The Bodhran is an Irish percussion instrument with an extensive sound spectrum ranging from soft whispers to vibrant thuds, making its sounds completely unique to Irish culture.

If you are interested in playing this drum, make sure to explore your local Irish music groups or bodhran basher nights at Irish pubs near you.

What is a Bodhran?

The bodhran is a small drum with an unmistakable sound, commonly seen in Irish music groups but also played by Celtic musicians from other parts of the world including Scotland, Cape Breton and Southern England.

The frame is typically constructed of woods like ash, oak or birch; these materials impact tone with denseer woods producing richer sounds while less resonance. Tunable bodhrans allow users to adjust tension using hardware on the frame in order to alter pitch and timbre.

A bodhran is traditionally played with a tipper stick, though brushes or hands may also be employed to produce various rhythmic textures. Bodhrans are often employed as supporting instruments in Irish session music to add energy and rhythmic support for melody instruments like flutes, whistles, fiddles or piano.

Origins

There has long been debate as to the source of the bodhran; some suggest its origin may lie in Central Asia while others maintain that it could have come via trade routes from North Africa into Ireland.

Bodhran players like Sean O’Raida and Peadar Mercier made the bodhran an integral component of Irish traditional music bands, while John Joe Kelly revolutionized its use by incorporating rhythms from other musical genres as well as developing new playing techniques.

Seamus O’Kane revolutionised drum making and playing by developing an ingenious method for fastening drum skin with screws rather than glue, thus eliminating atmospheric conditions from altering tension of the drumhead, thus improving sound quality and playability of his instrument. His breakthrough remains one of his signature innovations today.

Materials

Bodhran players should select one that feels comfortable to them, lightweight in hand, and won’t drop easily. There are numerous wood types used for creating these instruments and they come in various shapes and sizes – it all comes down to personal taste!

Bodhran drums traditionally featured goatskin skin, though sheepskin is increasingly being used today. The skin was stretched over a wooden frame that can range in depth from three inches up to eight or more depending on each drummer’s preference.

Before stretching, sheepskin must be soaked and dried to become more flexible and remove oil build-up, and should also be airing out to avoid becoming pungent. Sheepskin tends to dry more quickly than goatskin for faster turnaround times between sessions or concerts.

Techniques

Though playing a bodhran may appear simple at first glance, certain stick movements and hand moves may prove challenging for beginners. Sitting down when practicing is essential to controlling the drum more effectively using knees and midsection instead of arms as your controllers.

Kerry style drumming is an ideal introduction for beginners as it enables swift playing. To use this method, grip your stick at its middle (or few fingers), rotating it, and striking alternate ends of skin with alternate blows of your stick.

Bunched dowel sticks are also very popular and versatile pieces of equipment for both single-ended and double-ended playing styles. Made up of safely rounded dowels that can be bent to suit different playing styles, this stick makes an excellent alternative to the sharp and dangerous skewer sticks.

Styles

There are various styles of bodhran sticks, and finding one to meet your playing style can make a dramatic difference to the performance of your music.

The tear drop style provides a relatively large impact surface for rapid playing. An ellipsoid head provides a good blend of low- and high-end sounds as well as lighter weight playability.

Waterford or Thong style beater drumming is one of the oldest forms; it involves tying a thong around your middle, twisting it around an index or thumb finger and using arm and hand techniques similar to Kerry style for striking and controlling the drum. This produces an extremely loud drum but leaves less room for fine adjustments.

The Scottish Tambour or Tambour technique involves playing with the beater held firmly by either fist or few fingers, rotating hand and forearm so that alternate ends of beater strike skin directly; this allows for very fast beating while giving more control than Kerry style.

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