| Product: |
Woodwind in general |
| Date: |
15/01/02 (183 review reads) |
| Rating: |
 |
Advantages: conversation piece
Disadvantages: heavy!
I'm not entirely sure if I have found the correct catagory for my subject but hope someone might find it useful or even amusing, enjoy...
Whilst on a month long stay in Australia last summer I set about finding a very special Didjeridu for my daughter.
Although based in Adelaide on the south coast, I did have the good fortune to be able to travel to the state of Queensland in the northeast. Whilst there my companion and I took a trip into the rainforest and found ourselves in an amazing (if somewhat touristy) town, deep in the forest, Kuranda.
I had seen many Didjeridu on my travels but wanted to get something a little more unique than the general run of the mill tourist stuff that filled all of the normal shops. In the Kuranda there was a wonderful marketplace where you could buy a huge variety of genuine Australian souvenirs, from kangaroo scrotum pouches (I jest not!) to opal jewellery. The quest for a unique ‘didje’ ended here.
I found a seller of ‘didje’ by following my ears. The haunting sound of a didjeridu playing filled the market. I knew I had come to the right place. There was the most amazing array of hollowed out tree branches that I have ever seen (not that I’ve actually sought out hollowed branches before you understand). Some were brightly painted with Aboriginal designs, some were simply decorated with scorched drawings and others were left in their original state with the bark rubbed down in places.
An amazing looking man (something like Dev from Coronation Street – only even sexier!!!) guided me through the selection process. He suggested I buy a half size didje for my daughter. Although she is not a child he felt it would be sufficient for her needs and it would be cheaper to buy as well as easier for me to carry on the journey home – (this was to prove a very good idea!) He did advise me though that genuine Didjeridu were not meant to be playe
d by women! Maybe a sexist view in our enlightened times but I was told that any woman wishing to play the instrument must offer up a prayer asking the maker's permission!
I paid around A$95 (£40) for the didje and a beginner’s guide to playing it. The hunk wrapped it bubble wrap with a nifty carrying strap for easy (!) transportation. Slung over my shoulder I felt quite at one with Australian culture for all of 5 minutes, by which time the weight of this yard of Eucalyptus tree branch began dragging me head first towards Queensland’s fertile soil!
ANYWAY……..
Here are some interesting facts and fictions about these fascinating instruments…
Many years ago some men in an Aboriginal tribe were out looking for something to eat. They liked to search in hollow logs for small animals. One day one of the men decided to try to blow a particularly stubborn critter out. He was amazed at the sound he created whilst doing this and kept blowing. Very soon all of his friends were clapping and dancing in time to the eerie sound he was producing.
Since that day the Didjeridu has been part of Aboriginal singing and dancing.
There are many different stories to go with more than 30 different tribal names for the didje, that was just one of them.
Originally from the North Australian Aboriginal – the didje has now spread across Australia to many other tribes. It would be played accompanied by click sticks and knocking boomerangs together for ‘corroborees’ – ceremonial dances of the tribesmen.
WHAT IS IT?
The didje is a hollow piece of tree branch or trunk tapered towards the top. Traditionally hollowed out naturally by termites and the mouthpiece is usually beeswaxed. It usually measures between 1 and 2.5 metres (longer ones are ceremonial – to represent the Rainbow serpent.)
The branch is cut, stripped of bark and termites re
moved – then it is painted or decorated symbolising food that the tribe uses.
TO PLAY IT
Playing the didje is not easy. For a start if you’re a woman you have to ask the carvers permission (spiritually!) not easy if you’re not on his wavelength. Then you must learn the technique of blowing down the tube with our lips loose – creating a droning sound – trouble is you must continue doing this by a method known as CIRCULAR BREATHING. Imagine your mouth is a set of bagpipes, you must breath out of your mouth into the didje whilst breathing in through our nose – and keep going for 10 minutes!!!! For more advice on the finer points please email me – if you REALLY must!!!
The didje should be played sitting down – if you have a short one (well we can’t all be well endowed!) You can rest the end on a table – if you are lucky enough to have a long one it can drag on the floor with the non-playing end resting on your left foot. You could use a bucket as a resonator if you so wish.
Have fun and remember to breathe through the nose and blow through the mouth!
Summary:
|
|
