About
I am Niels de Lang, musician – raised in the countryside, born in Amsterdam in 1966. For decades I have been working with great pleasure to introduce as many people as possible, young and old, to the didgeridoo.
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Who am I?
I am Niels de Lang, musician - raised in the countryside, born in Amsterdam in 1966. For decades, I have taken great pleasure in introducing as many people as possible, young and old, to the didgeridoo.
How? By making making making music on this instrument as simple and fun as I can and making the didgeridoo accessible and affordable
Because the more people experience pleasure and satisfaction on this amazing instrument, the more positive impact we can have on the world together.
Music and happy people have more to offer the world.
You happy = we happy. Simple.
My life
I live in Hoorn, a beautiful, small town near the IJsselmeer and not without reason....
I love water sports such as kitesurfing, windsurfing, swimming and sailing. Being near or on the water gives me a wonderful feeling of freedom and connection with nature. The nice thing is that my children also share these passions.
I live minimalistic and care not much for luxury. Just give me a bus camper to drive into adventure. That makes me happy.
By seeking a good balance in what I do as much as possible, I experience a pleasant peace in my life. This helps you make better choices and also keeps you a nice person for others.
The didgeridoo has certainly helped me to find that balance.
What I do
Since 1990, I have inspired hundreds of thousands of people by making music and giving workshops and courses on the didgeridoo. I am still active with my bands as a didgeridoo player and guitarist and have played at numerous festivals and theatres at home and abroad.
Besides lessons and workshops for schools and companies, in 2004 I successfully developed the one-day workshop Didgeridoo & Circular Breathing for beginners, snorers and (sleep) apnoea patients.
Tens of thousands of people use the didgeridoo as an alternative way to relieve symptoms such as snoring, apnoea, hyperventilation and shortness of breath and to contribute to their own health & well-being. Everyone wants to live a healthy life.
So there are GPs, therapists, ENT and pulmonologists who refer their (apnoea) patients to Australian Treasures' one-day workshops. Because it works.
With a global brand, Australian Treasures is a leader in everything to do with the didgeridoo and playing the didgeridoo. Of course fair-traded because that makes us and the world better off!
My Inspiration
As a child, partly due to musical parents, I was already into music, playing songs on the ukulele by the age of 6. Then guitar and didgeridoo followed. Since then, music has always been the common thread in my life. I found it fascinating that making music never gets boring and that it can greatly enrich your life and the lives of others.
I get my inspiration from good listening, music, piles of books and biographies, but mostly by getting started and experimenting myself.
Then I find out which things work best, and try to shape those techniques according to my own understanding.
Because the better it works, the more results you get.
Why make it difficult when it can be easy
How do we make learning something new fun and effortless?
At Australian Treasures, we learn, no nonsense, in small, clear steps. That way, we bypass impatience and get more done with less effort.
Soon you get into the right flow and enjoy the progress. How wonderful is that!
Frequently asked questions
Read our frequently asked questions. Get in touch if you can't find your question!
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Does a compact travel didgeridoo or spiral didgeridoo sound the same as a normal didgeridoo?
Yes it has the same low tone as a normal didge. The long tube that guarantees a low tone is 'rolled up' into a spiral, so to speak. Or, as with the special travel didge, 'folded' into a zigzag shape inside a wooden box. Moreover, you can easily take these didjes to lessons, performances or when you travel and still want to do your didge exercises!
In which languages is the online course available?
The workshop is available in 7 languages: Dutch, English, German, French, Italian, Spanish and Swedish.
Is a didgeridoo included in the didgeridoo course?
You can order a didgeridoo of your choice with the didgeridoo online course. Usually a cheap didgeridoo for beginners is chosen. But of course you can also opt for a wooden teak didgeridoo or professional mahogany didgeridoo. For the blowing technique on the didgeridoo, which one you choose does not matter that much.
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Does a beeswax mouthpiece always have to be put on a didgeridoo?
It is not always necessary to put a beeswax mouthpiece on a didgeridoo. Sometimes the wooden mouthpiece on the didgeridoo is already in good shape and does not need to be changed. If the mouthpiece is too big, you can use beeswax to make the wooden mouthpiece smaller by modelling a mouthpiece on it. This is very easy to do yourself and done in 10 minutes. If the mouthpiece has a rough surface, a bit of beeswax on the mouthpiece can also help.
