Elenco Mechanical Drum - Manual (Page 8)

6
Mechanical Drum
Leonardo da Vinci was an accomplished musician
and he sketched ideas for a variety of musical
instruments. He was particularly interested
in percussion instruments and the forms that
he purposed were well beyond what was seen in his time. Da Vinci’s desire was to
create a mechanized drum, which could vary in timbre and sound.
The mechanical drum was designed as a cart to be wheeled along the ground. The gear
fixed to the axle turned two cylinders, which tripped five spring-powered drumsticks
on each side of the drum. In the same manner as a music box, the placement of the
pegs in the cylinders determined the order and rhythm of the drumbeats.
This drum was likely used to create an ominous booming sound during warfare.