The oldest wind instrument of the Australian aborigines. Australian music. Brief description of the tool

It is very interesting to collect information about the simplest musical instruments, used by different peoples in their culture and rituals ... Such tools are created by nature itself, and looking at what people have already invented, you can take a closer look at what is around. We also have a lot that can be used as a musical instrument.

The music of Australia contains elements of various musical cultures: indigenous people, Anglo-Australians, non-British immigrants.

The music of the indigenous people - aborigines - has preserved archaic features, traces of the influence of the music of New Guinea, as well as immigrants from the Malay Archipelago (Northern Australia). Ritual songs, everyday, epic are varied. In the northern regions, individual singing with its own accompaniment (percussion instruments) is widespread, in the southern and central regions - group singing.

Among the musical instruments that were considered sacred or magical: churingi (wooden or stone horns), hollow log ubarthat was hit with sticks. Among the ancient idiophones - boomerangs, rolls of skins resembling a drum (southern areas), rattles from fruits and shells, corrugated boardsled by a stick, Papuan hand drumscovered in leather (Cape York Peninsula); among the wind instruments - didgeridoo (rolled bark pipe), yulunggul(made of wood), in the North. Australia - nose flute(from New Guinea).

With the advent of Europeans and the decline in the number of indigenous people, the area of \u200b\u200bdistribution of their music sharply narrowed.

Didgeridoo (Yedaki, Didieridoo)

Didgeridoo is not made by hands, it is created by nature itself. Australian termites eat up tree trunks and branches from the inside.

It is made from a piece of eucalyptus trunk 1-3 meters long, the core of which is eaten away by termites, the mouthpiece can be treated with black beeswax. The instrument itself is often painted or decorated with images of tribal totems.

It remains only to find the blanks, and the didgeridoo is almost ready, just a little to finish, to decorate. Not every aborigine manages to find a blank, since for the search, as they say, you need to have a special state of consciousness.

The didgeridoo is also made from bamboo. Many instruments are decorated with traditional paintings depicting animal totems.

Didgeridoo is the European-American name for an overtone wind instrument of the Australian Aborigines. In the north of Australia, where the didgeridoo appeared, it is called Yedaki. The largest didgeridoo is 2.5 meters long.

The uniqueness of the didgeridoo lies in the fact that it sounds on just one note... But at the same time, the instrument has a very wide range of timbre. Only a human voice, jew's harp and partly an organ can be compared with it.

The game uses the technique of continuous breathing. The didgeridoo is played during various rituals and this helps to enter a trance. This instrument was not widely used and was used only in some areas of Northern Australia.

Corrobori dances

Aboriginal people found a lot of joys in everyday life (what we can learn from them!), Which contributed to their good mood and cheerful disposition. And this is the basis of health and longevity. The joy of being was reflected in music and dancing, called corrobori, which were usually not associated with rituals and therefore were not constrained by the framework of the ritual - as they say, they danced "from the heart" :-).

In these dances, scenes from everyday life were depicted, performances were performed that imitate natural phenomena and life events.

Music for both corrobore and rituals was performed by simple means. In some tribes, the rhythm was struck with a simple alternation of strikes on the hips, in others - with the strikes of sticks on the ground, sometimes by tapping two boomerangs. Tufts of eucalyptus leaves on the ankles and forearms mimicked the rustle of emu feathers.

The most characteristic sounds were the monotonous lamentations of the aborigines themselves and the sounds made by the "didieridou" - see description above. The trumpet served as a kind of mouthpiece, amplifying the sound of the voice.

These natives were very respected, because it is not so easy to find a good "trumpet player" who knows how to hum as if without interrupting his breath and in two tonalities. The songwriter was also a very respected person. He himself participated in the performances and composed songs about everyday events; his extensive repertoire was also enriched with songs inherited from ancestors.

The songwriter and trumpet player often performed at the invitation of other bands and received rewards for these services. There were also dance leaders. On them lay the bulk of the performance of corrobori, which required masterful imitation, especially the habits of animals.

Contemporary Corroborei can also depict the chronicle of skirmishes or represent scenes of the first contacts with Europeans.

wind instrument Media files at Wikimedia Commons

History

The didgeridoo is closely intertwined with the mythology of the Australian aborigines, symbolizing the image of the rainbow snake Yurlungur. Playing on it accompanies corrobori rituals and promotes entry into a trance. The uniqueness of the didgeridoo as a musical instrument is that it usually sounds on one note (the so-called "drone", or hum). At the same time, the instrument has a very wide range of timbre. Only a human voice, jew's harp, and partly an organ can be compared with it.

