The handpan is a musical instrument that does not come from large production lines. The production of a handpan takes a long time and does not require ‘manufacturers’ but real ‘craftsmen’.
Tomake a handpan is an art, and to give it its resonance, to give it its scale and to ensure its harmony in melodious chords requires the greatest skill.
How is this angelic-sounding instrument created? What are the secrets of handpan making? Immerse yourself in the workshops of the handpan makers whose pieces are for sale at ZenaPan.co.uk.
Manufacture of a handpan by milling a steel plate
The first step in making a handpan is to choose the steel sheet.
There are two different types of steel:
- Nitriding steel (DC04),
- Stainless steel.
Handpans are very often made of nitrided steel, so we will first explain this steel before looking at the others.
Nitrided steel
Nitrided steel is steel that has been thermochemically treated. As the name suggests, nitriding consists of heating the steel and enriching it with nitrogen.
This nitrogen injection has two main functions:
- Strengthens the handpan,
- Protects it from rust.
However, the use of this type of steel has some drawbacks. The first is that nitriding does not prevent the appearance of rust, but only delays it. Therefore, more care has to be taken with the instrument.
In contrast , nitriding provides a louder sound that makes it much easier to play outdoors. It also allows the instrument to stay in tune for years.
Click here to find out more about our handpans in nitrided steel.
Stainless steel
Manufacturers sometimes use stainless steel because it does not rust. Therefore, it does not require maintenance like a nitrided steel handpan.
The manufacture of a stainless steel handpan also ensures greater freedom in choosing where to play. This means that it can be played anywhere, be it by the sea or in wet areas.
The sound quality is also different. The note length is longer, the melody deeper. However, the sound is also much quieter. Therefore, it is a much more suitable instrument for domestic use.
However, stainless steel handpans have a big disadvantage: they are not heat resistant. If you play in the summer sun or forget about it in the heat, your handpan will go out of tune.
Either it will return to its original tuning after cooling down, or it will have to be re-tuned by the manufacturer.
Choose the perfect hang drum for you from our collection of stainless steel handpans.
Hammering the structure to form the dome
Forming the dome requires a high level of technical skill. The steel plate is bolted to a support and hammering can begin. This continues until the shape of the dome is complete, and continues until it is perfectly flat again.
The craftsman then takes note of the location of the notes inside the dome and begins some initial fine tuning work, giving the handpan the curved shapes. Now begins a long work to form a first tuning.
The dome is then heated to 400°C for about two hours to strengthen its structure, and then the craftsman further refines the dome.
A second sheet of metal is placed on a base and hammered to form the base of the handpan. It is then glued to the top of the instrument.
Thermochemical treatment by nitriding
Nitriding of the steel is carried out at a temperature of about 500°C. Nitrogen is sprayed onto the surface of the instrument to make the metal stronger and more resistant to oxidation.
Nitriding not only helps to make the handpan less susceptible to corrosion, but also increases its stability. This step ensures that the instrument stays in tune for many years.
The final tuning of the Handpan
The tuning of a handpan requires a high degree of precision in the handling of the hammers. Each note is achieved with a greater or lesser depth of shape. Therefore, to achieve a correct and accurate sound, precision is required.
Any frequency can be achieved, but generally handpans have a frequency of 440 Hz, which corresponds to Western classical instruments. This allows pan percussionists to play in concert with other instruments.
The importance of accurate handpan tuning is based on the need not to create interference. That is, an area where two notes intersect, which would create wrong notes. This is more or less like playing two strings at the same time on a violin.
For this reason, most handpans have no more than nine notes, to avoid this interference and the resulting loss of musical quality.