In a drum kit, splash cymbals are the smallest accent cymbals. Splash cymbals
and china cymbals are the main types of effects cymbals.
The most common sized splash has a diameter of 10", followed by 8". Most
splash cymbals are in the size range of 6" to 13", but some splash cymbals are
as small as 4". Some makers have produced cymbals
described as splash up to 22", but a splash of 14" or more is more often
described as a crash cymbal. Splash cymbals include:
Traditional splash cymbals, medium in weight with little or no taper.
Rock splash cymbals, heavy but often with a slight taper.
China splash cymbals. Salsa splash cymbals.
Thin splash cymbals. Bell cymbals.
Specialised stack cymbals. History
The original and traditional splash, like many of the cymbal types in a drum
kit, was invented and named by Gene Krupa in collaboration with the Avedis
Zildjian Company. Widely used in the jazz music of the
1920s and 30s, this traditional splash cymbal was not seen for many years in
mainstream music until Stewart Copeland playing in The Police brought it back to
prominence. Heavier splash cymbals, more suited to this style of drumming, were
soon available. A third phase in the development of
splash cymbals occurred when china splash cymbals became popular. These
added a new dimension to drumming in their own right, and also led to the
development of cymbal stacks. Several other types that are now
regarded as splash cymbals, such as bell and salsa cymbals, have more quietly
been added to the kits of leading drummers and to the catalogues of major
cymbal manufacturers over the years. Today much of the color of an extended
drum kit is provided by the wide variety of splash cymbals available.
Types = Traditional =
Traditional splash cymbals, as first popularized by Gene Krupa, are 8"-12" in
size and medium in weight with little or no taper and therefore a thick rim for
their size. The name "splash" gives quite an idea as
to how this cymbal sounds, the word rhyming with crash but a literal splash
being very small. The normal function of a splash cymbal is to provide a short,
often highly syncopated accent. For their size, they are hit relatively hard
to produce a quick attack and decay. They tend to have little taper in order
to provide the necessary strength for this, the bell being approximately the
same thickness as the rim, resulting in limited richness of tone.
= Rock = Rock musicians favor a heavier splash
cymbal often with a slight taper, 6"-12", giving a fuller sound at higher
volumes. = China =
China type cymbals of less than 14" are generally referred to as china splash
cymbals when used in a drum kit, and are made in a wide variety of shapes and in
sizes 6"-12". This terminology is not entirely
consistent. Sabian for example call their rounded bell 12" china a mini
Chinese, and this same design is also available in 14", Paiste Twenty Series
features a rounded bell mini china 8", 10" and 12", while in the Saluda Voodoo
series the 12" square bell china is simply called a china, while the heavier
10" rounded bell model is called a china splash. This is not entirely illogical;
Many of these cymbals have little or no taper, and as a result some of the
heavier ones, unlike most splash cymbals, can be used as an exotic ride
cymbal at moderate volume. The 8" and 10" Sabian Rocktagon splash
cymbals, smaller versions of their octagonal 16" and 18" Rocktagon crashes,
are sometimes described as china splashes and have an intermediate tone.
China splashes were used in Mike Portnoy's original cymbal stacks, and
remain popular as the top cymbal in a stack.
Examples: Hubei C series china 8"
Sabian AAX Mini Chinese 12" Saluda Voodoo China Splash 10"
Paiste Twenty Mini China 8" = Salsa =
A salsa splash is a small cymbal primarily intended for use with a set of
timbales. Use of a cymbal or cowbell is a fundamental part of many styles of
timbale playing. Example:
Sabian El Sabor Salsa Splash 13" = Thin =
Thin splash cymbals are made in sizes 8"-12" with a pronounced taper and a
sound more akin to a crash than to traditional splashes. They are fragile
and unsuitable for inexperienced drummers, and even then suitable only
for quieter playing, and generally only available in B20 alloy and in the more
expensive and professional cymbal series.
At the thinnest and most fragile end of the scale, a thin splash is identical
to, and interchangeable with, a cymbal designed for playing by hand rather than
by stick. And in either case, a single careless stroke with a drumstick will
split the cymbal. = Bell =
Bell cymbals, 4"-8" or occasionally bigger, are extremely thick cymbals
giving a bell-like tone. Paiste makes one in 13".
The earliest bell cymbals were made by cutting down a larger cymbal,
particularly to salvage something from one that was badly split at the edge.
Bell cymbals range in shape from deep and cuplike, similar in shape to a
church bell, to a traditional cymbal shape, almost flat, and many in between.