Since the end of the 20th century, Western musicians (for example, Sophie Lakaz, Jamiroquai) have experimented with didgeridoo.

Didgeridoo is widely used in electronic and ambient music. Steve Roach was one of the first to use didgeridoo in ambient and learned to play it during his many travels in Australia in the 1980s. In 1992, Aphex Twin used the sound of the didgeridoo in the dance track "Didgeridoo", which became a hit on British dance floors.

Name and etymology

"Yiḏaki" (sometimes pronounced "yirdaki") is one of the most used names, although in a strict sense, the word is used for a specific type of instrument made and used by the yolngu people (Eng. Yolngu people) living in Arnhem Land. However, after a Mangalili clan man whose name sounded like "yiḏaki" died in early 2011, the Yolngu people began to use the synonym "mandapul" to mean the instrument out of respect for the deceased [ ] .

There are many other names for didgeridoo. The most famous are described below:

People	Terrain	Name
Enintilakva	Groote Island	ngarrriralkpwina
Yolngu	Arnhem Land	Mandapul (Yidaki)
Happapugs	Arnhem Land	Yiraka
Jinan	Arnhem Land	Yirtakki
Ivaydeya	Peninsula Coburg	artawirr
Jawoyn	Catherine	Gunbarrk
Kakutyu	Cockatoo	garnbak
Ngarluma	Rueborn	Kurmur
Nailnail	Kimberly	ngaribi
Warray	Adelaide	bambu
Meialai	Alligator Rivers	martba
Pintupi	Central Australia	paampu
Aranda	Alice Springs	Ilpirra

Device

Classic didgeridoo

Traditionally, didgeridoo are made after termites eat the soft core of the eucalyptus tree during dry periods, creating a cavity within the trunk. Australian aborigines find such trunks, chop down, beat the dust out of them, and make a mouthpiece from beeswax. The instrument itself is often painted or covered with images of tribal totems. The length of the instruments varies from 1 to 2.5-3 m.

Modifications

Modern didgeridoo are very diverse. There are instruments both with a constant pipe diameter and expanding from the mouthpiece to the bell, as well as spiral didgeridoo and DJ boxes.

A separate class is the so-called didgeribones - hybrids of didgeridoo and trombone. The didgeribone was invented by the popular Australian musician Charlie McMahon, known for his experiments in mixing didgeridoo sounds with contemporary music. The instrument consists of two tubes, one of which is inserted into the other according to the principle of a telescopic mechanism. This modification allows you to change the length and, as a consequence, the tone of the sound during the game. Didgeribones are made of plastic or aluminum and painted in black, yellow and red, traditional for Australian Aborigines.

Less common modifications:

Game technique

Tool features

By technique, the didgeridoo can be divided into three categories:

• for slow, meditative play (key B, C, D);
• for fast, rhythmic playing (key F and G);
• universal - for both slow and fast playing (key E).

Sound production

The sound is extracted when playing the didgeridoo due to the vibration of the performer's lips, which causes the air column to vibrate inside the channel. The cheeks, tongue, larynx and diaphragm are also involved in the process of sound production.

The didgeridoo sounds only on one note (root or drone), but has an extremely rich spectrum of overtones (high-frequency overtones, by which the human ear distinguishes timbre). The tone of the instrument is determined by its length and the configuration of the inner channel. Let us give an example for a rectilinear didgeridoo with a constant diameter. The longer and narrower the instrument, the lower the tone, and vice versa - the shorter and wider it is, the higher the tone. During the game, the fundamental tone can be raised or lowered by 0.5-2 tones, tightening the lips more or less, decreasing or increasing the force of exhalation. The degree of variation in tone depends both on the parameters of the instrument itself and on the skill of the performer.

Continuous breathing

When playing the didgeridoo, the technique of continuous (circular, cyclic) breathing is used: to achieve a continuous sound, inhalation is taken simultaneously with exhalation. The easiest way to achieve this is by squeezing the inflated cheeks at the moment of inhalation. The cheeks act as a “bag” that stores air and maintains the pressure needed to produce sound. By blocking the flow of air from the lungs, the performer can for a short time continue to vibrate the lips, reducing the volume of this "bag". Just at this moment, a quick, sharp breath is taken.

