How to Keep Time on a Tambourine

Keeping time with the tambourine requires the player to either strike their body with the tambourine or strike the tambourine with their hand to keep time. The tambourine can also be shaken to keep time. As a percussion instrument, the tambourine is used to help set the beat for others in the band.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Grab the tambourine firmly with one hand. The tambourine can also be played while it is held in a frame by hitting it with a drumstick to mark the time.

2. Hold the tambourine so that the head is vertically oriented straight up and down and not held out horizontal to the ground. This makes the head of the tambourine easier to strike with the hand or body.

3. Move the tambourine side to side to the beat. The player should know both the time signature and the tempo. The tambourine is a percussion instrument and as such it can be heard above many of the woodwinds such as a flute.

4. Shake the tambourine in straight time to the beat of the music. The metal of the tambourine should sound on the beat and the hand should swing on the off beats to get the rhythm down correctly.

5. Strike the hand against the tambourine to exaggerate the beat more and give additional impact to the first beat of each measure.