Percussion instruments
There seem to have been two main types of drum used in the Middle Ages, which were known by a confusing variety of names. The first was the tabor (tambour, timbrel), which was a medium-sized drum slung across one shoulder, while the second type was the nakers, a pair of small drums. The tabor was played with a single heavy stick, and a pair of sticks were used for the nakers.
Other percussion instruments included the tambourine, which was probably struck with the fingers rather than shaken, the carillon (bells), which were suspended from a frame, the cymbals, and the dulcimer, a psaltery that was struck rather than plucked.
