Lecture to explore acoustics of ancient wind instrument

The acoustics of an ancient aboriginal wind instrument, the didjeridu, will be the focus of a UW–Madison physics department public lecture at 4 p.m. on Monday, April 5.

The lecture, “The Didjeridu – A Triumph of Mind Over Matter,” will be given by University of Melbourne physics Professor Lloyd Hollenberg to celebrate the instrument, which is made from a slender tree trunk (initially hollowed out by termites) and which originates from Australia’s northern regions.

Known for its versatility and acoustic complexity, the instrument is renowned by ethnomusicologists for the “unique heights to which the music of the didjeridu was taken by the indigenous people of Australia.” Now played worldwide, the instrument has acoustics that remain little understood, apart from the fact that they are more difficult to understand than more familiar Western lip-driven musical instruments.

The lecture, which is free and open to the public, will be held in Room 1300 Sterling Hall, 475 N. Charter St.