Mauricio Zottarelli at TV Braba Brazil 

playing a Transnare drum and Soultone cymbals

Brian Melick playing a Transnare drum 

 with Shiri Zorn Trio

The DrumMaker

 

Every drum begins the same way - not with measurements or templates, but with listening.

TranSnare drums are built from a lifelong fascination with sound. For example, how subtle 

changes in material, bearing edges, shell behavior and tension shape what we feel under the stick. 

Long before the first cut of wood or metal the instrument already exists as an idea of tone, 

response and character. The building process is simply the act of bringing that voice into the 

physical world. I don’t approach drum making as manufacturing. There is no assembly line, no 

attempt to standardize personality. Each instrument is built individually guided by ear and by feel 

with careful attention to how the drum wants to speak. Small decisions, often invisible to the 

eye, determine whether a drum merely functions or becomes something expressive and alive. Over 

time, this work has become less about construction and more about relationship. Wood, metal, 

hardware and heads are not just components they are collaborators. Every shell has its own 

tendencies. Every design invites a different kind of response. The goal is never to impose a sound 

but to discover it. TranSnare drums are created for players who are deeply attuned to what they 

hear and feel and musicians who recognize that an instrument is not just a tool, but a partner in 

expression. Sensitivity, nuance, articulation and musicality matter more here than volume or 

spectacle. These are instruments meant to reward touch, curiosity and individuality. This 

philosophy shapes every step of the process. Patience is valued over speed, refinement over 

repetition and listening over assumption. No two drums are exactly alike because no two musical 

voices are alike. In the end, the work is guided by a simple belief … a great instrument does not 

call attention to itself, it reveals the player.