http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWcmEVOBJC0
(*You don’t need to watch the entire video. It’s a bit lengthy. )
I chose to write about didgeridoos. A didgeridoo is a cylindrical wind instrument that originated in northern Australia close to 1,000 A.D. It’s quite a fascinating musical instrument and its origins are more “poetic” than you might think. The Aboriginal tribes in the Northern Territory used didgeridoos for occasions such as ceremonies, to impress women, but primarily to tell stories. The basic sound produced by the didgeridoo is called a drone, which sounds like a steady buzzing noise. The variations in sound are made by adding in vocalizations while maintaining the drone, which takes years of practice. These vocal additions are used to create imagery in the telling of a story. Most of these sounds are mimicries of indigenous Australian animals that are used to create surprisingly elaborate pictures of what the didgeridoo player wants us to see and feel. A talented “didger” can use a fast tempo and the imitation of a barking dingo to recreate a hunting experience in our minds, with fluctuations in rhythm and sound effects to signify turning points and an obvious climax. In the video I posted by Troy Page, a rather popular musician in the world of didgeridoos, you can hear at one point where he imitates the chirping of the frog. An anonymous author quoted in Inner Traditional Magazine said "traditionally, an Aborigine would go into nature and listen intensely to animal sounds, not just voices but also the flapping of wings or the thump of feet on the ground. The Aborigine would also listen to the sounds of wind, thunder, trees creaking, and water running. The essences of all these sounds were played with as much accuracy as possible within the droning sound of the didjeridoo. For the Aborigine, the observation of nature immediately requires a state of empathy, which leads to an imitative expression." Since the most favored sounds to reanimate are animals, the consistent theme in most didgeridoo music is nature related. Didgeridoo music has been called the “acoustic techno music” and more recently, “the origin of dupstep” because of its repetitive rhythm and some-what electronic sound. It’s certainly not your conventional instrument, but it is definitely a joy to play and learn about. If you want to know more, just ask me some of the weird facts about them sometime. They’re quite hilarious.
Payton, I think that didgeridoos are one of the cooliest instruments in the history of tribal music. I listened to the video, it was amazing, it reminded me of a floating boat skimming around the Northern Horn of Africa, even though they are in Australia. I think that you did very well in critiquing and describing the joy one can bring or recieve do to didgeridooos. Thank you :)
ReplyDeletePayton, this is an extraordinary instrument and I can not believe I didn't hear about it sooner! Didgeridoos are freakin' awesome. I watched the video and the sounds that come from it are just incredible! So soothing yet edgy and it totally sounds like a mixture of animals and nature! It's simply fantastic. Congratulations, you just blew my mind :}
ReplyDeleteBeast... This guy could be paid for this. Probably already is though. When I saw the video I thought it was rather peculiar how much the sound of the didgeridoo sounded like the sound of the sound the sound was trying to mimic. That sound being a sound of a sound of the nature in which the player was hearing sounds and mimicing the sound he was hearing. Hearing that sound made me want to make my own didgeridoo sound while hearing the sounds of nature. Anyway, I remember when you first bought your own didgeridoo. The sound you made wasn't a sound that should sound from a didgeridoo. It was more of a sound of the sound a fog horn makes. But today you're doing better.
ReplyDelete-Connor
Gee, Thanks Connor. That means a lot to me. =D
DeleteI had no idea about didgeridoos until we went to the Ren Fest this year, thanks to you! They are some pretty cool instruments that have a unique sound. They're pretty awesome, and seem like they take a lot of talent. Obviously I could not do it right. Haha, you got some talent to be able to do that!
ReplyDeleteI had actually heard of vuvuzelas before digeridoos and I actually thought they were the same thing. Vuvuzelas, though, are from Africa, are much shorter, and have more of an angry wasp nest noise than a "steady buzzing noise." Not to mention that vuvuzelas are plastic and, I don't think, have as many uses in their music as the digeridoos, except their mass use during the Soccer World Championship thing last year in South Africa to annoy soccer players. Anyway, I just thought digeridoos made the same cacaphonous noise all the time and for no reason other than producing the noise that perfectly embodies, in my opinion, being "high." Not that I would know what being "high" feels like, but I could just imagine drugged people making those noises or something. Thanks for correcting my ignorance on this topic. I will now try to appreciate the music, and not noise, that these dinosaur-like clarinets produce.
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