It is the only genus of this species in North America. Fagus is Latin, coming from the Greek word meaning “to eat”, which refers to the nut of this tree.

Growing Region: Eastern United States, extending westward into Wisconsin and Texas. A variety exists in North Eastern Mexico. Prior to the glacial period, this tree covered most of North America.

Availability: Good availability. Can be found as FSC (Forestry Stewardship Council) certified. Both our maple drum and our beech drum are made entirely with FSC certified wood.

Weight/Hardness/Density: Beech weighs 3.65 pounds per board foot, maple weighs in at 3.4 pounds, red oak 3.75 pounds, cherry 3.3 pounds, and birch 3.5 pounds per board foot. Beech scores 1300 on the Janka scale. Maple scores 1450, red oak scores 1290, cherry 950, and birch 1260. The Janka scale is a measure of how many pounds of force is required to drive .44” steel ball ½ of its depth into the wood.

Cost: Approximately 2/3 the cost of maple.

Habitat concerns: The thin bark on beech trees makes it susceptible to fire and insects. No major habitat concerns.

Comments: Beech trees can reach an age of 300 to 400 years. It reaches heights of 120 feet with a trunk diameter of up to 4 feet. One of the largest known trees grows in Michigan where it has reached a height of 161 feet and a crown of 105 feet wide. The beechnuts are a food source for rodents and birds, as well as larger animals such as bears. These rodents and birds disperse the seeds (nuts).

Timbre/Tonal Color: Overall we found the beech drum to be quite similar to our maple comparison drum. The biggest difference is that the beech is more contained, cleaner and dryer. Beech has little overtones, especially at higher volumes. It also has a slightly higher fundamental pitch.

Dynamic Range : Very predictable. Equivalent to our maple comparison drum.

Tonal Range : The sweetspot extends about ½ inch further from center than our maple drum. There were no other notable differences.

Tuning Range: Slightly smaller tuning range than the maple. It did not go as loose, or as tight before choking. This difference between our maple and beech drums was quite small.

Resonance/Decay: Dry, clean and contained. Very similar to maple, but with a cleaner sound.

Cross Stick: Equivalent to maple in sound and stick locations. We were not able to tell which drum was beech and which was maple in a blind test. One surprise is that rim shots on the beech drum were lower in pitch than the maple, but the cross stick was higher in pitch. We found that quite surprising.

Volume: Equal to maple.

Sensitivity: Equal to maple.

Feel: Beech has a slightly “stiffer” feel than the maple comparison drum.

Comments: We believe beech would be great for studio use, or anywhere a cleaner maple-like sound is desired.

By Greg Gaylord & Robert “Tree Hugger” Bowler.