Scottish tenor drum

The Scottish tenor drum is a musical instrument used within Scottish pipe bands. It is a double-headed membranophone that is held vertically with one head up, one head down, and played with soft mallets on the top head only. Common sizes of drums are 15, 16, 18, or 20 inch in diameter, with 12, 14, or 16 inch depth. The playing style of the Scottish tenor drum has varied throughout the years, but there is typically a variation of the combination of swings (or flourishes) and rhythmic accompaniment to the Scottish snare drum and the Great Highland Bagpipes. It is similar to the more common marching band style tenor drum.

During band competitions, under most pipe band organizations, a pipe band is required to have at least one tenor drummer competing with the band. Many bands use between 3 and 7 tenor drummers to create variety to the music.

During solo competitions, a tenor drummer plays a set that is often either written by themselves, or their instructor. There is no standard to the type of music that is written for the tenor drum, although common styles exist for each region where competitions are held. Most pipe band organizations worldwide require that a solo tenor drummer have both a Great Highland bagpipe player, and a Scottish snare drummer as accompaniment. Commonly within a competition a tenor drummer would play either a hornpipe and jig set, or a march, strathspey, and reel set. However, the selection also depends on what the competition asks of the competitor to play.

The tone of the tenor drum is similar to a bass drum, however it is often higher pitched. Often pipe bands will tune the tenor drums to play different pitches, allowing for more melodic and harmonic accompaniment to the band. The drums are tuned to the drones of the Great Highland bagpipes, and also notes on the chanter (commonly A, E, C chord). Although both heads of the drum are tensioned and tuned equally (to avoid the drum producing overtones when struck), a player only strikes the top head with the mallet.

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