Game techniques

One of the basic techniques of the game is the use of the so-called "overdlows". When trying to get their first drone, newbies sometimes involuntarily get a high-pitched, loud sound, like a bugle or trumpet. This is due to excessively tight lips. With the right technique, the over-blows are drawn quickly and shortly, placing accents and forming a rhythmic component.

In addition, language plays a very important role. In the process of playing, the position of the tongue can be changed, highlighting overtones, however, it is mainly used to perform various rhythms, for example: "so-ka-ka, so-ka-ka", "tuaki-tuaki-tua", "so-ka- taka, taka-tak-ka-taka ", etc. You can also diversify the sound of the didgeridoo through your voice. Experienced performers are able to imitate animal voices, sounds of nature, and pronounce entire phrases without interrupting the drone.

Notable artists and bands

Solo performers

Collectives

• Gondwanaland is an Australian band using didgeridoo, synthesizers and guitars. It was founded in 1981 by Charlie McMahon (didgeridoo, vocals) and Peter Carolan (synthesizer).
• Airtist is a musical project that combines didgeridoo, jew's harp and beatbox. Musicians do not use synthetic sounds and samples, creating dance music using acoustic instruments and voices.
• Hilight tribe
• Inlakesh - the basis of the group, created in 1990, are two musicians - Tanya Gerard and Rob Thomas. Tanya mastered the game while visiting Tibetan communities in Darmsala.
• Ganga giri
• Didjworks
• eMDee
• 3ple-d is a Dutch band formed in 1995 in Amsterdam by two street musicians - Liz Beijerinck and Michiel Tehler. In 2004, percussionist Terence Samson joined the band.
• Like a Storm is a band from New Zealand, formed in 2005.

Didgeridoo in Russia

Didgeridoo and medicine

Dr. Milo Pulan and his colleagues at the University of Zurich published a 2005 study showing that playing the didgeridoo, by training the upper airway, can help stop snoring, relieve daytime sleepiness and prevent sleep apnea. In 2017, the authors were awarded the Shnobel Anti-Prize for this work.

see also

Notes

1. Didgeridoos (English). h2g2.com (English)russian (7 December 2001). Retrieved 19 February 2015.
2. Natural pipe // Great Russian Encyclopedia. Volume 32 .-- M., 2016 .-- P. 442.

The sound of this ancient instrument is difficult to describe in words. A low rumble, a rumble, somewhat reminiscent of the timbre of the throat singing of Siberian shamans. He gained fame relatively recently, but has already won the hearts of many folk and ambient musicians.

The didgeridoo is a traditional wind instrument of the Australian aborigines. Represents hollow tube 1 to 3 meters long, on one side of which there is a mouthpiece with a diameter of 30 mm. Made from wood or bamboo trunks, cheap plastic or vinyl options are often found.

History of didgeridoo

The didgeridoo, or yidaki, is considered one of the most ancient instruments on earth. The Australians played it when humanity did not yet know any notes. Music was essential for the pagan Korabori ritual.

Men painted their bodies with ocher and charcoal, put on feather ornaments, sang and danced. It is a sacred ceremony through which the aborigines communicated with their gods. The dances were accompanied by drumming, singing and the low rumble of the didgeridoo.

These strange instruments were made for the Australians by nature itself. During times of drought, termites ate the core of the eucalyptus, creating a cavity inside the trunk. People cut down such trees, cleaned them of offal and made a mouthpiece out of wax.

Yidaki became widespread at the end of the 20th century. Composer Steve Roachwhile traveling around Australia, I became interested in interesting sound. He learned the game from the Aboriginal people and later began using the didgeridoo in his music. Others followed.

An Irish musician brought real fame to the instrument Richard David Jamesby writing the song "Didgeridoo", which conquered British clubs in the early nineties.

How to play the didgeridoo

The gameplay itself is very non-standard. The sound is produced by vibrating the lips, and then amplified and distorted many times as it passes through the yidaki cavity.

First you need to learn how to make at least some sound. For now, put the instrument aside and practice without it. You need to try to snort like a horse. Relax your lips and say "tpruuuu". Repeat several times and observe carefully how your lips, cheeks and tongue work. Memorize these movements.

Now take the didgeridoo in your hands. Place the mouthpiece firmly over your mouth with your lips inside it. The muscles of the lips should be relaxed as much as possible. Repeat the rehearsed tpruu. Snort inside the pipe, being careful not to break contact with the mouthpiece.

