Ayoub and Maksoum on the didgeridoo: two Middle Eastern rhythms (and the mistake a subscriber made me fix)

Last spring, I posted a video about a rhythm you’ve surely heard before. Maybe around a campfire, when someone pulls out a djembe, or even on the radio. I called it Maksoum… But a few days later, Steph wrote to me in the comments: “Gauthier, you’re wrong, that’s not Maksoum, it’s Ayoub!”

He was right.

I’m no darbuka specialist, and I got my wires crossed. But this little mistake turned out to be a gift, because the two rhythms are cousins. A single stroke separates them, and that very stroke is what will let us create some very musical variations. Thanks, Steph! 😉

Ayoub, the campfire rhythm

Ayoub is that sway you sing without even thinking about it: dum-tak, dum-tak, dum-tak. Just two sounds, a low one and a higher one, answering each other endlessly. It’s simple, it’s powerful, and it’s universal: you’ll find it in traditional percussion, in jams, and in a good part of today’s pop music.

To play it on the didgeridoo, you simply transcribe it: one didgeridoo sound for the dum, another for the tak. And that’s where it gets interesting, because there are lots of ways to do it.

Three breaths for the same rhythm

Here’s the first version I’d like to show you:

You breathe on the “ton”, with the bounce breath, and the “ki” has to come out nice and clear, because it’s the one carrying the accent.

Now let’s change the breathing. While we’re at it, let me repeat a basic point: on the didgeridoo, there are at least 7 kinds of circular breathing, and each one nudges us (almost in spite of ourselves!) towards a certain style. So changing your breath means changing your colour.

So the second version of the rhythm uses “WA”s. The “WA” bounces naturally, it marks the accent all by itself, without any effort.

And finally, the third breath is a “WI”. A puffed-cheek breath, massive and at the same time very precise, with the “i” sound that gives it its character. Personally, it’s one of my favourites!

Give them a try: usually, you’ll manage to play at least one of the three breaths. The others will come with practice! I also talk about this in the course “The Secret of the 7 Breaths”.

Maksoum: just one more stroke

Now for the real Maksoum. It’s written like this:

Can you hear it? Just one more stroke, a “ka” slipping into the middle, and the whole sway changes. It’s crazy how much a single sound can transform the feel of a rhythm!

And with the “WA”, my version of Maksoum becomes:

If the WAs bother you a little, just think TOH-breath, TOH-breath, TI. What matters most is placing your breaths well, because they’re what holds the structure together.

Then you can decorate it. For example, I replace the TO with a TO-HO, and there I am in the wobble (see the free wobbles course):

Or I slip a KOUF in place of the second TOH: this sound snaps like a snare drum and instantly gives the rhythm some depth. I explain it in this article on the KOUF.

On the didgeridoo, play breaths and your rhythm will move forward

While looking for a variation based on Ayoub, I first tried adding a little TE. It wasn’t very pretty… So I put in a TON, with a good bounce breath, and everything started to groove. It’s a lesson that works every time:

• • •

“On the didgeridoo, when you put breaths into a rhythm, it moves forward naturally, it gets going.”

• • •

A rhythm that drags is often short of air, so before adding sounds, add a breath. Guaranteed success!

And a little bonus: the 3 + 1 structure, how to sound musical effortlessly

Now for the little bit of magic. Play your theme three times, then a variation once, and start again. For example: three times Maksoum + once Ayoub.

Your rhythm will immediately take on a musical shape. In short, it’ll sound good without you doing anything else.

This structure works almost every time, and it welcomes very simple variations: sometimes, keeping just the start of the pattern is enough to create a break. I talk about it at greater length in my video on structuring your improvisations. And if you add a shaker or claves to accompany yourself, you’ll see how much the musicality grows again (my video on percussion).

Your turn

Start slowly, around 80 beats per minute, with Ayoub and whichever breath comes to you most easily. Take care of the quality of your sound before your speed. Then add the Maksoum stroke, then the 3 + 1 structure, and gently move up towards 90 or 100.

As for the different breaths, bounce, WA, WI and the others, they’re the very heart of the course The Secret of the 7 Breaths.

And if you know darbuka rhythms well, feel free to correct me in the comments: Steph showed it’s an excellent idea! 😀

Happy blowing!