Illustrated Percussion Dictionary

This area is devoted to the instruments of the percussion world, particularly those which are less familiar. We all know what a drumset looks like, and a snare drum, a bass drum...etc. But some of the other instruments are a little less familiar, and I hope to help you out with knowing and identifying some of those other instruments. Eventually, I may give a shot at putting sound clips of some of these instruments on here, but for now, it'll just be pictures.

Timpani

The timpani (TIHM-pah-nee), sometimes called kettledrums, are large, hollow metal "bowls" with drum heads (made of calfskin or a synthetic material) stretched over the top. Timpani are tuneable instruments, meaning you can play a specific pitch on them by means of a foot pedal or hand crank. This stretches the drum head more or less and therefore changes the pitch. This instrument is seen in almost any traditional Western orchestra, and was the basis of percussion in an ensemble during the Baroque era.
Listen for it in:Bach's Orchestral Suite No.3 in D, Gavotte 1. It's quite prominent. Listen for how the drum play specific pitches that fit into the chords.

Bongos

Bongos (BAHN-goze) are a set of two small drums fastened together, one smaller and one larger. Remember the whole Beat Generation poetry thing? Those little drums in the dude's (or dudette's) lap are usually bongos. They sound fairly high pitched, so don't mistake them for their deeper sounding cousins, the congas.(See below)
Listen for them in:Just about any kistchy 60s music. Think Austin Powers. In fact, the Austin Powers soundtrack has several tracks on it that allow you to hear the bongos.

Congas

All right, you've met the bongos, now meet their older cousins, the congas. These one-headed drums are heard quite frequently in Latin music, as well as jazz and some popular music. They are played with the hands, either sitting down or standing, while the drums are held above the ground by some sort of stand to allow the drums to echo. Different sounds are created by modifying the hand shape to create high, sharp sounds or deep, low sounds.
Listen for it in:Dido's song "Thank You", you know the one. Also in salsa music. Listen to the strong beats on two and four. It may sound somewhat like: one-TWO-three-FOUR-AND...