For the vast majority of people, nothing comes out at this stage. Either the lips are too tight, or they are loose against the instrument, or the snort is too strong. As a result, there is either no sound at all, or it turns out to be too high, cutting the ear.

It usually takes 5-10 minutes of practice to play your first note. You will know right away when the didgeridoo speaks. The instrument vibrates perceptibly, and the room will be filled with an all-pervading roar, seemingly emanating from your head. A little more - and you will learn how to receive this sound (it is called drone) immediately.

Melodies and rhythm

When you learn to “hum” confidently, you can go further. You can't build music out of humming alone. You cannot change the pitch, but you can change its timbre. To do this, you need to change the shape of the mouth. Try it inaudibly while playing sing different vowels, for example "ee-oo-oo-oo-oo-ee". The sound will change perceptibly.

The next technique is articulation. Sounds need to be highlighted in order to get at least some kind of rhythmic pattern. Allocation is achieved due to the sharp release of airas if you are pronouncing the "t" consonant. Try to set the rhythm of your melody: "tu-tu-tu-tu."

All these movements are performed by the tongue and cheeks. The position and work of the lips remains unchanged - they hum evenly, making the instrument vibrate. At first, you will run out of air very quickly. But over time, you will learn to hum economically and stretch one breath for several tens of seconds.

Professional musicians master the so-called technique circular breathing... It allows you to play continuously, even while inhaling. In short, the essence is as follows: at the end of exhalation, you need to inflate your cheeks. Then the cheeks contract, releasing any remaining air and preventing the lips from vibrating. At the same time, a powerful breath is taken through the nose. This technique is quite challenging and takes days of hard training to learn.

Despite its primitiveness, the didgeridoo is an interesting and versatile instrument. Musicians combine it with ethnic drums, jew's harps, flutes and throat singing to create mesmerizing meditative compositions. If you are looking for a new non-standard sound in your music, perhaps you can get it with the help of this ancient instrument.

(Didgeridoo) - an ancient ritual wind musical instrument of the Australian aborigines. This tool has special magical powers. It is no coincidence that he is advised to listen to his game, as to the statement of a wise man. “The magical sound of the didgeridoo invites us to remember our earthly and spiritual heritage” is one of many sayings that so accurately convey the unforgettable impression that only such a mysterious instrument as the didgeridoo can make.

In the north of Australia, where didgeridoo, he is called " Yedaki". The largest didgeridoo is up to three meters long. Only dedicated men play it. Shamans of Northern Australia heal the sick by placing them on the ground and playing didgeridoo over them.

The didgeridoo is created by nature itself, therefore its sound is as close to nature as possible. When you hear the live sound of the didgeridoo for the first time, you will experience a feeling of real unity with a miracle and endless harmony and bliss will fill your soul. An interesting fact is the manufacture of this instrument - it is made from the trunks of eucalyptus trees, which are eaten from the inside by termites. It remains to find these "blanks" and you are the owner of the didgeridoo.

Didgeridoo have a variety of forms, it depends on the shape of the branches and trunks. The inside diameter of the opening on the side of the mouthpiece should be approximately 3 cm. The inside diameter of the end of the didgeridoo should ideally be 10 cm. The walls of the didgeridoo should not be too thick as resonance will be damped; in addition, the tool may crack. The mouthpiece is made from beeswax. You can also make the didgeridoo using bamboo, reed, or plastic. Many instruments, according to ancient customs, are decorated with paintings or images of animals. The inner surface of the didgeridoo should be treated with linseed oil, but so that the oil does not leak out and spoil the pattern.

Many legends are associated with the appearance of the didgeridoo in the world. So, according to one of them, the divine essences of the wanjin created the world in the image that appeared to them in a dream. Having completed such a difficult task, they decided to leave Earth and move to the spirit world. However, they loved people very much and decided to leave them as a gift to the didgeridoo. This is not just a gift, but a corridor through which the wanjin can visit the human world and vice versa.

Didgeridoo has life-giving power. According to an ancient legend, the didgeridoo is the flute of the Yurlunggur Rainbow-Snake, the main divine essence. One day Yurlunggur, in a rage, swallowed the air essences of the Vavilak sisters and their two sons. Then she spat them out onto the bank of the pond. But all this was seen by the Didgeridoo flute. She breathed life into their lifeless bodies. This saving action symbolizes the eternal continuous breath of life's creativity.

