Tympani

3 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  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.
        [1913 Webster]
  


     Note: Kettledrums, in pairs, were formerly used in martial
           music for cavalry, but are now chiefly confined to
           orchestras, where they are called {tympani}.
           [1913 Webster]
  
     2. An informal social party at which a light collation is
        offered, held in the afternoon or early evening. Cf.
        {Drum}, n., 4 and 5.
        [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  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}.]
     [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [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}]