I was far from home. Very far from home.10,167 miles from home to be exact. Sound engineer Joanna Adams and I arrive from the Solomon Islands to be greeted by the futuristic cityscapes of Brisbane by night. The beach looks even more bizarre in the scorching sun the following afternoon complete with a backdrop of skyscrapers...almost like a scene out of the sci-fi movie 'Elysium'.
For our recording session we head 20 kilometres south of the city, to the rustic HQ of Didgeridoo Festivals main man Casey Opsteegh. He is hosting a didgeridoo workshop featuring virtuoso player Mark Atkins and as it's also Casey's 50th birthday he has invited along many of his friends from the didge world for a BBQ and special night concert at his ranch. His workshop/studio has the most incredible collection of didgeridoos I have ever seen, these are like works of art, beautifully carved and etched and waiting for life to be breathed into them to create the powerful sound they are so well know for. It is here I have the pleasure of meeting Aboriginal player Adrian Burragubba, he plays the didge to me in it's purest, rawest form and tells me about the concepts of 'dreamtime' and 'songlines'.
Joanna Adams and Mark Atkins
It's over 35 degrees, the horses are in the paddock, the dried out trees are creaking gently in the warm wind and didgeridoo virtuoso Mark Atkins is about to start his workshop. Mark is a very unassuming chap and it's hard to believe he has composed and performed with Philip Glass and collaborated with Led Zeppelin! Mark descends from the Yamatji people of Western Australia and has adopted a contemporary approach to playing the instrument, using an amazing range of squeals, shrieks and hypnotic drones to paint his soundworld.After a few hours blowing it's time to take a rest. The equipment is being set up for the night show, there will be lasers and lights, but in the meantime to avoid damage from the rays of the sun, the musical instruments on stage are covered in clean white cotton sheets to keep things cool. Soon it's time for the evening BBQ and birthday cake and before long Stephen Kent takes to the stage. Kent is another player pushing the instrument to new places. He uses electronics, SFX and percussion and proves how versatile and natural the sound of the didgeridoo can be when mixed with a modern outlook. The lasers and psychedelic light show are in full swing and I’m amazed that the cops haven't turned up as the music blasts late over the PA into the hot Brisbane night.
The following day I get my first blow of the didge under the tutelage of gifted female player Shannon Truscott at the home of producer Parris MacLeod and singer Chontia Robinson in what can be best described as a studio in a tree-house set deep in a forest in the Sunshine Coast region. It turns into a very musical evening as Mark and Stephen have also brought out their 'horns' and many great sounds can be heard throughout the evening. At one point there is an inspired improvised duo performance featuring didgeridoo player Brock Jenson and Parris MacLeod on piano...their piece ends my radio feature and in many ways captures how 'at one' the didge is with the sound of nature ... a chorus of singing cicadas join in with them to make sweet soul music. It's a timeless sound and I would encourage everyone at some point in their life to give the didgeridoo a 'blow' and experience as Stephen Kent would say 'the sound of Mother Earth'.
Sushil K Dade.
Commonwealth Connections is broadcast on BBC Radio 3 as part of World On 3 (Friday 11pm-1am) the series runs until the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow this July.
