How To Play Duduk - Beginners lesson series for the Duduk - Lesson 1
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- Опубликовано: 17 янв 2025
- Hey All,
I shot this impromptu a month or two ago, and rendered them, but ended up with huge files and had troubles uploading them, So i re-encoded them and am able to upload them now.
These are 6 videos, which are designed to get you up and playing within the first few months of getting your Duduk.
I'll be posting a lesson every thursday for the new 5 weeks. So stay tuned.
Also a short disclaimer: I am not a professional by any means on the instrument, these were off the cuff lesson videos which I thought would be useful to beginners, If you have the chance to study with a pro duduk player or anyone who has properly studied duduk, I would recommend you do so!
Enjoy,
DFZ
Ps.
For those looking to learn to play the Duduk, check out my book!
www.dreamfullof...
I wanted to thank you or posting these. I bought what I thought to be a Mey while I was in Tunceli, Turkey. It turned out to be a Duduk - as none of the Mey reeds fit properly. I ordered Duduk reeds online and so far they seem to be doing fine. I really had no idea how hard it would be to play. But with each passing day it gets a little better. So please don't stop what you're doing. It really is nice of you to give the lessons. right now I'm simply learning how to tune and proper fingering.
Thank you for posting lessons. I have always wanted to learn to play. Please continue with posts. Thanks again. You play beautifully.
Thank you for this and the other videos my friend. I just received my duduk from Yerevan and your videos are exactly what I needed. Cheers.
1/2
Hallo,
I'm a player of bansuri and other wind instruments.
You did a great work for who wants to play duduk around world and without possibility to find a teacher.
Some months ago I bought in Rome a duduk (35 cm of lenght) that come from Turkish with an armenian reed.
I'm totally new to this instrument and never played double reed instruments, only clarinet with one reed.
This is absolutely wonderful! I pray you don't mind that I share. Your Duduk is absolutely beautiful.
Thank-you
Peace-n-Love always, JP
Wow, your videos really are helpful. I just bought a duduk yesterday and I already am able to play a full scale thanks to all the advice in your videos, and I'm begining to be able to make a slight vibrato. It's kinda hard to play this instrument but the beautiful sound is worth it a lot (:
I have some problems holding air, but I guess that's pretty normal when starting to play any single or double reed instrument.
Anyways, thank you very much for posting these videos! Cheers from Mexico :D
Really I definately chose thai video as my teaching lesson!! Thankyou
@themrchrist1 Use the tuning ring to close and tune it properly. if after that its still too wide, leave it to dry for awhile before playing.
@themeleed Yes, it does, it overblows at the twelth. Overblowing is very hard (the reed's opening needs to be almost closed) and only possible on the lower notes, hence no one uses this particular technique. But it's possible and actually sounds great.
Thank you very much for all your precious informations!
@avantijazz No problem, I'll check it out now. Cheers.
@TalkaboutHope It takes time, like going to the gym, the first two weeks are hell since the muscles are not used to it, and seems like too much effort and not worth it, but like all things, stick with it, results are always worth it. It'll be a about a month, of solid daily practice till that feeling goes away and you're able to control things better. As for the reed, make sure you leave it to dry when you're done playing, and to loosen the tunning gridle. This will help it keep the right shape
Hey, it's me again, my duduk came in the post and it is an A duduk. It's great but I am finding it really hard to play. When I blow it makes no sound but when I blow really hard it finally makes a sound but it isn't consistent and the sound isn't smooth. I there anything i can do to stop this?
@@sevagboyajian3168 Stop eating pizza. Italians have an emotion you might never feel. That's how stupid you sound
@@TheCottageWizard that's was a drunken comment thanks for bringing this to my attention. I blame the Russians for making vodka.
