A snare assembly for application in a snare drum including a cylindrical shell, a lower drum head and an upper drum head oppositely secured to the drum shell, and a snare strainer mounted to the drum shell for applying tension to the snare assembly. The snare assembly mounted adjacent the lower drum head of the drum and comprises a pair of end members and a plurality of generally parallel snare strands extending between and each permanently attached at opposite ends thereof to respective ones of the end members. The snare strands of the snare assembly have continuously graduated effective lengths for providing continuously graduated tension of the snare strands in a transverse direction of the snare assembly when the snare strands are elongated in an axial direction thereof by the snare strainer. Consequently, the snare assembly generates a musical tone continuously graduated in transverse direction of the snare assembly.