them into instruments.
One instrument like this is the steel pan, or steel drum. When musicians in Trinidad and Tobago were forbidden to use their African instruments by the colonial rulers, they turned to common objects like bamboo sticks and steel drums. As they played on the drums, they found the pitch would change on different sections. They started tuning their drum pans and forming bands to play them. Eventually, the steel pan became a national instrument and started to spread throughout the Caribbean.
A steel drum is made by hammering different sections on the top until a chosen pitch is formed. There are different locations on the head for each note. The pan is played with sticks, like a xylophone.
Here is a video of a small steel drum band. There are three drums, with one musician playing two at a time. As you watch the video, see how the tops of the pans are hammered to make the different notes. The other instruments, the drums and bass, support the playing of the steel drums.
Which drum plays the highest notes? How can you tell which is highest by looking at them? (Remember, in music, bigger usually means lower.)
Mr. Steve's Music 