Hi there. What a fantastic resource you are to us budding Duduk players. I have bought a Karen Habyokan Duduk from Matt at ethinicinstruments in the uk. Although I am just beginning in am finding it hard to flatten the notes on this reed 9 I can sharpen them). I dont feel its lack of breath and am wondering if the reed might just be too stiff? Do you have any idea if this may be the case and what I should change to if need be? Acnt thanky you enough for putting your time into this....Cheers Guy
Thank you for yours lesson!love the flute Armênia Duduk.
you're most welcome.
i am thinking about picking one up! what should i look for when geting one
@minewurxstudio Hey There. That's strange.. Most people try to buy a Duduk from turkey and end up with a Mey! Funny to see it the other way around. Trust me that it seems so hard only in the first few months... When i think of how easy it is for me to play compared to before, it seems strange... Since i really couldn't play for long without getting tired and wasn't even able to play a tune on it really... You're doing the right thing, stick with the basics, and you'll go far my friend. Thanks.
this is good video ... I have been looking for this instrument... its sound has haunted me from my fav soundtracks .. now i found it :)
Hey, you're most welcome. Well I'm slowly getting better and better. Well thing is Pedro is trying to adapt the Duduk to his style, not vice versa. He's gone so far as to make his own duduks with holes laid out so he can play the half steps perfectly in tune, which in retrospect defeats the purpose of the instruments sound. I have the utmost respect for Armenian culture and I certainly make sure I present the duduk as it should be.
@Dreamfullofzen Thank you...
Well, after some months of almost daily practice, both reeds still open too much after about 30 minutes of playing... The sound gets very airy and a lot more lip pressure is required to create a sound... :-/ Too much saliva? Is that a common problem?
@minewurxstudio You can adjust the reeds. If the reed isn't going in enough, you can remove some of the wrap so it'll go in more. The reeds generally tend to be slightly sharp in the beginning and have to be played in to get flatter in pitch and be slightly more in tune. Perhaps the reeds you got where not for the duduk you have (do you know what key the duduk is?). As for where to get reeds, there plenty of places, like duduk.com
@damoosie123 Did you adjust the bridle on the reed? is the opening very wide? is it an A duduk?
@minewurxstudio Does it not have any markings? usually there is a mark for the key (A, B, etc). Where did you get the reeds from?
A mixture of technique and the recording. By nature the duduks lower register is breathy since more air is travelling down the instrument barrel. If you play at a softer dynamic it's not as noticeable but since there was a lot of noise when I made these videos I played as loud as possible to make sure I was audible.
Please, could you advise me what would be the best duduk for playing a tune in E-minor?
Thank you very much.
@nmbr1metallico duduk in a for prelude I think, and if I recall B flat for the intro here.
what do you think the araratfolk instruments? just wondering if you have any experience with them or know anything about them.
Hey,
If it's a new reed, it'll be about a week or so until it takes shape and starts to sound more fuller. At the moment it will buzz allot, and seem slightly sharp in pitch, unless you open it too much and then the amount of air needed to produce a pitch will seem ridiculous!
Check the reed on its own with a tuner, should be C/C# pitch on its own when not connected to the duduk.. New reed is usually C#, and after a few months of playing, it'll be a C. GIve it time, you'll be rewarded soon..
@hillbillya1 what does it tune to? When covering 6 holes and the thumb hole?
@keman25 if its a new reed thats common, when it breaks in more, that'll go away and the tone will get mellower with time.
@devadana Tuning for an A duduk should be F# G# A B C# (Db as you put it) then D natural E F# then G# and finally A. Could be the reed is not good, could be a low quality instrument, depends really. Thing is to warm up the reed first. If you play on an unwarmed dry reed then the force required is harder. warm it up by keeping it in your mouth and blowing, then leave it for 10-20 minutes, then try playing, if still abit rigid, blow more and leave it longer. I'll do a video on this soon.
Also I would like to know which duduk is played in the most of slow music of movie like The Gladiator or other slow music? A or B or Bb?
Hello, I am a 13 year old girl and I have always wanted to play the duduk but I have no idea which one to buy. I want to play the Narnian Lullaby.
does the duduk have an overtone series? It has a very limited range so I'm assuming not.
@weever5000 Pricing would be the main thing to look at (no such thing as a quality hand made instrument for 50$..). Making sure the Duduk comes with a good reed (preferably 2 reeds), since the reed is a main factor in the sound, and more importantly, playability.
@Dreamfullofzen-I've figure it out now. Thanks for the lesson. Very helpful in getting me started. :)
Thanks for the patient lesson and for your inspiration. I want to buy a duduk in Chicago. Hopefully I'll find a good dealer...
Hey i was wondering what type of wood your Duduk is made of?
hey i have a few questions. i was wondering were you where able to obtain a duduk. and how much it would cost for a reasonable one
thx!
