ABOUT US

    My name is Ed Mendel, and I founded Ancient Tree  Drums.  I'm a llfe long  drummer  and I'm currently playing in a blues band. Years ago I was a collector  of drums. I was driven to find out what it took to achieve a great sounding and  recording snare drum . 
   I started by purchasing many of  the best snare drums built by the large drum companies;  Ludwig -Supra Phonic,  Noble & Cooley- Alloy Classic Cast Aluminum, Trick -AL13, Yamaha- Cast  Copper, Pearl- Maple Free-Floater, DW- Collector Series Maple, DW-Edge  Maple/Brass.  I would set different heads and tension... good drums, but I was looking for something different.  I started buying and finishing drum shells  from small custom  builders and the world opened up! What kind of  snares sound best? What  type of lugs? What hoops will make it sing?  First I  bought a thin ply shell, then a  steam-bent shell, and even a shell that was  hollowed out of a single log.  Now I was onto something!  Then I purchased a  stave shell. This is what I  was looking for!
   Stave  drums are made typically of 20 pieces of solid  wood and are assembled  vertically.  The result is much less glue used than in  the typical veneer shell used by the "big boys."  Also because of the vertical  joints the sound is more  focused.  Stave shells also provide for greater variety  of wood choices. 
      I apprenticed with a cabinet shop's master  craftsman and learned  the art of stave construction. I built a maple and a  cherry stave shell.  Great  sound with a sensitivity.  I went searching for other wood varieties to experiment.  I was able to locate an  extremely rare and wonderful treasure...  heart pine and cypress sinker wood.  The heart pine  was the wood of choice for  the ship builders of the 18th century and was estimated to be over 400 years old  when it was harvested.  Cypress can grow to  be one thousand years old and was  one of architect Frank Lloyd Wright's favorite.  Heart  cypress is among the  rarest of woods. 
       I was lucky to locate this  wood and be able to  hand craft a limited number of drum shells, and am offering these to anyone searching for a unique great sounding drums.