Workshop: DIY Snare-A-Lele

Here's a little DIY project for you -- turn your banjo-instrument into half a snare drum for percussive effects when recording. I like it best on banjo-ukuleles because adapting the fancy uke strum patterns with the snare-sound really does drive the rhythm.

It's a simple thing to do:

1. Find something suitable to make snares out of (I used cut-up used classical guitar strings -- the wound A). Using plain nylon is pretty mellow and "floppy" sounding. Using the wound-on-nylon sounds a lot like '20s-period snare wire. If you use steel strings, wound or unwound, the sound is a lot brighter and snappier but blends less-well with the chord sounds. Try different things.

2. Stick them at small intervals on a piece of tape. Cover that tape with another layer of tape.

3. Either tape this little "pad" to the rear of the head with the "brush" pointing (and terminating) near the bridge or wedge it against the head via the dowel using foam, cork, or whatever you like the sound of.

4. I use a little foam in front of the bridge on top to damp the strings, too, and shorten sustain/volume from the strings themselves. If you remove this, it still works just fine, but more jarring and spanky.