Scientists have always been interested in the question of the incredible vitality of cats. They concluded that a cat's ability to purr is its source of longevity. These low-frequency vibrations produced by the cat are beneficial for her and for humans. The purring of a cat can be compared to the hum of a didgeridoo, because these are all low frequency vibrations. Higher overtones are heard against the background of the low frequency of the main sound. The overtones are always higher than the main tone, they form a harmonious series of sounds and create the timbre of the didgeridoo (and cat). To play the didgeridoo, the technique of "circular breathing" is used, due to which you can inhale without interrupting the sound. Air should come out through relaxed, vibrating lips. And the magic chanting of this mighty flute begins. Your whole body becomes an instrument. Training allows you to learn how to control all muscles. The lips, tongue, larynx, jaw and voice of the performer are involved in the formation of sound. This explains the individuality of the sound of the didgeridoo in each case.

The didgeridoo is a one-tone instrument, but due to the individual characteristics of the voice, you can get various options for melodic sound: from rumble to imitation of the voices of animals and birds. Using your tongue, lips and varying the force of exhalation, you can significantly change the timbre of the sound.

Musical genres can be roughly divided into two types: meditative-trance genre and rhythmic action. The first is characterized by smooth sounding and unhurried performance. The second is the practice of rhythmic breathing, since forced inhalation must be organically integrated into the image of the rhythmic pattern. Thus, the manner of playing the didgeridoo can be expressed by the following combination: "breath + sound + rhythm". Here are some sample exercises for playing the didgeridoo.

Exercise 1

What does the phrase "exhale through relaxed vibrating lips" mean? To do this, you must say "Whoa" to the imaginary horse. At the same time, your lips will be relaxed, vibrate, and a stream of air will come out through them. All that remains is to bring the didgeridoo to your lips and send air into it. This will be the main tone of the didgeridoo.

Exercise 2.

Fill your cheeks with air, inflate them and breathe in through your nose. Now imagine that the air in your cheeks is pushed out of your mouth only by your cheek muscles. With this, you can inhale quickly through your nose. This is the principle of continuous breathing that is so important when playing the didgeridoo.

When playing the didgeridoo, it is important to observe three basic rules: first, the fundamental tone must be strong and stable; secondly, the muscles of the cheeks should easily squeeze out the air accumulated in the cheeks; thirdly, with any movement of the cheeks, tongue, lips, etc., the main tone of the didgeridoo should not be interrupted. All these conditions are easy to fulfill with regular practice, which is a basic requirement when playing any instrument.

Unfortunately, there are still very few shops in Russia where didgeridoo are sold. However, in ethnic stores, spiritual literature stores, sometimes bamboo tubes from Indonesia, India and other countries are sold, which are analogous to didgeridoo. But, nevertheless, there are craftsmen in the Urals who are professionally engaged in the manufacture of this rare instrument and even founded the Ural Didgeridoo Laboratory.

What is the peculiarity of the Ural didgeridoo? The secret lies in well-built acoustics, which gives a beautiful sound and a wide range of possibilities. A good natural instrument is a rarity, which is why it is so important to make an acoustically perfect instrument, while recreating the natural specifics of sound. Craftsmen must do a truly jewelry job to achieve the perfect balance - the configuration of the channel, the specified wall thickness, the parameters of the internal grooves and much more. Much has been found and optimized by Russian craftsmen empirically.

Sound examples: http://mp3plus.fm/%D0%BA%D0%B0%D1%82%D1%8F...BD%D0%B5%D0%BA/

The search and research of the "configuration" of the didgeridoo continues to this day, therefore each Ural master is somewhat unique and peculiar. Just like every musician is unique.

