Burk’s Falls Irish drum maker taps into the beat on St. Patrick’s Day

A man, south of North Bay, has made it a hobby to make traditional Irish drums, he says he has sold them to thousands of customers from all over the world.

From drinking green beer to dressing in green from head to toe to Irish Celtic music, on St. Patrick’s Day, everyone likes to dig deep and pull up their so-called Irish roots when celebrating.

One man in Burk’s Falls, Ont. has made it a hobby to make and sell traditional Irish drums.

Russell Duke is the owner of Bridget Drums, named after his mother. Duke makes handcrafted Irish drums in his spare time when he’s not patrolling streets as an OPP officer.

Growing up in Newfoundland, Duke told CTV News he got his first drum as a teenager but recalls it not being up to par.

That’s when he said he vowed to make a better one and each time he got better and better at it before perfecting his craft.

“The first one was okay. The second one I sold to an Irish guy and decided ‘Well maybe I’m onto something here.’ I kind of went from there. It kind of evolved,” he said.

When Dule moved to Ontario he became a cabinet maker. His combined love of woodworking and drumming is what led him to start Bridget Drums.

Duke said that each drum is as unique as the player it’s crafted for. It starts with a shell made of birch wood, then he applies veneers to the shells. Duke uses aircraft grade powder coated aluminum for the tuning system and finally goat skin. It takes him about a week to make each drum.

His drums soon became a hit and started to become in high demand.

Not wanting to miss a beat, before long, distributors started talking with Duke, wanting to put his bodhrans in stores right across Canada. He told CTV News that offers then came to sell them across North America and the world.

He’s been making drums now for 28 years and he’s sold “thousands and thousands” of custom drums and often sees his instruments in concerts or on YouTube.

“It just gives me serenity as I’m building these things,” Duke said.

“To see these things out there and people and enjoying these things, it’s warms my heart, for sure.”

Duke said this passion for Irish drums helps him reconnect to his youth.

These traditional Irish drums were originally used by clans as a battle drum to set the marching beat. Today, the bodhran is featured prominently in Celtic and East Coast music these days.

“I would say around the 60s, they really started coming popular here,” Duke explained.

“So certainly, in Ireland, but it’s a world percussion now. In lots of different types of music, you can hear these things now.”

To learn more about the drums or his company, visit his website.