Shaman drums are not jus musical instruments.
They are gateways to other dimensions, spirited companions on inner journeys and during shamanic processes.
Every drum has its own personality and a particular purpose.
Our drums are completely handcrafted on the edge of the Müritz National Park.
It is important for us to do as much as possible ourselves and to enjoy every step of the process
Our construction method doesn't follow any specific traditional style. I've developed my own construction method designed to create instruments that function in the world we live in. They are part of our world, so we don't only use natural materials. I've consciously chosen to use regular wood glue and synthetic tensioning cords: so that the drums are powerful, not only in the "other"world, but also in the "real" world and everything in between.
For the construction of the frames, we primarily use spruce wood. Our drums are related to octagonal or dodecagonal drums, except that we use 18 segments for smaller drums and 24 segments for larger ones. After sanding, they are practically round. We always make a frame from a single board, which is sawn so that the wood grain runs continuously. This doesn't affect the stability, but it makes the frame much more harmonious.
All the 'corners' are connected with beech wood dowels (which does something for stability).
For our drums, we use roe deer, fallow deer, and red deer hides that we obtain from a friendly game butcher. We get them freshly skinned, so we do the further processing ourselves. They are soaked in natural lye (we heat with wood). And then dehaired and defleshed in the forest behind our house.
All the hides are from animals that lived freely here in Mecklenburg, in and around the Müritz National Park.
To distribute the tension as evenly as possible, our drums have 48 (large drum) or 30 (small drum) attachment points. This is clearly visible in the pictures on the 6- or 5-pointed star-shaped tensioning crosses. For this tensioning, we use a relatively thin and light, but extremely strong rope: "Dacron" kite line. This rope is normally used for paragliders and the like. ;-)
And because Dacron, despite all its good properties, is not really pleasant to hold for a long time, we make the handle cross out of cotton.
Yes the drum comes with a beater.
Personally, I much prefer playing with my hands. With hands, you have many more expressive possibilities and a much more direct contact with the drum.
Most of the beaters I've seen for shamanic drums are pretty heavy and clumsy. I make mine from 8mm beech roundwood, wrapped in sheep's wool and leather. They're light and well-balanced, so you can play with more detail.
Do you prefer a more chunky beater? I don't like them so I don't make them. Better to leave that to someone(you perhaps) who can do that with the right energy.
Our drums don't have a tensioning mechanism. So if the humidity is too high you can't tighten the skin and still play. I have a bad feeling about forcing a skin to much to be able to play. So if you want to play outside in high humidity, you need a campfire to keep the drum cozy too.
If your drum is exposed to different humidity levels frequently, it may eventually lose its tension. In that case, the skin can be moistened both inside and out. You can use a damp cloth or sponge – not soaking wet. If you then let the drum dry slowly at room temperature, it will regain its original tension
