Experimental Didgeridoos...

In the didgeridoo world everything seems to move about D, E, and F. If expanded a little, then C – G are reached, which is a fifth. However, it is possible to play tubes that span a range of two octaves; so why not?
The main reason for my exploration of these ranges is the very feeling of the fundamental tone's depth and of the special world hidden within overtones of such long instruments. Harmonics of deep didgeridoos sound like “normal” didgeridoos, and high overtones still exist in them, so the musician achieves various instruments in one, as if he has a didgeridoo orchestra. Furthermore, these overtones bring with them the basic feel from the depths of their previous (fundamental) tone, and therefore differ in color, shape, and thickness from their equivalents in analogous didgeridoos for whom these are fundamental tones.

It all started…as a conversation with Ondrej Smeykal. He is the first (and only) person that revealed to me the true wealth that lies hidden in “deep” tubes. Ondrej’s thoughts have always had a special value to me. I remember the time I saw him place a tuba’s horn on a didgeridoo. At the moment it looked to me like one of Professor Baltazar’s inventions, so that’s how I named it. The reason for placing this horn was to amplify deep frequencies that the ear is less sensitive to. This marked the beginning of my exploration of playing with the purpose of producing sounds, and playing with the purpose of exploration of my ability to produce audible sounds.
My first sketch of a horn stood taped to my monitor in Baltazar style for a while.




What followed was a mathematical model, with a little more serious look, and a little less serious physical background. The thought that guided me was that deep tones need BIG horns. The horn I imagined had a radius of 1.6 meters, and a total length of 2.3 meters.


In order to pass through doors with this horn, I needed to divide it in two parts. I even almost succeeded! The smaller part can pass through doors with normal dimensions. =)
Construction was far more complicated than I thought it would be. After deciding to make this horn, I thought I would be done in just a few days. Instead, I finished half a year later. =)

Construction phases were as followed:
- The mathematical model was divided into 12 parts for the smaller piece and 24 for the larger piece
- These parts were then made out of thick linen and were given to Svilko to sew together.
- The sewn pieces were then stretched over frames made of wooden discs.
- The smaller piece was covered with three layers of glass fibre and epoxy resin.
- The larger piece was covered with three layers of glass fibre and polyester resin (because I ran out of money for epoxy resin =)
- The two pieces were joined, but only with the mercy of celestial forces.
- Mario Sokolić then carefully painted them. - - After that, these painted pieces were covered with epoxy resin (to protect them). In order to achieve a most perfectly smooth and thick outer layer, the smaller piece rotated on a spit usually used for rotating roasting lambs and pigs.

Here are a few photos, to help you get the picture:

















































Most importantly: THIS THING WORKS!
I tried it out as an extension to a 5.5 meter didgeridoo and an 8 meter didgeridoo (which adds up to be my often-mentioned 10 meter instrument).
What is the sound of this instrument? That’s best experienced live. For not even a quality recording can faithfully capture the entire sound, which is just one of the charms of live presentation. I recommend all didgeridoo listeners to listen to, and all didgeridoo musicians to try playing such an instrument!

Did I achieve what I had aimed to? I only partially did, and my quest for deep sounds is still ongoing. One of the difficulties with development and obtainment of such deep instruments is the fact that they don’t exist on the market. I tried over a thousand normally large didgeridoos, and only maybe twenty of these pipes were longer than three meters. Some of these deep instruments function better than others, but for now, luck is the only tool I have when researching this world…


Two scenes from the show (it is a bit hard to see in this resolution, the 10 meter didge is what starts with a horn and ends on the other side of the stage)