@gitily Hi there. Duduk is double reed, so it has allot more resistance then most wind instruments, and in the beginning will require you to blow hard. As your mouth muscles improve and your breathing support develops, it won't seem that hard (blowing wise). You can get them from various places, I got mine from Gevorg Dabaghyan & Vache Sharafyan. As for the notes on recorder for duduk, well, you could, but i think you'd soon see it doesn't suit or work well with duduk.
Hi, is it possible to play all different scale by the same duduk or we should change duduk and buy different duduks for different scales
Thanks for the helpful lesson. I just posted my first ever "video response" on RUclips (to this vid), and thought in doing so I would have had the chance to write a comment with it. I didn't get that opportunity, so my response might seem a bit rude, sorry, no offense intended.
Cheers
Rob
@Dreamfullofzen I was JW i bought a cheap one on ebay made of mahogony and the sound difference is very noticable.
@TalkaboutHope You're welcome. No, this is considered incorrect / bad technique and will hinder your progress on the instrument. The lips should not curl back over the teeth, I used to do this with the bottom lip (like clarinet and sax players) and it muffles the tone and ruins the airflow when trying to do vibrato and glissando. Work on developing lip and cheek strength, it'll take time, but its the proper way. I didn;t work on melodies in the beginning, just technique, looks at vid 2 and 3.
Sorry if my question is stupid, how to make a smooth low sound without breath sound or overbreath? When you play low pitch i can hear some sort of oversound as in fluet when blaw air too much. Is it natural or recording problem, if you understand what i mean?
@LOVE2Flute Thanks Pat. I did enjoy this lesson very much. Excellent!
Peace,
Tim
@AccordingtooJohn Mahogany? Interesting. Are you a beginner? Because my tone has changed / developed over the last 2 years, as it will with you. I imagine mahogany would be a good wood, it is resonant, although perhaps too dense and not rich on the higher end perhaps as apricot wood.
I'm about to buy a duduk, and start playing it. I have some experience in wind instrument since I'm a saxophone player. Tell me, please, how difficult is duduk? (:
Hi my dear thanx about your extreme helpfull video, i have 1 qes. About the (bridle) shuld be release after finish paying??? Thanx in advance
@Dreamfullofzen sry it was actually mulberry. Yes this is my first wind instrument, also mine has 7 holes and when all 7 are pressed down it plays an A other wise hold down 6 plays a Bflat, is this correct?
Of the 3 reeds I ordered - all of which are very long and narrow - I can only get close to tune on one of them. The others hang too far out (I believe) and everything seems flat. The one reed however seems to be pretty good - as I was able to follow along with an online sample and even bend a half-fingered note after a couple of minutes. I'd really like to no where I can get some softer, shorter, wider reeds..
@Dreamfullofzen thank you so much!
@Dreamfullofzen Ic, yea they called it a turkish Duduk, it seems very similar, the mouthpiece is the same.
@guyburgs Hi Guy,
My first Duduk was from Matt. The reeds that come with those Duduks are monsters.... Very hard to play on and hard to produce a more authentic Duduk tone... You should practice on it for awhile, since it'll build up your muscles in a good way, then move onto a soft or medium soft reed. You can get the reeds from various sources, but the most reliable are Vic (araratmusic), Movses (duduk.com), and where i get mine: Vache Sharafyan (mail order). Thanks for the compliments.
Excellent !! video of what is the internal diameter of the tube duduk?
+roman rco it tends to vary from maker to maker, some makers make thinner duduks, others more dense. why do you ask?
+Dreamfullofzen hi, because I want to make one, and would like to know the diameter of the duduk you use
roman rco Hi Roman. In that case download the UNCESCO Duduk Manual, it contains all the dimensions and diameters of the Duduk design.
the mouthpieces for duduk I ordered looks like yours, except the end of the reed is not sanded off-I can't get air through it at all. Am I supposed to shave off the end? Thanks.
Hi Dave
Exellent !!
Steen
2/2
I thought to buy a A duduk, but after I started to play the scale was:
F# G# Bb C Db Eb F G Ab
and after some minutes of playing
F# G# A B Db Eb F G Ab
the reed itself is tuned in C.
This is a Ab duduk or A duduk played bad? The change of pitch in some positions could depend from bad tecniques, bad reed or bad duduk?
