Brady Drum Company
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Brady Drum Company was an Australian manufacturing company who specialised in handcrafted
drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a ...
s since 1980. The designs and workmanship was predominantly the duty of the company's creator, Chris Brady. The firm used native Australian
hardwood Hardwood is wood from Flowering plant, angiosperm trees. These are usually found in broad-leaved temperate and tropical forests. In temperate and boreal ecosystem, boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostl ...
s, particularly
jarrah ''Eucalyptus marginata'', commonly known as jarrah, in Noongar language and historically as Swan River mahogany, is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a tree with rough, fibro ...
, sheoak, spotted gum, marri, wandoo and lemon scented gum for the drums they manufactured. The business was based in Armadale, an outer suburb of
Perth, Western Australia Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...
.


History

Chris Brady introduced the world's first solid wood (hollow tree trunk) modern
snare drum The snare drum (or side drum) is a percussion instrument that produces a sharp staccato sound when the head is struck with a drum stick, due to the use of a series of stiff wires held under tension against the lower skin. Snare drums are often u ...
, and revolutionised the ply shell and block shell method of construction. He possibly created the world's first 10", 12" and 16" snare drums, and is credited with their popularisation in modern music.


Drum Construction

Brady Drums were notable for several factors of their drum construction. Firstly, the original badge was hand-made using a meticulous micro-marquetry technique using at least 31 different wood species to create the image of the drummer, drum, and trade mark. Secondly, Brady Drums first used a single ply drum shell made not from bent wood, but a hollowed out trunk which was also an industry first, and likely helped Brady propel in notoriety. The company's client list includes many drummers such as
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,
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,
Mick Fleetwood Michael John Kells Fleetwood (born 24 June 1947) is a British musician, songwriter and actor. He is the drummer, co-founder, and leader of the rock band Fleetwood Mac. Fleetwood, whose surname was merged with that of the group's bassist John Mc ...
,
Chad Smith Chad Smith (born October 25, 1961) is an American musician who is the drummer of the rock band the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Smith has played with the Chili Peppers since 1988, appearing on ten of the band's studio albums and becoming the band's lo ...
, Patrick Wante,
Jeff Porcaro Jeffrey Thomas Porcaro (April 1, 1954 – August 5, 1992) was an American drummer. He is best known for being the co-founder and drummer of the rock band Toto, but is also one of the most recorded session musicians in history, working on hundr ...
(formerly), Larry Mullen, Jr, Tre Cool and
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. Though the company manufactured all drums shells, their fame is gained from their
snare drum The snare drum (or side drum) is a percussion instrument that produces a sharp staccato sound when the head is struck with a drum stick, due to the use of a series of stiff wires held under tension against the lower skin. Snare drums are often u ...
s. In April 2015, Brady Drum Company ceased production of their instruments, following Chris Brady's ongoing health complications. In November 2015, Brady Drum Company announced the closure of the company via its official website and Facebook page.


Sources


External links

* {{Percussion instruments brands Musical instrument manufacturing companies of Australia Percussion instrument manufacturing companies Companies established in 1980 Companies disestablished in 2015 Armadale, Western Australia Manufacturing companies based in Perth, Western Australia