They are very small. Their sound rises in pitch as they become thicker and smaller. I have seen some in the Pompeian Museum at Naples which were no larger than a piaster. Their tone is so high and weak that it is scarcely audible unless all other instruments are silent. In ancient times they served to mark the rhythm of certain dances, probably in the same fashion as our modern castanets.
In the fairy-like Scherzo of my “Romeo and Juliet” Symphony I have employed two pairs, equal in size to the largest of the Pompeian cymbals (i.e. somewhat smaller than a hand), and tuned in fifths. The lower one
gives this Bb:, and the higher one this F:
To make them vibrate well, the players
E not strike them together with their entire surfaces but only with the edges. Any bell maker can manufacture these small cymbals. They are cast in brass or copper and then tuned in the desired key by means of a lathe. They should be at least a third of an inch thick. They are delicate instruments similar to the keyboard harmonicas, but their tone is stronger and can be heard through a large orchestra playing piano or mezzoforte.
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