Blowing is really hard and after playing I always feel even for days a breast discomfort. Is it normal?
hi,
firstly I wanna thank u very much for sharing these videos, I'll learn from them once I buy a duduk! :) secondly, Can I use w clarinet reeds instead of duduk reeds? Is it gonna produce the same sound? I live in Egypt and there are no duduk reeds available as I have to change them once in a while.... and and if I'm gonna buy it from the internet, how do I know whether the duduk is good or not other than the price of it?
thank you very much for ur help in advance! :)
I buyed one Duduk but the reed doesnt sound, do I have to buy another reed?
Hi, thanks very much for this! Is there any way you'd be able to give beginners lesson on the sipsi? I've just bought one as I don't play an instrument, love the duduk, and wanted to start with a sipsi...
Hi again, thanks for your reply to me on G+, can't answer you there for some reason. A sipsi is like a much smaller duduk, but I have decided to get a duduk and I'll be following your lessons :)
Your not armenian tho
@kojinmalia patience my friend, give it time and don't give up.
Great video bro!
Thanks for your videos brother..
hi Dreamfullofzen
can you help me to find these instruments.
i can't find any one here in sweden
if you have a good and safe website please link it.
best wishes
Thanks for your lesson, great job :) I have a problem with reeds. I want to regulate bridle to have comfortable opened reed, but when I set it in the best position duduk is out of tune (higher notes). I want to ask you how check if duduk and reeds are good (tuned in A scale) and how to move bridle to the most comfort position without losing tuning?
if the reed isn't warmed up properly this is an issue. Check out my latest Pro Tips video on my channel where I talk about the reed issue you are experiencing.
@devadana A or Bb usually.. The difference between the two is subtle, and anything on an A duduk can be played on Bb and vice versa, its more to do with when playing with other instruments to accommodate tunning & fingering of scales. Most of the gladiator stuff is done on an A though if I recall (the main theme, which is an armenian folk tune, siretsi yars daran... by main theme, i don't mean the lisa gerrard vocal part either).
I bought a duduk in the key of A yet I can not get my duduk to tune to an A, any tips?
@geesmaildk Thanks Steen!
Hi Mariam! Forgive the delay in my getting back to you. Duduk reeds are not like clarinet or sax reeds. They're are much bigger, thicker, and if properly maintained can last years. I got my duduks and reeds shipped to me in Egypt, so that shouldn't be an issue. Contact me and I can refer you to the people I bought mine from. Happy holidays.
@AccordingtooJohn Sadly the mouthpiece only seems similar but it isn't. The instrument unfortunately is remarkably different... Different Tunning, Different Tone (mey is more nasal sounding, Duduk more woody and full sounding), sometimes different playing technique... Duduk has 8 holes and a thumb hole, and is tuned to a major scale (A, Bb, etc).
Where in Michigan?
@AccordingtooJohn Hey, Apricot Wood of course, like all Armenian Duduks. Why?
@Dreamfullofzen Thank you ... i keep your "don't get discouraged in mind ... I feel like my lips a jaws are muscleless ... :) another problem is the reed I think, the little wood strap is almost pushed at the end and the duduk is still quite open, the sounds is hard to get at this point ... sometimes it's ok, sometimes it's just pfffrrrrrrtttfffffff with spitting inside ... but anyway it is so beautiful, I will go on trying
Great, thanks, I found the fb page, is that the right one, a page, not a group ?have liked it and will look at getting the book when I have my duduk! Can't wait :)
thanks a lot for the video, I recently bought one and your explanations are very helpful.
One preliminary question though, it's about the lips, it's driving me nuts. The thing is that, to have enough pression, from the upper lip, I have my teeth pressing them (teeth --> lip --> reed) is it normal? and second question, do you exercises ressources ... simple melody to learn how to play ... :) thank you very much
hello, when reed is to much "closed" do you recommend to put him in the water before playing, and if so for how long?
@themeleed it's not a western instrument, eastern music is very different from western music. It's range is "limited" but it's melodic and expressive capabilities more then make up for that fact, what with the use of microtones often found in music of the region.
What should I do if my duduk reed it flat?
Where could I find full version of intro song?
The intro is just a short improvisation I made for the video series X)
wow, this is really cool! im rather curious as to where i can get a duduk :)
Ebay for you westerners
Thank you! Nice tutorial
you're most welcome!
great!
@nmbr1metallico could be a number of things. if you're a beginner, then it's going to take time to develop your tone.
Thank you so much for putting this on! It is GREAT!!!! Vernon aka Ollivander at the dududk.com forums.
