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Our Didgeridoos

 

1- What makes your didgeridoos different

2- What does a good didgeridoo cost and why

3- Why don't you sell 2ft or 60cm small didgeridoos

4- What makers do you represent

5- Who is the typical Spirit Gallery didgeridoo customer

6- Are all your didgeridoos termite hollowed eucalyptus

7- What is difference between a plain or decorated didgeridoo

8- Is it true your didgeridoos  have been played in the Sydney Opera House

9- Why are your yidakis different and where are they sourced from

10- Where can I learn more

 

What makes your didgeridoo different

We only sell “musical quality didgeridoos”. This means that tonal qualities and playability are the priority when we choose our instruments. We only represent recognised didgeridoo makers. Many of the countries top instrument makers are represented by Spirit Gallery , many exclusively (see section 4)

Many of our didgeridoos have a beautiful natural finish. Spirit Gallery also has many didgeridoos that have subtle art while others with quite intricate artwork. Once again, sound quality and workmanship is the priority. We don’t keep pretty didgeridoos that “do not work “or just look nice.

There is absolutely no reason why a didgeridoo can not be both a wonderful piece of art as well as a serious instrument. In fact, many didgeridoos were traditionally decorated.

Sadly, the Australian didgeridoo market is dominated by mass production, fakes, poor quality (regardless of whether they are technically authentic or not) or beautifully decorated didgeridoos where playability, workmanship and quality of instrument is not a concern.
 

What does a good didgeridoo cost and why

Good quality didgeridoos that have been crafted with a certain level of workmanship and with good tonal qualities can start at as little as $200AUD-$250AUD - at the more affordable end of the market.

Anything less than this and you can start to expect an inferior product. The time it takes to cut, dry, work, seal, decorate a reasonable quality didgeridoo simply can not be done for much less than this without comprising the integrity of the instrument.

In the mid range price of $300AUD- $700AUD you can expect to find a good quality instrument that has been crafted with time and patience and can be considered a serious instrument for a keen enthusiastic player.

At the upper end of the market for an instrument crafted by the countries top couple of makers or for those special or collector didgeridoos including some traditional Arnhem land yidaki or for what are often called “ concert class” instruments you could pay in excess of $1000AUD.

This may seem a lot for a “hollow log” but if one saw the careful selection process,  time, patience skill and work involved to create one of these fine instruments, that are each unique and hence unable to be reproduced- it would not seem so unreasonable. Many instruments at the top end can be much more expensive than the best didgeridoo- what is the price of a very high quality guitar, djembe or trumpet?

The Australian market being dominated by fakes, little didgeridoos and non musical quality or average quality didgeridoos (whether authentic or not) creates the impression that one can buy a good instrument for $50AUD or $100AUD- this is simply not true. The best didgeridoo for under $100AUD is a piece of plastic PVC pipe from the local hardware store, cut to about 1.2metres. It is with practising with this pipe one can decide if they would like to pursue the instrument and move onto a proper quality instrument.
 

Why don’t you sell  2ft  or 60cm small didgeridoos

Many people often ask us if we have “smaller” didgeridoos and we have to kindly tell them that these are not considered serious instruments. These type of "instruments" if played at all have a high squeaky pitch and are physically uncomfortable and difficult to play.

The didgeridoo has an standard length of about 1m-1.8m.of which approximately 99% of all instruments fall in between. You can not cut an instrument to half its intended length or down to 70cm-90cm and expect it to function in the same way and create warm beautiful tones. There are rare exception of  good quality instruments at the smaller heights of approximately 100cm  but these are  far and few between and may actually command a higher price because of their uniqueness and rarity and would only suit  highly accomplished players.

Once again it is due to the high visibility of all these 70cm-90cm didgeridoos around Australia, particularly in souvenir stores, that creates the impression that this is a standard size. It is very difficult to find what would be considered a serious instrument at 1 metre but many places including recognised didgeridoo stores or Aboriginal galleries continue to sell them as beginners didgeridoos or smaller instruments.- probably just for commercial reasons
 

Which makers do you represent

 Our highest quality instruments are supplied by the following makers- many exclusively in Australia
 



- Kristian Benton
- Wix Stix Didgeridoos
- Heartland Didgeridoos by Tynon
- Crooked Stixz by Adam Henwood
- Tristan O'Meara
- Trevor and Olivia Peckham
- Earl Clements
- Jesse Lethbridge
- Eugene Goolagong
 
These makers would easily make a top 10 list of craftsmen in the country (if there was such a list) After scanning the country over the last 10 years for all notable didge makers we think we have found them all. There are basically only one or two more makers Spirit Gallery would like to represent but have been unable to do so as they are not producing instruments at the moment or may be committed elsewhere.

