Didgeridoo - An Unusual Use of a Forest Resource.

Didgeridoo Didjeridu didj didjeridoo didjuridu didge yidaki What is it ?

The didgeridoo is a part of Northern Australian Aboriginal culture. The didgeridoo is a simple aerophone woodwind instrument. The didgeridoo is a large wooden tube you blow into. The didgeridoo is a minor forest products sourced by environmentally-friendly logging. Depending on who you are, the dideridoo takes on one or all of the above meanings. From my point of view, makers are utilising a resource, that supports an industry employing Australians, including indigenous people, without detrimentally effecting the environment from which they are collected.

To the aborigines from Arnham Land to central Australia, the didgeridoo is an integral part of how they tell the stories of the dream time. Because they had no written word, elders passed the traditions, lessons of the past, and their culture to the young by wall paintings and song. Even though the languages, musical techniques and stories may vary between groups of different totemic lines, the basic information can be kept intact and partially understood by many different tribes due in-part to the musical structure.

The didgeridoo has been estimated to have been used by aboriginals for between 10000-60000 year. The western world has only just embraced this unique musical instrument in the last 30 years. Initially, the digeridoo and native music was recorded and sold to those with an interest in culturally accurate performances. More recently, bands like Yothu Yindi have included the didgeridoo into more contemporary music to give a uniquely Australian sound.

.A boom in the Australian tourism industry has coincided with a greater public interest in Australiana merchandising, including aboriginal art and materials like the didgeridoo. A modest industry in Australia and overseas sell didgeridoo's retail for the souvenir market. The souvenir quality didgeridoo's are often painted or engraved with aboriginal art or contemporary Australian scenes. They generally can be played, but don't possess the sound qualities musicians require. A smaller industry also exists for instrument quality didgeridoo's. Didjibeat Didgeridoos [Shop 2 Clocktower Centre, Cnr Harrington & Argyle St. The Rocks, Sydney ph. 02 92514289] can supply you instrument quality didgeridoo's at reasonable prices. Instrument quality didgeridoo's can be made to suit a specific pitch (by varying the length), tone (by varying the thickness of the didgeridoo and the materials it is made from), and the musicians mouth (by varying the mouth piece diameter). The sounds that the didgeridoo make vary from rhythmic drones to vocalisations, depending on the technique used to blow into the didgeridoo.

The forest product called a didgeridoo ?

To investigate this minor forest product, I went to my local didgeridoo maker, Darryl Anderson from The Didgeridoo Man Pty Ltd. in Yass, New South Wales. Darryl employees local people to produce souvenir and instrument quality didgeridoo's to the local retail and interstate wholesale market. His souvenir didgeridoo's are sold with clear finishes; painted by local aborigines with traditional patterns or with contemporary paintings and carvings. Souvenir didgeridoo's are produced between 850-1100 mm in length. They range in value from $25-$40 for children's didgeridoo's to $60-$300 for beautifully illustrated didgeridoo's. The instrument quality didgeridoo's are generally sold with clear finishes or traditional patterns and they range in price from $60-$550. These didgeridoo's are sold between 1000-1600 mm in length with a hollowed-out inside diameter of between 31-44mm. They have to possess the right sound qualities (every didgeridoo is played to assess it's quality) and be free of imperfections like knot holes and irregular hollowing.

Darryl makes his didgeridoo's from two local hardwood species, Bloodwood (Eucalyptus trachyphloia) and Black Mallee (Eucalyptus viridis). Small diameter stems (120-150 mm) are harvested sustainably from State Forests and private agricultural land. These species grow in open woodlands on dry sandy loam soils; in areas of high natural fire frequency; and in association with termite species that naturally destroy the heartwood of the stems for food and space for their colony. Due to these reasons, the growth habit of these species is usually in the form of mallee or lignotubers (small and multi-stemmed), with hollowed-out stems (by the termites). This tree form makes it ideal for didgeridoo making as up to ten instruments can be made from one tree. Because these trees grow from lignotubers under the ground, new limbs can grow back readily, as they would after a severe fire. In this way, the tree is not destroyed, but pruned and encouraged to grow back thicker and healthier.

Making a Didgeridoo ?

The stems are fallen in the bush and cut to length. They try to fall the trees during winter when the sap is running as this allows easier debarking in the factory. They are end sealed with wax sealant to avoid over-drying of the ends of the piece.

They are transported to the factory in Yass, where they are debarked using a spoke shave or modified grinder.

The billets are stored in the factory drying area for up to 6 weeks before the mouth end is chiselled out to the required diameter and the bottom end is opened out to form a bell-effect.

They are then desapped using the grinder and spoke-shave. Where the remaining heartwood is too thick (greater than 25mm), they are ground further to create an evenly shaped cylinder.

They are rough sanded on a drum sander and then imperfections are removed and filled with putty.

After a fine sanding, they are then coated with a clear bondcrete sealant to avoid splitting.

The didgeridoo's are then painted by local indigenous artisans and a bees wax mouth piece is inserted. The wax mouth piece makes it easier for the musician to seal his mouth on the didgeridoo when playing.

Many thanks goes to The Dideridoo Man Pty Ltd for the photographs and description of the process. If you would like to contact him,

 

Mr Darryl Anderson

The Didgeridoo Man Pty Ltd

Cnr Comur Street & Waroo Road

Yass, NSW, 2582

Australia

Ph. (02) 6226 3011

Fax. (02) 6226 4707

Email. darryl@didgeridooman.com

Recommended Web Sites to Visit

The Didgeridoo WWW Server. A fine collection of didgeridoo-related material, including album reviews, instructional information and tips on building and maintaining didgeridoos.

The Didgeridoo University of Central Australia - Aboriginal Arts and Culture Centre

Yothu Yindi

The Original Didgeridoo Page.

How to Play a Didge ?

Didgeridoo on the wide world web

Didgeridoo email group

[Other Minor or Unusual Forest Products][Non-Wood Forest Products][ANU Forest Products]

The Australian National University

Author: Forestry Web People

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Date invented: 30th July 1999

Date Last Modified: 16th January 2002

URL: http://sres.anu.edu.au/associated/fpt/nwfp/didge/didge2.html