Music Bodhran


The bodhran is an Irish frame drum ranging from 25 to 65 cm (10   to 26  ) in diameter. It has only recently (1960s) entered into common use in traditional music.   There are no known references to this particular name for a drum prior to the 17th century. Various drums (played with either hands or sticks) have been used in Ireland since ancient times. The bodhran itself did not gain wide recognition as a legitimate musical instrument until the Irish traditional music resurgence in the 1960s in which it became known through the music of Sean o Riada and others.  It is generally constructed from a goatskin head tacked to one side of a circular wooden frame. (synthetic heads or other animal skins are sometimes used). The other side is open-ended for one hand to be placed against the inside of the drum head to control the pitch and timbre.  One or two crossbars, sometimes removable, may be inside the frame, but this is increasingly rare on modern instruments.