All agave stalks are selected from my backyard, the Sonoran Dessert. At the end of its lifecycle, the agave sends up a seed stock that utilizes all its resources, to the point of totally sacrificing everything to bring forth the seed stock. Now they will dry in the Arizona sun for year and a half. Now I just have to find them to create my didges. 

 

Exceptionally lightweight with phenomenal back pressure, they offer players a strong, extremely light instrument.

 

Easy to play  suitable for beginner, But also awesome vocals nice resonance 

This plays and sounds phenomenal. This Didge is incredibly beautiful and will be a valued instrument in anyone's collection, why not yours. Weather on stage in the privacy of your own room or just with friends your Scorpion Didge will take you to the next level.

 

 

Crafting technique:

I harvested this agave stalk in the south west region of the U.S.. When I harvest Agave, its a very important time and experience for me. It not only gives me the opportunity to explore the desert in search of prime Didgeridoo stalks, but also allows for personal spiritual connectedness throughout the entire crafting process. I only harvest Agave that is finished with its cycle and spent. I also spread any seeds left in the pods to help with the regeneration of the plant. I carefully hollow out the didge with a bore and burn technique. I use some home made tools, chisels, rasps, drill bits and fire..

I finish all of my instruments inside and out with a high quality, zero VOC epoxy resin. This finish is non toxic when cured and has virtually no out gassing. This is the most durable, longest lasting finish to use. Its waterproof too. After the finish cures, I fine sand the exterior and hand polish the instrument using either oils and polishing compounds or a wipe on poly.

Tuning:

I personally tune all of the didgeridoos I make and always attempt to tune them as close to “perfect” pitch as possible. However, there are many variables that can effect the tuning even after the didge is finished, such as ambient temperature, humidity, climate and the players technique. Therefore I cannot guarantee the didgeridoo I sell will remain in its advertised tuning when its received.

 

Desert Mountain Didgeridoos are custom-made, handcrafted instruments created from carefully selected agave stalks responsibly harvested in the Sonoran desert. Each didge here is an individualized piece of art, customized in appearance and sound. I take great pride in crafting an elegant, eclectic selection of didges whose sound and ease-of-play are paramount.

Browse through my selection and I’m sure that you’ll find a piece that fits you. If you don’t see exactly what you’re looking for, let me know what you’d like, and I’ll create a piece wholly unique to your specifications.

If you’re looking for an incredible sounding didge — or an art piece for your home — I’m confident that you’ll love one of my unique creations.

Thanks for stopping by!

 

 

I love the bass filled drone and how easy it is to play. It is a good listener and will respond to every slight manipulation you want to create. I have always just loved the thicker straight old souls and this one would be perfect for every skill level. With the strong soothing drone, amazing vocal ability, and clear overtones this is such an incredible didge!

 

Craftsmanship

Mature agave stalks are the perfect material for making didgeridoos

Making a didge—turning agave into art

Perhaps best known as a source of tequila, agaves are a flowering succulent common throughout the American Southwest and Northern Mexico. If allowed to live their entire lifecycle, some produce a large flowering stalk that’s perfect for making didgeridoos. Their thickness, tapered shape, and resonance produce explosive and incredible sounds.

Selection, harvesting, and a commitment to conservation

The flower stalk of most agaves turns into wood after approximately one-year baking in the desert sun. Some of the larger, stronger agaves can survive multiple years through the harsh wind, rain, heat, and cold of the desert. It’s these unique plants that comprise my Old Soul Collection available on this site.

I take conservation seriously—only harvesting agaves who’ve already dropped their seeds in order to ensure the health and continuation of the ecosystem. Collecting the best stalks is extremely rigorous. It requires hiking up and down mountains through long expanses of desert, passing up many imperfect stalks along the way. For my didges with bells, I pull leaf-after-leaf from the base of the plant in order to expose the bulbous base (the part that would have produced tequila) and create an elegant shape.

The transformation from natural resource to instrument

Once collected, each stalk is individually analyzed and cut to the length best suited for use as a didgeridoo. I carefully bore out the softish interior—leaving the hard resonant wooden exterior intact—then sand the inner walls to make sure the entire pulpy center is removed.

Although time-consuming and labor-intense, I strongly believe that this method creates a vastly superior didge. Boring out the interior instead of splitting the didge preserves the strength, resonant integrity, and natural curvatures that make agave didges unique.

Hand-carved tonewoods—adding beauty and performance

Next, I carve and attach a wooden mouthpiece using various domestic and exotic tonewoods. This allows the musician closer contact with the wood, eliminating the need for beeswax, and resulting in a more sanitary instrument that requires minimal maintenance. I’ve researched and experimented with a wide variety of tonewoods to find those that add resonance to the didge without reducing the agave’s tremendous natural qualities. The tonewoods you’ll find on my didges are a symbiotic balance between artistic enhancement and performance.

Sealing the didge to enhance its resonance and using its natural imperfections for artistic creation

I then seal the inside with an extremely strong epoxy resin. This waterproofs the inside of the didge so that it won’t crack and is necessary to increase the resonance of the agave. After sealing the inside, I strip the thin bark from the outside of the stalk and sand the entire exterior with a very fine grit to bring out its natural character. As I’m using older stalks, most of the didges come with holes from insects and natural cosmetic imperfections from their time in the desert. I strengthen the areas around these small holes to reinforce the stalk’s integrity and then carve them out to inlay crushed stones, turquoise, malachite, lapis, and other gems and minerals.

Finishing touches before it’s ready for you

Finally, I finish the exterior again with an epoxy resin. Some didgeridoo makers use two exterior coats, which I feel results in a less explosive, less resonant instrument with a somewhat dull sound profile. I use one layer, creating a beautiful glassy finish that highlights the natural characteristics of the wood and retains sound quality.

Each line of didgeridoos that I produce is the result of preserving the natural state of the agave to retain its embedded characteristics. Whether it is the elegant shape of the Bell Collection, or the organic cosmetic imperfections that make the Old Soul Collection weathered and rustic, each piece is a window into my heritage and the desert southwest.

There are easier ways to make a didgeridoo. But the painstaking process that I use during harvesting, boring, creating the mouthpiece, and sealing results in a unique sound quality I’m extremely proud of. These are instruments; first and foremost, they must play well and offer incredible sound. They’re also art, which is why I take the time to preserve and enhance their natural beauty. I’m certain that you’ll find the quality—both musically and artistically—to be among the finest available anywhere.