The Bodhran is an Irish frame drum. A goat skin head is tacked to one side (although nowadays synthetic heads, or new materials like kangaroo skin, are sometimes used). The other side is open ended for the left hand to be placed against the inside of the drum head to control the pitch. One or two crossbars may be inside the frame. Some professional modern Bodhran integrate mechanical tuning systems similar to those used on drums found in drum kits.

The drum is usually played in a seated position, held vertically on the player's thigh and supported by his or her upper body and arm (usually on the left side, for a right-handed player), with the hand placed on the inside of the skin where it is able to control the tension (and therefore the pitch) by applying varying amounts of pressure and also the amount of surface area being played, with the back of the hand against the crossbar if present. The drum is struck with the other arm (usually the right) and is played either with the bare hand or with a lathe-turned piece of wood called a tipper or beater. Brush-ended beaters are also used. There are numerous playing styles, mostly named after the region of Ireland in which they originated. The most common is Kerry style, which uses a two-headed tipper.