The McNeela Tunable Bodhran
Tunable Bodhrans are an invaluable investment that will enhance your playing speed and enjoyment, whether you are just beginning or an experienced musician. Tunable bodhrans will both improve your sound as well as allow you to hone your playing techniques.
Bodhran skins react to changes in humidity by becoming tight in dry environments and loose in wetter ones, but there are steps you can take to address this problem.
Adjustable Tone Ring
Adjustable tone rings allow bodhran players to easily tighten or loosen the skin around the inner hoop of the instrument using either backhand pressure, water or heat as appropriate.
Tighter or looser skin will alter the pitch and tone of a drum, providing you with more options when tuning. Tuning can be especially helpful if a song requires specific pitches or the weather is unseasonably warm and humid.
Though most bodhrans are non-tunable, it may be possible to convert one by using water to wet the skin and make tuning simpler. When this process has taken place, tuning will become easier.
Adjustable Skin Tension
A bodhran’s skin is highly responsive to humidity. Tightening in dry weather produces high, pingy tones while damp weather causes it to relax producing low, boomy sounds – this makes adjusting to different humidity conditions with ease essential. A great advantage of playing on an adjustable tension instrument like this bodhran is that its tone changes according to humidity conditions – as such being an essential aspect of its enjoyment!
Most commonly, this can be accomplished using an allen key to tighten or loosen the skin over an inner hoop. Some drum makers have also developed tuning mechanisms which use ratchets instead; either way, having the capability of retensioning your skin is an essential feature of a quality bodhran.
Bodhran skins can be applied to their frames in several ways; nailing, stapleing and gluing are the most reliable ways. Although glueing provides the strongest and neatest finish, nailing or stapling may provide more economical solutions if required. If using nailing/stapling methods it should be dampened before application so it shrinks when drying.
Adjustable Hardware
This drum features high quality goatskin on an attractive sheesham frame and comes equipped with tuning hardware hidden inside for convenient tuning capabilities. Ideal for more serious players looking to tune their bodhran themselves.
No matter if or how tunable your bodhran may be, its skin can still be affected by changes in humidity. Under dry conditions it may tighten up while at low humidity it could relax; either of these effects could alter its tone and render it sounding metallic.
To address this, try wetting the bodhran. Just be careful not to overdo it as too much water could cause its head to swell and tear, using just enough to dampen and rub the head ring area around its center with just a small amount. When striking your tipper against it again you should feel a change in tension.
Adjustable Head
McNeela Tunable Bodhrans come complete with your choice of lambeg or Vellum goatskin for added customisation, along with an easy and reliable internal tuning system located beneath its skin for user convenience. Additionally, each McNeela comes equipped with its own discreet inside tuning system so you can tune it without hassle or inconvenience.
Adjustable tone rings aim not just to tune to specific notes; rather, their purpose is to maintain playable tension under various humidity conditions.
No bodhran can be tuned like oiling can, so the pitch may change significantly depending on environmental and humidity changes. To offset this problem, many players wet the skin with water before playing to help lower its pitch more drastically; this method has proved less precise but nonetheless effective than oiling! To wet a bodhran simply rub its back side with clear water (not tap or cold!) for best results.