Many of the above makers have their own websites and information about them can be found all over the internet, YouTube and the like. Feel free to do your own research- don’t take our word for it!

We also have a great range of affordable quality natural or gloss finished instruments, primarily from Katherine in the Northern Territory and also decorated didgeridoos from North Queensland, painted by Aboriginal Artists Leony Roser and Lionel Phillips. This range is our most affordable type of instrument without comprising on quality and hence represent the best value for money for a good entry level didgeridoo that is still a quality crafted instrument .

Finally, our traditional instruments come from the Buku Larrnggay Mulka community art centre in North-East Arnhemd Land
under the guidance of Yidaki expert Jeremy Cloake
 
He currently sources all our traditional instruments. These are meticulously hand picked  for their artistic and sound qualities, field collected  and properly documented with cultural integrity a priority. Many of these instruments have cultural significance and represent truly collectable pieces from some of best know traditional craftsmen.
 

Who is the typical Spirit Gallery didgeridoo customer

Spirit Gallery is the local hub for didgeridoo players with many of the finest local Sydney didgeridoo players regularly found in the store. We also cater for many first time didgeridoo buyers who are looking for an instrument they can learn with and is suitable for them, but who may need some advice to help to steer them in the right direction (and way from all the souvenir didgeridoos found around us).

Being conveniently located in the Rocks, downstairs from the Sydney Visitor Centre, makes it easy for interstate and international customers to visit us. In fact ,half our instruments end up leaving Sydney.

Finally, not everybody intends to be a serious player and despite sound quality being the priority on all our instruments we have some fantastically decorated didgeridoos that would also make standout display pieces .Many people like then fact that the didgeridoo is also a piece of art in addition to being an instrument and something you can proudly display whether or not you pursue the playing side.
 

Are all your didgeridoos termite hollowed eucalyptus

Yes 99.9% of our didgeridoo are termite hollowed. More importantly, they are hollowed properly by termites. Termites don’t take music into consideration when eating through a log and therefore create many bad didgeridoos where the walls are to thick, have heavy spots or inconsistent wall thickness creating flat and muffed tones. This is where it is up to the skill of the maker to choose a didgeridoo that has been hollowed out in a manner that will allow it to be crafted into a good instrument and why mass indiscriminate cutting of logs with a chainsaw on the back of a truck rarely creates a quality instrument.

Some of the ironbarks have been opened up on the inside slightly to improve the sound (after initially being termite hollowed).

We also stock the didjeribone by Charlie McMahon. The didjeribone is a lightweight plastic slide didgeridoo which allows u to demonstrate the whole range of notes available on a didgeridoo . It is also great for travelling and when not extended only measures 950mm.
 

What is difference  between a plain or decorated didgeridoo

This is purely down to aesthetics as it does not really effect how the instrument sounds. Many didgeridoo players who already own instruments are not concerned about the artwork or want the price to reflect nothing but sound quality. Similarly, some people may feel a natural didgeridoo is more a symbol of an instrument and shy away from decorated instruments . On the same token many players enjoy artwork on their instruments particularly the traditional styles found on yidakis from Arnhem Land.

Even natural didgeridoos can have their own distinct beauty with a variety of finishes available including barks finishes, high gloss, matte finishes, natural knots ,sap marks and a variety of naturally occurring elements

Artwork is also an attractive option for somebody who is unsure if they will pursue with playing side of the didgeridoo and wants to make sure they also have something that is attractive and unique and can be displayed
  

Is it true your didgeridoos have been played in the  Sydney opera house

Yes they have. William Barton who regularly performs at the Sydney Opera House and is the regular didgeridoo player for the Sydney Symphony Orchestra uses our didgeridoos when he visits Sydney to perform. We

  

Where can I learn more

On this website there are many places you can learn more about the didgeridoo and how it is played Starting with our didgeridoo resources page and continuing on into our blog. Even watching didgeridoo demonstrations in our product page can be off assistance and we also have a YouTube page where you can also see instructional and playing tips- follow the links from the homepage