Dear Dream, I found a duduk or two on Amazon, but would hate to spend money on something that is poor quality. Do you think you could please assist with choosing the good quality duduk for me please? Thank you! Vic.
hey! thank you for the video. Amazing. Could you please tell me what is the bass instrument playing at the background? Sounds fantastic!
Soft synth, not sure which one I used at the time. Thanks for watching!
Dreamfullofzen Thank you. If you ever came accross similar sound, please remember me and please please please let me know. I absolutely love it. I'd love to use similar sound for my music creations. I have no idea where and how to search for such sounds. It sounds very natural and very deep. That's what I like about it. Anyway, thank you for your response and have a fantastic day! 😊
Thank you very much x)
Thanks man.
👍
I bought one today note bb but im trying all the time and I can not play a note and I don't hear a sound either can you help me?
have you tried using just the reed on its own, can you get a sound out of that?
Hello I'm from india aswell I love duduk flute when I watched yanni concert on youtube. So how can I buy this flute.?
there are a lot of online stores that sell them, I haven't dealt with any so i can't recommend any of them per say. Just avoid amazon and ebay since those are souvenir quality ones.
Hi great videos. I have a duduk which I believe is in (A) , but when I play the A scale my lowest and highest notes sounds like F sharps. Is the duduk in the wrong key or is it the reeds.
Depends.. could be the reed doesn't fit or isn't made for that particular duduks bore diameter, or it could very well be a "souvenir" quality Duduk. The very lowest note on the entire A duduk is an F#.. but if you are starting on the A note and getting F# then something is definitely wrong.
@@Dreamfullofzenthanks your response. for some reason after a couple of days playing it seems ok , maybe the reed needed breaking in.
There aren't any markings on it at all - I'm not sure of it's quality overall - but it doesn't look like a tourist trinket - I bought it in a music store in Tunceli. The reeds came from an Amazon.com dealer and seem to be very nicely made. There is leather along the sides and they are strung very nicely. Here is the link. amazon /Duduk-Armenian-Professional-Ramish/dp/B0034EOOK6
Hi, Thanks for your helpful lesson, i finally could get sound out of this lovely instrument. I have a problem though, mine has one hole more than the ones i have seen on videos (2 holes stay open in front button and one in back) and i just can get sound out of my left hand holes the holes which are covered by my right hand make no sound! :( is that because of that one extra hole or is that more difficult to get sound of the lower holes?!
Thanks alot
Sadaf Amini Hi Sadaf, How many holes are on the face of your Duduk? There should be eight in total. there are two holes on the back, one is the thumb hole at the top, and the other is the tuning hole at the bottom. Hmm as for the other issue you mention, could be a number of things. Contact me via my facebook page and I'll help you out.
Hello, I blow into my duduk using the fingering for A but only air comes out. Is the reed problematic? I can't quite tell why I can't produce a tone.
If the reed isn't vibrating then yes something is wrong. try blowing on the reed disconnected from the bore of the instrument. If it doesn't produce a sound then the reed has an issue.
@@Dreamfullofzen Yup, I did that and got no sound. Does it require a lot of practice and technique? I'm pretty sure I'm doing it right, but no tones are produced. What's commonly the issue when this occurs?
@@prs_81 could be a faulty/fake reed. But commonly it's because the aperture of the reed is too wide, if the gap between the two sides is too wide then the reed will not vibrate.
@@prs_81 the pro tips video I did talks about the reed in detail more, I would suggest watching that and following the tips there.
it was really good all those tips... my A duduk is now equally tuning your duduk - thing that was never happening. but despite of this, the sound is more like a sweet sound, I mean, I can't come up with that shivering and shrilling sound duduk has.. what is happening? can I go there one day the more it goes opening?
+Filipe Kramer glad to hear that. The sound or tone you seek will come with time.. it's all in the technique.. watch my earlier duduk videos when I was still learning and you will see that I too didn't have that sound yet. give it time and practice as much as possible.
I couldn't tell you the first thing about what kind of Duduk I have. It is exactly 14 inches long. 8 holes on top and 2 on the bottom. The first hole measures 1 3/4 inches from the base. Does that help?
Depends, helps to have several duduks due to transposition.
@AndreaSPitaim easiest would be a duduk in G ( g major is relative to e minor ) or an A duduk, and half hole the B to get C natural and half hole the f# thumb hole for a G natural.