It can be played with a large padded stick or, in the traditional drumset, it is played with a padded pedal controlled by the drummers feet. For more info. Toms may have one or two heads but no snares. It's pitch may be altered to be used in various settings from dance halls to jazz groups. The sound of a tom imitates that of American Indian drums.
Xylophones consist of graduated bars of hardwood that are struck with a stick or mallet.
Xylophones are most common in non-Western cultures. A Marimba consists of a number of wooden plates that vary in size and thickness. Underneath the plates are resonators made of gourds. Recent modifications of the Marimba have produced Marimbas which consist of bars of hardwood of uniform thickness and with tuned tubular metal resonators, encompassing up to six or seven octaves. The Marimba is especially popular in Central America and is the national instrument of Guatemala.