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An original, mysterious, harmonizing, overtone musical instrument of the aborigines of northern Australia.
About 40 years ago, the aborigines donated their mysterious instrument to the Western world. Since then, the didgeridoo conquers, surprises, inspires, harmonizes people living in the tense world of civilization.
Australian Aboriginal legends say:
"When there was nothing, not even time, Vanzhin's creative Entities dreamed of
our world:
When the first Man was created, the Vanjina left the Earth, but they left the Didgeridoo for the people to communicate with them. The sound of the didgeridoo creates a special space, a special corridor, along which Vanjina can descend into the world of People, and People can ascend into the Spiritual world. "

Didgeridoo not made by hands, it is created by nature itself. Australian termites eat up tree trunks and branches from the inside. It remains only to find these "blanks" and the didgeridoo is almost ready. Not every aborigine manages to do this, because for the search you need to have a special state of consciousness ... Didgeridoo is also made of bamboo. Many instruments are decorated with traditional paintings depicting animal totems.
Here are two (out of many) sayings from Aboriginal elders:
"Didgeridoo - the wizard has his own power, when the didgeridoo speaks to you - listen."
"The magical sound of the didgeridoo touches the hearts of people and calls us to remember our common earthly and spiritual heritage"

In the book "Healing Sounds" Jonathan Goldman writes that in those days when there was nothing and even time itself, the divine essences of the Wanjin lived. They dreamed about this world (and thus it was created) - the time of dreams ...
And when the world was created, the Wanjin left the Earth and moved to the spirit world. But they left the didgeridoo as a gift to people. The hum of the didgeridoo creates a special space, a kind of window or corridor through which the wanjin can visit the human world and vice versa.
When I first heard the sound of didgeridoo, and, of course, was shocked, I realized that this is the miracle that I have always dreamed of. So my new life began with the didgeridoo, which I never cease to rejoice in.
The natives of Australia gave us a didgeridoo. They are very supportive of the proliferation of didgeridoo. They believe that the didgeridoo will help build bridges over the chasm between our worlds.
Aborigines believe that the world is a single, fragile organism, in which all parts are connected in the finest way ...
The time of dreams is both an aboriginal myth about the creation of the world, and a special altered state of consciousness that arises in the player who plays and listens to the game. The time of dreams is also the sacred space-time of the myth here and now ...
Our life is a time of dreams ...
The Didgeridoo is also the flute of the Yurlunggur Rainbow Serpent, the main divine essence of the creation myth. The didgeridoo has its own life-giving power.
One day Yurlunggur swallowed the air essences of the Vavilak sisters and their two sons. Then she spat their lifeless bodies onto the shore of the pond. But all this was seen by the Didgeridoo flute. She raised her strength from the bottom of the pond and breathed life into the Babylak sisters and their sons.
This is the quickening power of Didgeridoo. And this saving action symbolizes the eternal continuous breath of the creativity of life. And you can play the didgeridoo by mastering the technique of continuous (circulating) breathing.

More recently, scientists have completed a study on the incredible vitality of cats. They came to the conclusion that cats have a healing device - this is their ability to purr. These low-frequency vibrations produced by the cat are very beneficial for her and for us.
When I heard this message, I was overwhelmed: it's just a didgeridoo inside a cat!
The didgeridoo hums, the cat purrs, and these are all low frequency vibrations. Against the background of the low frequency of the main sound, higher frequencies are heard, but the frequencies sounding quieter are overtones. The overtones are always 2, 3, 4, etc. times higher than the main tone, they always form a harmonious row of sounds, a kind of one-tone chord and create a kind of didgeridoo (and cat) timbre.
At my concerts, which I call meditation concerts, I and the audience are actually the body of some mystical cat. I liked this image so much that I decided to call the concerts “Mystic Cat”, a meditation concert for the didgeridoo and listeners.
At a concert in the East tea club in Moscow in October 2004, I told about how Aboriginal shamans treat the sick by laying them on the ground and playing the didgeridoo over them. Some experimenters immediately went to bed. They really liked this experiment, and they recommended that I give the opportunity to those who wish to listen while lying down at concerts ...
What we do in the cultural center "Another world".

Exercises.

The didgeridoo is played with a jet of air exiting through relaxed, vibrating lips. This jet brings the didgeridoo into resonance. And the magic, sacred singing of this mighty flute begins.

Cheeks, diaphragm, larynx, tongue, lungs are involved in the didgeridoo game. Your whole body becomes an instrument. Training allows you to learn how to control all muscles.
Aboriginal people say that usually the muscles of the cheeks are needed only so that food does not fall out of the mouth while eating. But if you train them ...

In this section I will give two introductory exercises, since I will lead the section "School of play" when the students appear.

Exercise 1.

