Ice Bell for Hire

A bell cymbal or ice bell is a small, very thick cymbal with little if any taper, used as an effects cymbal in a drum kit. The sound produced when striking the bell cymbal with a drumstick is a distinctive high-pitched ping sound with a long sustain. Some manufacturers list bell cymbals as a type of splash cymbal, others as a distinct type.

Its name is suggestive both of its tone, which is distinctly bell like, and also the earliest examples, which were made by drummers cutting down a larger cymbal so that only the bell remained.

Bell cymbals vary greatly in profile. In some, there is no bow at all, the entire cymbal is in the shape of a concave downwards cymbal bell, similar to the earliest examples. Others have the shape of a traditional Turkish cymbal, with a smallish bell in proportion to the size of the cymbal, and still others are intermediate between these two extremes.

Bell cymbals are most commonly six to ten inches in diameter.