How do you make your own didgeridoo?
You can easily make a didgeridoo yourself from a PVC tube. Sometimes you don't have to do anything about it and a PVC pipe that you can buy at a hardware store is enough. The ideal length for a homemade didgeridoo is about 130cm. This length gives you a low didgeridoo tone. You can even give the tube a nice shape by heating the PVC tube and bending it to give the didgeridoo a nice branch shape. If necessary, make a beeswax mouthpiece on the didgeridoo and paint the didgeridoo with acrylic paint for a nice end result.
What does circular breathing mean?
Circular breathing is a breathing technique that allows you to continuously exhale while inhaling through your nose. With the didgeridoo this continuous exhalation can be made audible. There is a constant exhalation through which an infinite tone sounds. With good control, a long continuous tone of 15 minutes can be played with ease!
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I am a beginner and want a didgeridoo with a low tone, which one should I choose?
For beginners who want to buy a cheap didgeridoo with a low tone, we recommend a bamboo didgeridoo. These didgeridoos have a nice, low, deep, round bass tone. Most bamboo didgeridoos have a nice low D note and blow very easily. Compact didgeridoos are also very good!
How do you play a didgeridoo?
On the didgeridoo you blow on a mouthpiece, possibly with beeswax, with an opening of about 3 cm diameter. Placing your mouth against the mouthpiece and vibrating your lips produces the basic didgeridoo tone. Didgeridoo playing is not difficult. Most get a sound out of the didgeridoo within 10 minutes
How long does 1 lesson last in the course?
Most lessons last 2 to 3 minutes on average and can be played indefinitely. So you can take didgeridoo lesson(s) at any time of the day!
What did others think?
Our workshops have helped many people with
circular breathing and have been able to reduce snoring as a result.
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Practising outside in the garden, I suddenly had an audience of 2 little birds, they didn't stay long, circular blowing through a straw is going great and it's already going smoother and better through the didgeridoo. Thanks Niels, your workshop provides a simple, effective approach that works very well and it feels healthy, didgeridoo playing.
Greetings, Heleen (participant of the one-day workshop) -
Hi all, how nice that there are so many didge fans! I've been doing it for six months now and it's going really well. I even have a bucket of water with PVC pipe next to my bed so I can practice circular breathing every day... I am still very grateful that I did the Didgeridoo & Circular Breathing workshop with Niels.
Sharon (participant one-day workshop) -
Didgeridoo ordered and received in only 37 hours.
Great sound
Thank you Australian Treasures
Sam Kempinaire
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Wow - 2 weeks on and I just blew a minute-long session for the first time. Sound during inhalation and exhalation is not the same yet, but I was able to smooth that out nicely in the rhythm. So the circular breathing is coming along nicely!
Greetings Sarah (participant of the one-day workshop) -
This spiral travel didgeridoo is absolutely magical. It is beautiful, and its weight makes it a strong instrument, while it’s not too heavy for your arms. This is the perfect companion for easy transport and, you can play it without making your arms tired, why not while walking ? The sky is the limit with this beauty. Oh, yes, a genuine long didgeridoo still sounds a little better in my opinion, but I am so excited and astonished that this sound gets so amazingly close from the traditional didge. It has a very good back pressure and the mouth piece is perfect. It plays extremely easily. This is the only version of a didgeridoo, where yourself as a player can hear how it sounds for the listener, because otherwise you’d need to record the sound with a normal didge and listen to it later. Long story short : I fell in love with it. It has become my favourite and it will never stop surprising me.
Bruno Misonne Aviation Music -
Ok, it was a bit late at night, but I just nearly blew myself into a wonderful trance. Call it didgeridoo meditation. For longer and longer. . . Great!
Greetings Tom (one-day workshop participant)
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Good professional information about the products. I bought a travel didge and a didge box. Both are fine. Please note that you have to breathe them in a little before they run smoothly. Circular breathing is therefore very easy to do. I decorated the box with art. Makes it slightly different.
Did Gro -
Totally satisfied with the instrument, from the manufacture to the sound it produces. Excellent for learning, go for it!
Riccardo Presciuttini -
Participated in one of the workshops. Was a great experience!
Willy Veld (participant in one-day workshop)
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