Duduk

The duduk (doo-dook, դուդուկ) is an ancient double-reed woodwind flute made of apricot wood. It is indigenous to Armenia. It is commonly played in pairs: while the first player plays the song, the second plays a steady drone, and the sound of the two instruments together creates a richer, more haunting sound.

The unflattened reed and cylindrical body produce a sound closer to the English horn than to more commonly known double-reeds. Unlike other double reed instruments like the oboe or shawm, the duduk has a very large reed proportional to its size. UNESCO proclaimed the Armenian duduk and its music as a Masterpiece of the Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2005 and inscribed it in 2008. Duduk music has been used in a number of films, most notably in The Russia House, Ronin and Gladiator. Variations of the duduk exist in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia.

Duduk Construction

The duduk is a double reed instrument with ancient origins, having existed since at least the fifth century, while there are Armenian scholars who believe it existed more than 1,500 years before that. The earliest instruments similar to the duduk’s present form are made of bone or entirely of cane. Today, the duduk is exclusively made of wood with a large double reed, with the body made from aged apricot wood. The particular tuning depends heavily on its origination region. In the twentieth century, the Armenian duduk began to be standardised diatonic in scale and single-octave in range. Accidentals, or chromatic notes are performed using fingering techniques. The instrument’s body also has different lengths depending upon the range of the instrument and region.

The reed (Armenian: եղեգն, eġegn), is made from one or two pieces of cane in a duck-bill type assembly. Unlike other double-reed instruments, the reed is quite wide, helping to give the duduk its unique, mournful sound, as well as its breath requirements. The duduk player is called dudukahar (դուդուկահար) in Armenian.

The performer uses air stored in his cheeks to keep playing the instrument while he inhales air into his lungs. This “circular” breathing technique is commonly used with all the double-reed instruments in the Middle East. Duduk is invariably played with the accompaniment of a second “dam” duduk (drone), which gives the music an energy and tonic atmosphere, changing the scale harmoniously with the principal duduk.

Duduk family includes instruments in different keys, such as in C, B, A, G, E, D and F.