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Caring for your Bodhrán
Original from www.ceolas .org
See also: Styles of
Play for the Bodhrán and How to Mic a Bodhrán
Some people swear by a few drops of beer (variously Guinness Stout, Bass IPA, etc.) as the One and Only True Way to loosen
the head of a bodhrán when it's too tight. According to the best advice I've been able to
gather, this is a mistake: The sugars in the beer will clog the pores of the skin, which
reduces its flexibility. The best way to temporarily loosen the head is a little bit of
water, rubbed evenly into the skin.
If your drum is always too tight, you may want to apply a little oil or
moisturizer to the skin. This treatment will permanently loosen the skin, so don't
be hasty. If you live in a place (as I do) where the humidity varies a lot from one season
to another, then you should consider waiting at least a full year before treating
your drum. If you do decide that your head needs this treatment, you can use a variety of
moisturizers. Some people, including Jackie Moran of the Drovers, suggest using a good
hand-cream or baby oil, on the theory that skin is skin; one correspondant got good
results with an aloe-based lotion. Buck Musical Instruments sells something they call head
oil, which I think is mostly neat's foot oil. Tommy Hayes suggests almond oil. Robert Padron posted to rec.music.celtic that he uses mink oil; he said "Wipe
it on, let it soak for an hour or two, wipe it off." What's best for you probably
depends on the climate where you live, the climate where the drum was made, and the
thickness and quality of the skin on your drum.
Too Loose?
When you have the opposite problem, a head that's too loose (either
playing too low or simply unplayable), the standard short-term solution is dry heat,
applied with care. A blow dryer or heating pad works well; you can also hold the head up
to any source of heat, like a fire, burner on a stove, or even a strong lightbulb. When I
do this, I keep my hand between the drum and the heat. I figure that as long as I'm
comfortable, it can't get hot enough to hurt the drum.
For a drum that is always too loose, some people suggest soaking the
head thoroughly with water, then letting it dry out slowly in a dry place. The skin
tightens up as it dries. Lark in the Morning gives one version of this procedure; I'd also heard
it from Jaime Rodriguez, one of the better drummers in New York City. His version was to
place the drum skin down on a flat surface, and pour about an inch of water into it; then
dump out the water, turn the drum over, and let it dry. I tried it with my Buck drum
recently, and it worked pretty well; the drum is still not perfect, but it is more
resistent to heat and humidity than it was before. Richard Griffiths wrote me to say that
he also used this treatment on his drum. He warns that it doesn't work as well a second
time as it does the first.
Just Right?
And this suggestion was sent to us by an unknown contributor. (March 2001)
Believe it or not, a really good bodhran-skin conditioner is "Wise
Woman Salve", now known as Dr. Burt's Comfrey Ointment by Burt's Bees Inc. in Raleigh, North
Carolina. It's an olive/almond oil and beeswax base with lavender & comfrey extracts.
Something about the beeswax keeps the drumhead just right-- not too loose, not too tight.
I only apply it occasionally but it seems to keep away the humidity, and my drum sounds
and feels perfect. (The salve gives the goatskin a beautiful translucent shine too after a
while.)
Tunable Bodhráns
Tunable bodhráns avoid most of the problems with skin tension, but
have their own needs. Some makers recommend that you always de-tune the drum when you are
done with it, to avoid stretching the skin out of shape and ruining it. Other makers say
you don't need to do anything of the sort.
A hole in your drum's skin is not the end of the world. In fact, you
may not want to do anything at all: Tommy Hayes' favorite drum, a Charlie Byrne drum,
acquired an inch-diameter hole from mildew; but it still sounds wonderful, and Hayes would
not dream of changing it. So, if your drum sounds good despite the hole, leave it be.
But a small hole can get bigger; if you develop a tear, then you should
do something quickly. Andy's Front Hall sells a patch kit for a few dollars, which comes
with a goatskin patch and glue. It looks like a simple process. I've seen drums patched
with duct tape, and I suspect that would work just as well.
If all else fails, you can re-skin a drum. If you want to do it
yourself, several retailers sell replacement skins -- Elderly Instruments, Boston Music
Company, Andy's Front Hall -- and many drummakers would be happy to sell you a skin. For a
good drum, I wouldn't want to do anything other than take it back to the original maker.
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