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Another question.... I hear a thing like a dup but it's not that..... what's it? is it a DIT or WIT (very strong and stop the tongue between the teeth) or another thing ?
thank you for your help..

Hi Cyril,

It isn't an overtone note but a strong tongued-attack, a bit like "dhith". It works better on lower key yidaki. Not an easy technique to master! Anyone want to try?

Guan

I've just put up a new vid of Mirrwatnga playing older style, you can hear (and see ) the same technique as on the field recording.

In my experience, this sort of tongued effect is best achieved on instruments in the key of E and lower. When it comes to Fs, F#s, Gs etc. the tonguing is exactly the same but the sonic outcome is different.

Enjoy!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cL6LeHE6P80[/youtube]

Guan

Thanks Gan for the answer and the video

Here's another one for you Cyril

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VW5gvm68Gyk[/youtube]

You can see the effect instrument type has on sonic outcome. In this case, the only variable is the instrument, everything else being the same... same player, same day, same recording equipment, same location etc. The tongued accents can sound very different depending on the sort of instrument you use, even Yolngu-made ones.

Guan

Hi Cyril, Guan,
for fun and exercise I had a go at recording my version of this sound.
It depends very much on the stick of course, as the video of Larry clearly demonstrates, this one is recorded on a big Djalu D,

[stream]http://www.fluiditj.com/dhith-hard.mp3[/stream]

cheers, M

Good one Martin, well done!

Even the accents can sound different on the same instrument and same player, for instance, comparing the first 2 tongued accents of Martin's with the third, the third sounding more slurred. Generally speaking, these accents are more accentuated on lower key yidaki where they sound like a 'pop', a very clear and distinct 'beat' almost like an overtone note. On higher key yidaki the accents are more fuzzy-edged but still sound great especially in complex syncopations.

I'm glad this thread came up as these accents are one of the key features of Yolngu yidaki style. What perplexes me though is how Wandjuk creates some of his rhythms... that's got me stumped

Guan

Thanks Guan,
indeed one of the trickiest parts of this forced dhith is to get exactly the right pressure balance to make a pop without a dup if you know what I mean. It depends very much on instrument not just whether it is easy to do or not, but also what the correct amount of
pressure and tongue velocity does the trick. This is why the sound I make is not consistent, sometimes I get the balance right whilst other times it is a bit off.

M

We had a great thread about this years ago on Serious Sticks. I wish I had copied it all, because it seems to be too old and not up there anymore. I did some spectrum analysis on a 1953 recording and one of Ben Hicks to show that it is actually, for a few miliseconds, a pure trumpeted note initiated by the 'dith'. I coined the term 'dith-pop' for this sound, and I really want it to stick.

I'll have to look up the exact words, but Trevor Jones in the early 60's described the sound as an auditory illusion with a technique that defied analysis. I contrasted his statement with the Serious Sticks thread where people were talking about the technique and what instruments are best for it in my thesis to show how non-Aboriginal discourse about yidaki had developed over the years.

In my experience Guan, yep, lower instruments tend to be easier to do it on, but that's not just because they're low, but because they have different resonance characteristics and larger intervals between the drone and trumpeted notes. You can get the same thing in a higher stick, but it's just not the kind of higher stick Yolngu tend to make. You want at least a minor 3rd interval and a bit of an open pipe. I have an agave F with an A trumpet and a decent size bore with a wax mouthpiece that dith-pops beautifully. And notice on the video of Larry, as the sticks he plays get higher and tighter bored, the trumpet note interval gets smaller and less apparent.

I've found the thread Randy, although it looks like Ben's comments were deleted when he cancelled his forum membership so there are some holes in the discourse. The main analysis section and comparisons are on the 3rd page.

http://forum.serioussticks.com/viewtopi ... &sk=t&sd=a

Kyle

I've been practising a little of Wandjuk's style today, not quite ready for a recording but hopefully soon.

In the meanwhile, take a look at these 2 yidaki from Gove collected in the early 1970s and used ceremonially in the local area, made by Don Guyuwuru Gumana. I love the adze marks on the surface of these 2 instruments, showing painstakingly handcrafting with a blade probably a knife. The mouthpieces are beautiful too with that classic flared shape. Finding new yidaki made in Arnhem Land that respond in the same way as these old instruments is a challenge indeed, as can be said for many things, they don't make them like they used to.

Guan