Castanets << `kas` tuh NEHTS >> are a small percussion instrument of indefinite pitch. Each castanet is a spoon-shaped clapper made of a hard wood. In the original Spanish form, two castanets are tied together in pairs. A dancer carries a pair of castanets in each hand and clicks them together to add a rhythmic accompaniment. For orchestral use, castanets are tied on both sides of a small wooden paddle, and the performer uses only one pair. The instrument is ancient and characteristically Spanish.
