21 First Street has become something of a mecca for didgeridoo players.
Every year, at the beginning of May, hundreds of didgeridoo
players come from all over the world to attend the annual Didgeridoo
Festival (part of the Pine Creek Gold Rush Festival), at Copperfield
Dam, 85km north of Katherine. 21FirstSt serves both as a meeting
point and practice venue for this event, and for the Barunga Arts
Festival, which takes place in the first week of June.
21 First Street is also a popular stop for tourists
passing through Katherine (largely as a result the write-up in the
Lonely Planet), who come to see our range of painted,
natural and carved
didgeridoos, take a FREE tour of the workshop and have a go at playing
an authentic Northern Territory didgeridoo.
Selling didgeridoos by sound
Richard Williams (aka "Coco"), has been making didgeridoos in
Katherine for the last 7 years. He served a 2 year apprenticeship
with the Wadaman tribal elder, Bill Harney, but says that there
is much to know and that he is still learning.
21FirstSt sells didgeridoos by sound. Each didgeridoo
is assessed for quality based upon it's accoustic properties and
its ease of play and assigned a Sound
Score. The higher the Sound Score, the better the didgeridoo
sounds and the easier it is to play (or 'drone' in music terminology).
A didgeridoo that is easy to play has a good back pressure that
aids circular breathing - particularly important for beginners learning
to play.
Didgeridoo Sound Score
|
Poor sound. Difficult to play |
|
OK sound. Not easy to play |
|
Good sound. Relatively easy to play |
|
Very good sound. Easy to play |
|
Excellent Sound. Easy to play |
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