What does the phrase "exhale through relaxed vibrating lips" mean?
Probably everyone can say "Whoa" to an imaginary horse. At the same time, your lips will be relaxed, vibrate, and a stream of air will come out through them. It remains only to bring the didgeridoo to your lips and, without interrupting this "whoa", send air into it. This should be done until the didgeridoo responds with its vibration and makes a magical sound. This will be the main tone.
Experience shows that almost no one succeeds in getting a strong, even, correct tone right away. But this should only comfort the beginners. Only constant exercises, only the search for your "kiss", which will wake up the sleeping beauty Didgeridoo ...
The number of approaches will never be in vain, as your muscles will imperceptibly strengthen, and then they will gratefully help you while playing.

Exercise 2.

Fill your cheeks with air, inflate them. With these cheeks, breathe through your nose. You will see that it is absolutely easy to do.
Now imagine that the air accumulated in your cheeks is pushed out of your mouth only by your trained cheek muscles. With this, you can inhale quickly through your nose. This is the principle of continuous breathing.

Three basic requirements.

1. The main tone should be strong and stable (achieved by training).
2. The muscles of the cheeks should easily squeeze out the air accumulated in the cheeks (achieved by training).
3. With any movement of the cheeks, tongue, lips, etc., the main tone of the didgeridoo should not be interrupted (achieved by training).

The didgeridoo can be played while sitting, standing or walking.
… And enjoy the flow of the amazing music of nature itself.

I'm doing a kind of experiment by playing the didgeridoo. I watch myself, my new experiences, sensations and possibilities.
I can definitely say that there is much more energy and health.
I have already tried to combine, intertwine the sound of the didgeridoo with a female voice. It worked well.
And there is no limit to the experiments of musicians with didgeridoo and other instruments.

A wonderful state of the joy of creativity is given by an overtone, wind, extraordinary musical instrument with a beautiful name Didgeridoo.

Specifications, care tips, etc.

Didgeridoo - Didgeridoo is the European-American name for the wind overtone
Australian Aboriginal musical instrument. In the north of Australia, where the didgeridoo appeared, it is called Yedaki. The largest didgeridoo is 2.5 meters long.
It is intended for the sacred ceremonies of the "Dream Time" holiday dedicated to
The myth and the time of the creation of the world, it symbolizes the rainbow-snake Yurlunggur. Only dedicated men play and see it.
In different regions, the sacred didgeridoo (in the sacred ceremonies) was played more often by men, but women both prepared the ceremonia and played the didgeridoo too.

Didgeridoo are a variety of forms, it depends on the shape of the branches and trunks.
The voice of the didgeridoo is never repeated, each has its own special timbre and beauty.
It is best to start learning with an instrument with a length of 1m or more. up to 1m. 30 cm.
The inside diameter of the hole on the side of the mouthpiece should be approximately 3 cm.
The inner diameter of the end of the didgeridoo would be ideal at 10 cm, but 5-8 is sufficient.
The walls of the didgeridoo should not be too thick, as resonance will be damped and there will be a risk of cracking.

The inner surface of the didgeridoo should be treated with linseed oil, but so that the oil does not come out and spoil the drawing, if any.

The mouthpiece is made from beeswax.
I make a mouthpiece like this: I buy wax plates at the Pchelovodstvo store. I warm up the upper end of the didgeridoo with a hairdryer. The wax plates are about
I warm it up 1-1.5 by 2-3 cm and apply it on the didgeridoo so that a little wax captures the inner wall and a little the upper surface. I press, seal and line the upper end of the didgeridoo with these plates, forming the mouthpiece.

It's a good place to start learning bamboo didgeridoo.
You can make a straw from a dried hogweed trunk, or from something suitable, even their cardboard.

Cracks, which, unfortunately, are almost inevitable, can be "sealed" with wax. You need to knead a piece of wax and rub it into the crack. The wax holds well, only it must always be pressed down and crushed if vibrations are damped.

My first didgeridoo was made of 1m 15cm bamboo.
The second didgeridoo is very beautiful, it is more souvenir, but it also sounds beautiful. It depicts a kangaroo. The length of this didgeridoo is 1m 20 cm.

And the biggest didgeridoo, my "concert" mighty eucalyptus tube 1m 40cm long. The main tone is D, a very beautiful timbre, many overtones. No painting, pure warm eucalyptus color.

We do not yet have shops selling didgeridoo. But ethnic stores, spiritual literature stores sometimes sell bamboo straws from Indonesia, India and other countries, which are good places to start.

If you want to read the continuation of this lesson, then you are here. There is enough material in Russian here, which will interest those who like to withdraw into themselves.