Tympanist
/ˈtɪm.pə.nɪst/noun
A person who plays the timpani.
Did you know?Its root goes back to Greek *tympanon*, a drum or tambourine, from *tympanon* meaning something struck, linking the word to the same sound-world that gave us the medical *tympanum* for the eardrum.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
τύμπανον (týmpanon)
“A drum, tambourine, or frame drum”
Late Latin
Latin
tympanum
“A drum; also a wheel-like or rounded structure”
Old French
Old French
tympan
“A drum; later also a panel or membrane-like surface”
Middle English
English
tympan
“A drum or drum-like object”
18th–19th Century
English
tympanist
“A player of the timpani”