Drumhead
From Freepedia
A drumhead is a membrane stretched over one or both of the open ends of a drum. The drumhead is struck with sticks, mallets, or hands so that it vibrates and the sound resonates through the drum.
Originally, drumheads were made from animal skin. In 1956, Chick Evans invented the plastic drumhead. These plastic drumheads are cheaper, more durable, and less sensitive to weather than animal skin heads, so they are used by a great majority of drummers. Despite the benefits of plastic heads, many timpanists and orchestral percussionists prefer animal (typically calf) skin heads because they tend to produce a warmer, more pleasant sound. Drummers in historical reenactment groups such as fife and drum corps also use animal skin heads for historical accuracy. Skin heads are used on most hand drums, including djembes and congas. Another common material used for drumheads is aramid fiber, such as kevlar. Fiber heads are used mostly in marching percussion, because they are much more durable than plastic, and they can sustain high tension required to get the high pitch sound which is desired.
Other uses
Rail transport usage
 Drawing of the rear of the observation car on the Super Chief, showing the typical location of the drumhead. |
 A display of several railroad drumheads at the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay, WI. |
On American railroads of the first half of the 20th century, the term drumhead referred to a removable lighted sign that was posted on the rear of passenger trains. The sign consisted of a fully enclosed box with lights inside it that would light up a tinted panel showing the train's or the railroad's logo. Since the box and the sign were usually circular in shape, they resembled small drums; thus these signs came to be known as drumheads.
Railroad drumheads were removable so they could be mounted on different passenger cars (usually on the rear of observations) as needed for specific trains.
Military usage
The word drumhead may also refer to a summary court-martial that tries on the battlefield. This derived from the use of an actual drumhead as the judge's "table". From this comes the term "drumhead justice", implying arbitrary adherence to rules or law, lacking compassion or allowance for circumstances.
