A side drum is an ancient kind of large drum that was used in Europe by the landsknechts, mercenaries from the German area. Said troops fought on the side of the highest bidder, and they even were part of the Spanish infantry under emperor Carlos I.
Said drum was played to one side, under the arm pit, thus its name. It was played together with fifes and was used to march, transmit orders, entertain the soldiers, etc.
This project starts with a 18″x18″ Gonalca surdo which was crying for a new chance.
I took off the hardware and the wrap, leaving the shell in its “natural” state. 18″x13″ seems to be a standard size for these drums, so I cut the shell to nearly 14″ in depth.
I pluged the holes with wooden dowels, which I cut to level once the glue was dry.
I sanded both sides of the shell so they were smooth and then glued a new veneer:
The shell was ready. I then drilled two diametrically opossed groups of three holes to accommodate the pegs in charge of tensioning the snares. Six viola tuning pegs were inserted, which I drilled so the gut could pass through:
I got two wooden counterhoops at Thomann, which I drilled (16 times each) at a 22.5º angle to facilitate the passing of the rope. Then, I cut two snare gates in the resonant counterhoop for the snares:
I made 16 ears using leather pads and ribbon:
Everything was ready: the 16 ears, 22 metres of hemp rope (7 mm thick) and two goat heads (the batter one slightly thicker, both mounted on wooden flesh hoops) that I got at Baena Sonido.
A chain is “knit” with the remaining rope, which is attached around the lower counterhoop. I also made a pig-tail, the knot that ends the roping and keeps the tension. See how the end of the rope is covered with leather tape so it does not fray. This is how the drum looks like once roped:
I made the snares using natural gut that I also got from Baena Sonido. I passed the gut through the hole that I previously drilled on the pegs, securing it with a figure of 8 knot (the gut was wet, so it was malleable and easy to work with).
As a final detail, I added to rope loops, which will be used to secure the cotton sling that I will use to hang the drum from my right shoulder. See how the ends of the rope are covered with leather tape:
This is how the finished drum looks like:
And this is how it is played:
A great drum for historically informed performances. Stay tuned, as I will soon publish a video featuring it. As always, I will be more than happy to listen to your comments, advices, opinions, etc.
…et in Arcadia ego.
© David Valdés