= Sizzle splash = Small sizzle cymbals, and splash cymbals
with sizzler attachments, give an even shorter, washier tone than a traditional
splash. = Stacks =
Specialised thin stack cymbals, 8"-12", are designed specifically for stacking,
most commonly as the upper cymbal. They are available individually or, more
recently, in sets of two or three, including larger cymbals intended
primarily as the lower cymbal or cymbals. These sets have provided new
sounds but have not replaced the established technique of using a china,
crash or another splash as the upper cymbal of a stack. Generally, the three
way sets are designed to make possible several usable two-cymbal stacks in
addition to the three-cymbal combination, and most cymbals of all
such sets are designed to also be stacked with other cymbals, giving a
very wide range of tonal possibilities. Similarly, despite the availability of
these cymbals specifically designed for stacking, many drummers still use a
china or a splash as the upper cymbal. Examples:
Sabian Max Stax High 8" Paiste Noise Works Tripple Raw Smash
12", 14", 14" Mounting
The splash cymbal, because of its varied usage and small size, is mounted in many
ways. Some common ways are: On a separate boom stand. This can be of
relatively light construction without a counterweight owing to the light weight
of the cymbal. On an auxiliary boom attached to a stand
used principally to support a drum or another, larger cymbal. This is the
traditional method. On an auxiliary boom attached to the rim
of a snare drum or timbales. This is particularly popular for playing latin
rhythms. By piggybacking on a larger cymbal. The
two cymbals must be separated by an extra felt if they are not to each
affect the other's tone and risk damage. By use of a double stand that mounts the
top cymbal on an extension of the stand that replaces the wing nut holding the
bottom cymbal. These are commercially available but more often created by
adding an accessory to a single stand. As the upper cymbal in a stack in which
another cymbal is deliberately in contact with the splash.
Several of these techniques, notably stacking and piggybacking, are very
rarely used for cymbals other than splash cymbals. The rim-mounted boom is
restricted to splash cymbals owing to the weight of other cymbal types, but
similar mounts, traditionally on the top of the rear rim of the bass drum but
also on other drums, are occasionally used for other lightweight accent
effects, particularly a cowbell and/or a wood block.
= Stacking = A cymbal stack is a combination of two
or more cymbals mounted in contact, producing a sound unlike any single
cymbal. The effect is similar to a loosely closed hi-hat, or can
alternatively be seen as an extreme case of a sizzle cymbal with the upper cymbal
serving as a single large jangle. The exact effect is dependent on the tension
on the mounting bolt, and with some combinations can be varied from a very
short crunch to a much longer buzz. This technique was pioneered by Dave
Weckl, Mike Portnoy and others, originally using a china splash as the
upper cymbal. Portnoy mounted both cymbals bell up, with no spacing felt,
to maximize contact between them, and choosing cymbals of sufficiently
different profile to ensure that the contact was not enough to choke them
completely. As the technique became established,
cymbal makers introduced specialized stack cymbals designed specifically for
use in stacks. However the older technique, using a china splash on top
of a crash, china or another splash, also remains popular.
Stacking should not be confused with piggybacking, in which the upper cymbal
is bell down, the lower cymbal bell up, and a spacing felt is used between the
cymbal bells, preventing any contact. = Piggybacking =
Piggybacking is a method of mounting a splash cymbal, mostly restricted to
small splashes, by simply placing it inverted above another cymbal, with
which it shares the mounting bolt and its sheath, washers if used and wingnut.
A spacing felt is normally used to separate the cymbals, serving as the top
felt of the lower cymbal and the bottom felt of the upper cymbal.
There is an essential difference between this technique and stacking. A cymbal
stack produces a different sound to that produced by either cymbal individually.
The piggyback, like the double stand, is primarily a method of mounting the
splash cymbal, without producing any major difference in the tone of either
cymbal. Advantages of piggyback mounting are:
Requires minimal mounting space, and therefore produces a more compact drum
kit. Allows the drummer to move between the
two cymbals of the piggyback in a single motion.
A bonus for drummers who play in venues where space is very limited.
In very large, extended kits, it allows more cymbals to be within reach of the
drummer. Requires little or no extra equipment,
only the cymbal itself and normally one extra felt for spacing between the
cymbals. Faster setup and takedown.
Lighter traps cases. Less to buy.
It is possible to connect the two cymbals tonally by leaving out the
spacing felt. Disadvantages are:
Requires the upper cymbal to be mounted bell down.
Produces a trashier tone which not all drummers like.
Exposes the rim to the stick in a way that the designer did not intend, often
leading to damage. Many splashes have a relatively thick rim for their size, and
can withstand a stroke that would break a crash cymbal, but thin splashes cannot
generally be mounted bell down. Restricts playing of the lower cymbal,
generally even to making playing its bell impossible.
Restricts adjustment of the damping of either cymbal. The mounting bolt tension
and the size of one felt are the same for both cymbals, as the mounting bolt,
wingnut and this felt are all shared between them.
Many china splash cymbals and some bell cymbals are designed to be mounted bell
down, and are particularly suited to piggyback mounting. Other splash
cymbals, however, are very rarely mounted bell down except when
piggybacked. Most but not all drummers put an
additional felt between the bells of the two cymbals, to eliminate any direct
contact between the cymbals and retain the tone of each. However the slight
contact between the bells if the extra felt is not used affects the tone of
each cymbal only subtly, and some drummers like the tonal connection that
results. Beginners sometimes use this technique for another reason entirely:
The mounting bolt may not be long enough to allow an extra felt, or they may
simply not have bought a felt when buying their first splash.
Unfortunately, the metal to metal contact and the playing of the upturned
splash rim both decrease the life of the cymbal, particularly at the hands of a
beginner. The lower cymbal of the piggyback is
often a crash, or less often a ride, but larger splashes and even chinas can be
used. The upper cymbal could in theory be any cymbal small enough to allow the
lower cymbal to be played, but in practice is almost always a splash.
References