The bodhran holds a prominent place in modern Irish music, its playing techniques gaining wide appeal across different musical genres due to the versatility of its design and skill of its players.

Sean O Riada is widely recognized for introducing frame drumming into modern culture while playing with Ceoltoiri Chualann (The Chieftains). After leaving in 1966, Peadar Mercier took over and continued playing until 1976.

Origins

No one knows exactly how the bodhran transformed from a working drum into a musical instrument, although its appearance resembles that of sieve used for sorting grain seeds from light shells or chaff.

At one time, performers would use only their bare hand to strike the drum; over time however, a stick known as a cipin has become the more precise tool for doing so.

Bodhran maestros like Sean O’Riada, Mel Mercier and Johnny “Ringo” McDonagh pioneered new techniques for playing the drum as did pioneering makers like Seamus O’Kane. More contemporary players such as Peadar Mercier, Christy Moore and John Joe Kelly refined and modernised its sound even further.

Construction

While the drum may seem simple, there are numerous ways it can be altered to alter its sound and playability. Electrical tape applied around its rim reduces “edge-loading”, dampens unwanted overtones, reduces hand sweat on skin of drum, thus increasing life span of instrument.

The bodhran is constructed from wood, typically plywood but sometimes solid wood or stave frame shells. Stave shells tend to be very heavy and warp easily.

Goatskin is traditionally the traditional skin, although lambeg, calf, deer and even kangaroo skins have also been utilized. Seamus O’Kane created thin Lambeg skins which allow bodhran players to produce an array of notes ranging from sharp urgent taps to melodious rings of beats. Most modern bodhrans now include tuners which not only add cost-efficiency but make tuning much simpler as well.

Sound

Early bodhrans produced an extremely loud and unrefined sound. These early instruments often featured jingles attached to their frames and could only be played with either bare hands or using a stick called a cipin. Over the decades however, thanks to players such as Peadar Mercier, Johnny Ringo McDonagh or John Joe Kelly playing innovative bodhran makers or tippermakers have greatly refined this instrument’s sound and playedability.

Modern bodhrans come in various sizes while maintaining frame depth and tunability, with playing techniques continuing to evolve over time, including hard rapping to soft tapping and sliding styles being employed by musicians of different styles – this versatile drum has truly become part of Irish Traditional Music since being introduced by Sean O Riada of Ceoltoiri Chualann (later the Chieftains).

Techniques

An experienced player of bodhran can use various techniques to alter its tone. One such way is angling their skin hand against the drum – flat hands produce deeper sounds while those angled produce higher tones.

Bodhran players can utilize various tipper strikes to add rhythmic variations and accents, for instance “doubling” downstrokes by moving their skin hand upward over the beater head.

Bodhran players can also utilize the rim of their drum to produce lower, opaque sounds – this technique was made famous by Johnny McDonagh who pioneered it along with other groundbreaking innovations on his bodhran, becoming widely considered one of the greatest Irish traditional music players and being first to introduce brush playing techniques on his instrument.

Styles

Once upon a time, musicians would play the bodhrans with their hands alone; today a stick known as a cipin is more commonly employed to play them. Holding both ends directly above the drum head is known as Kerry style while having one end hover above only skin area is called top-end style.

Innovation within bodhran making and playing has taken the instrument to new levels. Renowned musicians such as Peadar Mercier of The Chieftains is famed for creating high-tone variations while John Joe Kelly incorporates rhythms from other genres into the instrument’s playing.

The McNeela Classic Performance Bodhran is an accessible instrument designed for beginner musicians looking to expand their repertoire. Its shorter shell depth makes it easier to handle, and its internal tone ring reduces overtones while permitting pitch bending with minimal hand pressure.

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