Australian Digeridoos.
Originally the Didgeridoo was played by the North Australian Aborigines, particularly in Darwin and the Arnhem Land in Northern Territory but also in the gulf country of Queensland and in Kimberley which is situated in Western Australia.
There are various versions as to the origins of didgeridoos, even within different Aboriginal tribes. Historically, only the Aboriginal males played these instruments during ceremonial dances known to the Aboriginal people as Corroborees. Click sticks are played simultaneously and they are clicked against the side of the didgeridoo.
They are made out of hollow pieces of timber. These hollows are created by termites eating through the centres of branches or trunks of Eucalyptus trees. Didgeridoos will vary in size depending on the timber used.
The process starts off with removing the bark from the outside of the eucalyptus and then the termites are removed from the inside. (That's good to know!) Beeswax is applied over the rim of the Didgeridoo to soften the mouthpiece and then Aboriginal art is painted on the outside.
Didgeridoos are not easy instruments to play as the sounds need to be made by the shaping of your mouth and a special technique of ‘circular breathing’ is necessary in order to play them properly. This type of breathing allows a player to continue to blow whilst breathing in more air at the same time. Basically, they breath in through their noses and out through their mouths.
Learning how to correctly water breath or breath through a straw is the best way to perfect this technique. But once this is achieved, a player has to learn how to make what is termed as the common ‘Drone; sound. As the air is expelled from the lips, the lips should vibrate, which sends the drone sound into the Didgeridoo. Another tip for ‘would be’ Didgeridoo players is to pour water down the the Didgeridoo before playing it as this creates moisture within the tube emphasizing the tone and volume.
The more advanced players, can imitate different sounds but all sounds need that vibrating action from the lips. Many animals sounds are imitated which allows one to visualize the quintessential Australian outback.
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