Classic McMahon performs didgeridoo with what sounds like a violin. Great didgeridoo music!

This track was filmed for the popular tv show “Countrywide”on ABC TV. The track ran as the theme track for the show for abut 2 years.

I really dig the setting, where can I get drums like those? Oh yes, and as usual, the didg drones are great.

A great digibone demonstration, pure solo didgeridoo music goodness!

Now Australian physicists say they have discovered the secret of skilled didgeridoo players.

What separates an expert from a novice is the opening and closing of the glottis, the part of the windpipe that contains the vocal cords. A skilled player subconsciously reduces the opening of the glottis to set up strong resonances at different frequencies inside the mouth.

Read more at : http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/07/0706_didgeridoo.html

I couldn’t find a more succinct and charming description of the didgeridoo on the internet than the one written by Baz Walters from EthnicPercussion

The didgeridoo is possibly the oldest instrument in the world with many experts believing it to have been played for at least the last 40,000 years. Cave drawings dating back at least 2,000 years show the didgeridoo being played and it is known that the Aborigines across the top of Australia have been using this instrument at ceremonies and corroborees for thousands of years. They believe that playing it helps induce an alpha state that keeps them in touch with their shamanistic beliefs.

The traditional Aborigine didgeridoo is made from eucalyptus branches that have been hollowed out by termites. This process can take up to a year and a skilled person can tell if the thickness is correct just by tapping on the log with their fingertips. The walls need to be a certain thickness to create the right sound and the length of the log determines what key the instrument will be, with shorter lengths giving higher pitches.

In the Aboriginal legend three men were outside camping by a low fire when the night grew cold. Needing more wood for the fire one of the men grabbed a eucalyptus log which he found very light to the touch. Just before throwing it into the fire he noticed that it was covered in termites. He did not want to kill the termites but his friends were complaining of the cold so he scooped them up and placed them inside the hollow log. He then put his lips to one end and blew them out. The termites blown into the night sky became the stars and the first didgeridoo was created.

Today termites are not a necessity and a number of other materials have been found to make excellent didgeridoos. Mature Bamboo remains extremely popular, Teak works a treat with excellent sound quality and even PVC didgeridoos have became the favored choice by many over the last few years.

Playing a didgeridoo is different to other wind instruments. You breathe down the tube while your lips remain loose making a vibration that will echo as it travels down the tube. At the other end, it comes out as an amplified drone. It is somewhat similar to playing a tuba, but the lips are more relaxed. If you are unsure how to create loose lips, think of what it is like to blow a “raspberry”. Once you have mastered the drone, you can practice making other sounds by moving your tongue or cheeks while blowing into the instrument.

Although not necessary, to play the didgeridoo like a real pro you have to learn circular breathing, and this takes practice. You have to inhale air through the nose while simultaneously releasing it from the mouth. Without this skill a player will not be able to produce the favored non-stop sound.

If, however, you do put in the effort to learn the didgeridoo then it appears that there may be some unexpected benefits. An interesting study in Switzerland is looking at how playing the didgeridoo can help stop snoring and sleep apnea. The study following people who are learning to play has found that those mastering the art are, after a few months, experiencing fewer incidences of these conditions. It is thought that the breathing required to play the didgeridoo is actually training the upper airways to function better.

Baz Waters runs EthnicPercussion.co.uk, an online store providing high quality didgeridoo, djembe, bougarabou and dundun drums in the UK.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Baz_Waters

Reprinted with permission by Baz Walters.

“Pregnant women at a maternity hospital in Gloucestershire are being given didgeridoo lessons, as it teaches them “circular breathing”, which can help ease the pain of labour.”

Source: Daily Record

ScienceDaily (Dec. 24, 2005) — Regular didgeridoo playing reduces snoring and daytime sleepiness, finds a study published online by the British Medical Journal.

Snoring and obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome are common sleep disorders caused by the collapse of the upper airways. Continuous positive airway pressure therapy is effective, but is not suitable for many patients.

Reports of didgeridoo players experiencing reduced daytime sleepiness and snoring after practising, led experts in Switzerland to test the theory that training of the upper airways by didgeridoo playing can improve these disorders.

They identified 25 patients with moderate obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome and who complained about snoring. Patients were randomly allocated to an intervention group (didgeridoo lessons and daily practice at home for four months) or a control group (remained on a waiting list for lessons).

Compared with the control group, daytime sleepiness and apnoea scores improved significantly in the didgeridoo group. Partners of patients in the didgeridoo group also reported much less sleep disturbance.

Although overall quality of sleep did not differ significantly between groups, a combined analysis of sleep related measures showed a moderate to large effect of didgeridoo playing.

The authors conclude that regular training of the upper airways by didgeridoo playing reduces daytime sleepiness and snoring in people with moderate obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome and also improves the sleep quality of partners.

“Larger trials are needed to confirm our preliminary findings, but our results may give hope to the many people with moderate obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome and snoring, as well as to their partners,” they say.

Originally published at Science Daily

The Garma Festival was held on the occasion of a Garma ceremony involving many clans from Arnhem Land. This Garma has as its purpose the sharing of knowledge and culture, and the opening of hearts to the message of the land at Gulkula, where the ancestor Ganbulapula brought the yidaki (didjeridu) into being among the Gumatj people.

The sound of the yidaki at Gulkula is a call to the clans of northeast Arnhem Land to come together. It is a call to all peoples to come together in unity.

The yidaki comes from Aboriginal law and is used in sacred contexts that have ever deeper layers of meaning. The yidaki and the bilma (clapping sticks) are the rhythm and pulse for the stories of our ceremonies that go back to our ancestors. They also look forward to the world we share with Balanda (non-Aboriginal people).

Read the full statement at: http://www.garma.telstra.com/yidaki/y_statement.htm