The duduk (tsiranapogh) is an Armenian instrument recognized as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage (2005). This page documents the instrument's engineering geometry for workshop study. It does not reproduce traditional Armenian reed-making, tuning practice, or performance technique. All acoustic predictions are first estimates marked empirical — they require physical build and measurement before use. See resources.md for full provenance notes and recommended sources.
The duduk is one of the oldest double-reed instruments in continuous use, central to Armenian music for at least 1,500 years. Its distinctive sound — breathy, vocal, expressive — comes from the combination of a giant Arundo donax double reed, a cylindrical bore, and a technique refined over generations. This build-log documents the engineering dimensions of the instrument family for workshop fabrication and study.
The goal of this packet is to understand the physics and build an instrument that produces a stable tone in the right pitch range — not to reproduce the sound or craft of a traditional Armenian duduk. Those are different and harder goals that require learning directly from tradition-bearers.
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Acoustic class | Closed cylindrical aerophone (stopped pipe) |
| Excitation | Giant double reed (Arundo donax) |
| Bore profile | Cylindrical (slight taper in traditional instruments — modeled as cylinder) |
| Number of holes | 9 (8 front + 1 thumb) |
| Family range | E3 root to B4 root (20 keys) |
| Primary build target | Armenian Duduk, A3 root — bore 0.472″, body ≈13.25″ EMPIRICAL |
| Traditional wood | Apricot (Prunus armeniaca) |
| Heritage status | UNESCO ICH 2005 (Armenian duduk and its music) |
| Design sheet | duduk-design-table.xlsx |
| Packet status | PRIVATE — pending build + review |
The duduk bore is closed at the reed end (the player's lips seal around the reed) and open at the bell. This creates a stopped cylindrical pipe:
f = c / (4 · L_eff) (fundamental only — odd harmonics)
where c ≈ 343 m/s at 20°C and L_eff is the total acoustic length including the reed effective length and the open-end correction. The odd-harmonic series gives the duduk its mellow, clarinet-like timbre.
| Term | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Acoustic length L_eff | 39.0 cm / 15.35″ | calculated |
| Open-end correction (0.6 × r) | 0.36 cm / 0.142″ | formula |
| Reed effective length (est. 0.5 × physical) | 4.97 cm / 1.95″ | EMPIRICAL |
| Body length estimate | ≈ 33.7 cm / 13.25″ | EMPIRICAL |
The double reed must oscillate at a frequency higher than the bore fundamental — this is the "sub-resonant" condition that allows the bore to control the pitch. Players adjust reed pitch through the bridle, a band wrapped around the reed that constrains its opening. Reed behavior cannot be predicted from geometry alone — it is inherently empirical and requires a skilled player to tune.
The design table covers four closely related instruments. All share the stopped-pipe model and 9-hole layout.
Tsiranapogh · Apricot wood · Warm, breathy, vocal · UNESCO ICH 2005
Plum or walnut · Bright, nasal tone · Largest bore group
Mulberry · Reedy, penetrating · Mugham repertoire
Apricot or similar · Narrower bore · Georgian folk tradition
| Parameter | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Root note (all closed) | A3 = 220 Hz | target |
| Bore ID | 0.472″ / 12.0 mm | design input |
| Wall thickness | 0.138″ / 3.5 mm | design input |
| Outer diameter | 0.748″ / 19.0 mm | calculated |
| Body length | ≈ 13.25″ / 33.7 cm | EMPIRICAL |
| Reed length (physical) | 3.90″ / 99 mm | design input |
| Reed width | 0.63″ / 16 mm | design input |
| Wood | Apricot (preferred) / Walnut (alternate) | traditional / practical |
| Bore finish | Boiled linseed oil, 3 coats | recommended |
| Exterior finish | Pure tung oil, 3 coats | recommended |
Scale: A natural minor (Aeolian) — A B C D E F G A. Traditional playing adds extensive microtonal inflection.
| Hole | Finger | Note | Freq (Hz) | From bell (in) | From bell (cm) | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Root | all closed | A3 | 220.00 | — | — | anchor |
| 1 | RH pinky | B3 | 246.94 | 1.67″ | 4.25 | EMPIRICAL |
| 2 | RH ring | C4 | 261.63 | 2.44″ | 6.20 | EMPIRICAL |
| 3 | RH middle | D4 | 293.66 | 3.85″ | 9.78 | EMPIRICAL |
| 4 | RH index | E4 | 329.63 | 5.10″ | 12.96 | EMPIRICAL |
| 5 | LH ring | F4 | 349.23 | 5.68″ | 14.42 | EMPIRICAL |
| 6 | LH middle | G4 | 392.00 | 6.73″ | 17.10 | EMPIRICAL |
| 7 | LH index | A4 | 440.00 | 7.67″ | 19.49 | EMPIRICAL |
| 8 | top front | B4 | 493.88 | 8.51″ | 21.61 | EMPIRICAL |
| Thumb 9 | left thumb (back) | C5 | 523.25 | 8.89″ | 22.59 | EMPIRICAL |
Full instructions in assembly-manual.md. Summary:
The duduk — tsiranapogh (Armenian: "apricot pipe") — has been central to Armenian music and ceremony for at least 1,500 years, with some scholars tracing the instrument to Urartu (~1500 BCE). It is played at weddings, funerals, church services, and as an expressive solo vehicle. The instrument was recognized by UNESCO in 2005 as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.
The four instruments documented here — Armenian duduk, Turkish mey, Azerbaijani balaban, and Georgian duduki — share physical form but belong to distinct living cultural traditions. They should not be conflated.
Scope of this documentation: Engineering geometry for workshop study. Not a substitute for learning from a traditional musician or instrument maker. Reed-making in particular is a deep craft tradition not captured in any engineering document.
Recommended listening: Djivan Gasparyan, I Will Not Be Sad in This World (ECM Records) — the definitive reference recording for the expressive range of the Armenian duduk.
Before publishing: See the public-release checklist in resources.md. This repo stays private until physical build is complete, tuning is validated, and provenance notes are reviewed.