Bodhran Instruments
The Bodhran is an Irish frame drum composed of a wooden hoop frame covered with goatskin stretched over it.
Bodhran players have developed numerous playing techniques for the instrument. These styles range from Kerry and West Limerick styles, or holding it directly above your head as in top-end style playback.
Origins
A bodhran is a frame drum with one head made up of a circular wooden shell attached to which a mammal skin, typically goatskin, is stretched over and attached using staples tacked at right angles to the edges of its surface. At its edges are wood strips crisscrossing each other at right angles to cover this skin area.
The drum was originally used as a working instrument, though some believe that its musical role developed from this. Similar to frame drums found across northern Africa and with roots in Arabic music and Mediterranean musical traditions.
Today a bodhran is at the core of Irish traditional music. It can be heard at almost all seisuns and serves as an accompaniment for many traditional songs. Traditionally the performer would strike it using only their hand but nowadays more commonly, a stick called a cipin is generally employed instead.
Materials
The Bodhran is a frame drum that resembles a large tambourine without its jangling parts, and gained widespread acceptance as a folk musical instrument during Ireland’s traditional music revival in the 1960s.
Bodhrans consist of wooden frames with one open side and are fitted with goatskin drum heads topped with adjustable tuners for tuning purposes. Today, there are various sizes and materials of Bodhrans available as well as adjustable tuners built into their wooden frames for fine tuning purposes.
The bodhran is frequently played alongside a cipin, which is a small beater used for keeping time and creating rhythmic patterns. Additionally, you can purchase insulated edges that reduce vibrations from external sources – further increasing its quality as an instrument. Most bodhrans are constructed using goat skin; other options may include calf and sheep.
Techniques
An expert drummer can make their instrument speak in multiple ways – from urgent beats to melodious ringing beats. Much of this depends on their technique and style – such as how they hold their drum or stick.
Traditional drum players used their hands, but today most use a wooden stick called a “cipin or tipper”. Two styles are commonly employed: when both ends of the tipper are held directly above the head it is known as Kerry or West Limerick style; otherwise one end only may be employed; this style is known as top end style.
Bodhrans can be easily learned to play, yet learning its modern playing style requires practice to develop its intricate stick manoeuvres and hand movements – but the effort will certainly pay off!
Styles
Since Sean O Riada reintroduced the drum, percussionists such as Peadar Mercier, his son Mel Mercier and John Joe Kelly took it to new heights by exploring different playing styles that have helped cement its place within contemporary Irish music.
A bodhran is typically played sitting down, held vertically on one leg with one hand (right-handed players’) placed inside of its drum where pressure applied by right fingers can control pitch and timbre.
Professional Bodhrans manufactured today often utilize mechanical tuning systems similar to those found on drum kits, while some manufacturers also include hex keys with their instruments so that tightening or loosening may be adjusted depending on atmospheric conditions, enabling it to adapt better with changing hand pressure.
Recordings
This library’s bodhran and cajon recordings include up to six dynamic layers and multiple round robin repetitions for each instrument, along with various hand positions and crossbar configurations (with or without muting skin).
Players have the ability to press their spare hand against the underside of the skin of the bodhran drum to produce sharp urgent taps to melodious ringing beats on it, creating an array of sounds from urgent taps through melodious ringing beats. A skilled bodhran player can use this skillful instrument to express sobs, joy, or even an urgent martial call for action through its soundscape.
A typical recording technique for the bodhran includes placing one mic near its skin side and adjusting its EQ settings accordingly to emphasize treble and mid range “taps”, while placing another mic on its open side, with bass/midrange tuning EQed into account.
