On this edition of “The Secrets of Mastery,” a production of Craftsmanship Magazine, we talk with musical inventor Andy Graham, whose long-term fascination with a centuries-old Australian aboriginal wind instrument, the didgeridoo, has yielded several off-the-wall new musical creations. 

The Electric Stringed Didgeridoo, the Didge-ly Bow, the Fiddleridoo and the “Didge Bass” all are just a few iterations of the ancient instrument that Graham has fashioned over the past 25 years. 

From his Santa Rosa-based studio, his experimentation has also created the Nixa Wobbler, a percussion instrument composed of a magnet on a rod. And he sells the SlapStick, which he patented. It looks like a metal walking stick with frets, and Graham plays it as if holding a guitar. 

Graham can be seen performing as a one-man band with his wild-looking instruments, everywhere from Maker Faire in the San Francisco Bay Area to the annual National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) musical trade show in Anaheim. 

I sat down with Graham to learn more about how he sees himself fit into the historical tradition of the didgeridoo, and what motivates him to devote his life to creating new musical sounds.

LINKS: 

Andy Graham’s website: http://www.andygraham.net

Craftsmanship Magazine: https://craftsmanship.net/

Other episodes of Craftsmanship Magazine's “The Secrets of Mastery” series: https://craftsmanship.net/interviews/

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