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Before anything else, let us orient you to what percussion instruments are. A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound by being hit with an implement, shaken, rubbed, scraped, or by any other action which sets the object into vibration. The word "percussion" has evolved from Latin terms: "percussio" (which translates as "to beat, strike" in the musical sense, rather than the violent action), and "percussus" (which is a noun meaning "a beating"). As a noun in contemporary English it is described as "the collision of two bodies to produce a sound". The term usually applies to an object used in a rhythmic context or with musical intent. Included in your long list of percussion instruments are your basic drums.
Percussion is commonly referred to as "the backbone" or "the heartbeat" of a musical ensemble, often working in close collaboration with bass instruments, when present. In jazz and other popular music ensembles, the bassist and the drummer are often referred to as the rhythm section. They serve to provide additional accents when needed. Percussion instruments play not only rhythm, but also melody and harmony.
There are several classification of percussion instruments. Percussion instruments can be, and indeed are, classified by various criteria sometimes depending on their construction, ethnic origin, their function within musical theory and orchestration, or their relative prevalence in common knowledge. You will learn more about these in the following pages.
Because of the diversity of percussive instruments, it is not uncommon to find large musical ensembles composed entirely of percussion. Rhythm, melody and harmony are all apparent and alive in these musical groups, and in live performance they are quite a sight to see.
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