What is Didgeridoo?
Didgeridoo is one of the oldest wind instruments in the world dating back as far as 40,000 years by some estimates. It is origins come from the Aboriginal peoples of Australia who use it primarily for ceremonies, dance and storytelling of the Dreamtime. The original keepers of the didgeridoo are the Yolngu people who live in Northest Arnhemland in the top end of of the Northern Territories. Their leader, Djalu Gurruwiwi is considered the prime custodian of didgeridoo. Djalu has been instrumental in helping to educate people about his culture primarily through sharing this instrument with balanda or non Aboriginals. Because of this sharing of knowledge, people can come to better understand and appreciate Aboriginal and other indigenous cultures from around the world. For more information on Aboriginal art and culture and current news you may visit Yirrkala.com
Here in the west, didgeridoo is primarily used as a solo and healing instrument. Because it is so new to us, we often see it as a curiosity. But as time goes on, we are beginning to see the many different facets as it finds its way onto recordings, the stage and in educational outreach all of which leads to a better understanding of the instrument and its origins.
Thank you for your interest.
Pam
3 comments
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jP says:
May 23, 2011 at 7:00 pm (UTC 0)
Pam, do you create your own didge’s or do you purchase them or both?
Do you mind sharing who you would recommend for someone who has never laid lip on a didge before? I play the Native American Flute and Open ended Puebloen (Anasazi) flutes but the music you create with your Didgeridoo’s are so amazing I need to see if I can do the same
Appreciate any info. Peace and Love always, jP
admin says:
May 31, 2011 at 6:19 pm (UTC 0)
JP,
Thank you so much for your message and please pardon my very late response. I’ve been on the road for the last three weeks.
To answer your question about buying vs making, I do both. I make didgeridoos from yucca which is a lightweight material from the yucca plant (a relative to agave). Most of the didges I play in performance are made by me but i do have a couple of didgeridoos made by others that I use as well. I have an F didge made by Tyler Spencer and A C# didge made by Chad Butler.
Chosing a didge for the first time can be a bit of a trick but here are some things you can look for:
- A nice tight top end of no more than 1.5 inches inner diameter. This will give you the backpressure you need to make learning easier. Backpressure is the amount of air that comes back to you to form a seal around the mouthpiece stopping all air leaks.
- A didge with nice acoustics, meaning one that can give you a good range of “ee’s,” “oh’s,” “ah’s,” etc. This will be inspiring to keep you playing as your skills begin to build.
- Good responsiveness. How does the didge respond to various tongue movements, vocals and other techniques as you play. This is very subjective as some folks like a slower more medatative player while other like a fast more percussive player.
The best thing to do is to find some didgeridoos to try and see what speaks to you. I usually have a selection that folks can try out from beginners to more advanced players. Other people I can highly recommend are Tyler Spencer and Chad Butler both of whom make beautiful didgeridoos and both of whom live in Oregon. You can find Chad at http://www.bhumsiva.com and Tyler at http://www.primaltones.com.
Hope this helps and let me know if you have any other questions.
Take care,
Pam
admin says:
May 31, 2011 at 6:20 pm (UTC 0)
JP,
Thank you so much for your message and please pardon my very late response. I’ve been on the road for the last three weeks.
To answer your question about buying vs making, I do both. I make didgeridoos from yucca which is a lightweight material from the yucca plant (a relative to agave). Most of the didges I play in performance are made by me but i do have a couple of didgeridoos made by others that I use as well. I have an F didge made by Tyler Spencer and A C# didge made by Chad Butler.
Chosing a didge for the first time can be a bit of a trick but here are some things you can look for:
- A nice tight top end of no more than 1.5 inches inner diameter. This will give you the backpressure you need to make learning easier. Backpressure is the amount of air that comes back to you to form a seal around the mouthpiece stopping all air leaks.
- A didge with nice acoustics, meaning one that can give you a good range of “ee’s,” “oh’s,” “ah’s,” etc. This will be inspiring to keep you playing as your skills begin to build.
- Good responsiveness. How does the didge respond to various tongue movements, vocals and other techniques as you play. This is very subjective as some folks like a slower more medatative player while other like a fast more percussive player.
The best thing to do is to find some didgeridoos to try and see what speaks to you. I usually have a selection that folks can try out from beginners to more advanced players. Other people I can highly recommend are Tyler Spencer and Chad Butler both of whom make beautiful didgeridoos and both of whom live in Oregon. You can find Chad at http://www.bhumsiva.com and Tyler at http://www.primaltones.com.
Hope this helps and let me know if you have any other questions.
Take care,
Pam