The tambourine is a musical instrument in the percussion family. It is made of a wooden or plastic frame, with pairs of small metal jingles set into its rim. These are known as "zils".

Traditional tambourines all have drumheads, that is a skin stretched across the top surface of the frame. Nowadays, some tambourines do not have drumheads.

Tambouirnes have a long history. They were first used in the Middle East, India, Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. They were used as part of religious festivals, or in Greek plays.

The word tambourine means little drum.

Tambourines are often hand held, but they can also be mounted on a tripod as part of a drum kit. The video shows a number of ways to play the tambourine.

One of the most distinctive ways of using a tambourine is to make a tambourine roll. This is played at the end of the video. The easiest way is to shake the hand very quickly at the wrist.