Drum

Drums playing.

"The feast is about to begin. Jack's life will end when the drums stop."

―Joshamee Gibbs

The drum was a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. It consisted of at least one membrane that was stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a percussion mallet, to produce sound. Drums were the world's oldest and most ubiquitous musical instruments, and the basic design had remained virtually unchanged.

History

From high atop the cliff that overlooked Port Royal, Captain James Norrington's promotion ceremony at Fort Charles was a glittering military spectacle, with pipes and drums playing as sailors and marines marched in perfect formation. Drums continued playing as Norrington entered the courtyard, where he was promoted to commodore of the British Royal Navy. The sound of drums filled the air later during Jack Sparrow's hanging, and the Town Clerk listed Sparrow's crimes and his death sentence at Fort Charles, with a drumroll being played before Will Turner dashed to Sparrow's rescue.

At Isla de Pelegostos, a cannibal island, drums were often played by the Pelegostos Tribe, most notably when the Pelegostos made Jack Sparrow their chief, believing Sparrow to be a god in human form. Drums played when a prisoner, Will Turner, was captured in the jungle, brought to Sparrow in the village, and then taken to the bone cages with the rest of Sparrow's crew. As Pintel and Ragetti reached the shore of the island, intending to "salvage" the Black Pearl from the sandy beach, the sound of drums began to suddenly sound through the jungle and out to the sandy beach. According to Joshamee Gibbs, it was the Pelegostos' duty to release their god from his fleshy prison, and gravely said that Jack's life would end when the drums stop. Inside the village, the beat of the drums was building as the Pelegostos prepared for their grand feast by gathering wood for the fire pit, and later when Jack, their guest of honor and main course, was tied up like a turkey, but the drums stopped just as a torch was about to light the pit when a guard suddenly burst into the village, screaming that the prisoners were escaping. Despite losing Jack Sparrow as their chief following his escape, the Pelegostos continued to play drums when the Prison Dog was made the chief.

Upon seeing three Spanish galleons from aboard the HMS Providence, privateer Hector Barbossa gave orders to the Providence crew to prepare for battle, with a sailor playing a drumroll as the crew beat to quarters.

Behind the scenes

Drums first appeared in media relating to the 2003 film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, notably making its first appearance in the film's trailer, as well as being identified by name in Irene Trimble's junior novelization. Although appearing in various media, drums were first identified by name onscreen in the 2006 film Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest.

Appearances

• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003 junior novelization) (First appearance)
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2006 junior novelization)
• Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (junior novelization)
• Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
• Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Sources

• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Visual Guide
• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide

External links

• Drum on Wikipedia