The Hodja

The Hodja is basically a hand held Octave-flute invented out of south eastern Nigeria, in a region of former Biafra (the failed state).
It is a wood instrument or better still an instrument fashioned from wood. The previous post describes it.
Here is a flier in pdf format which describes the instrument as you might find it an an advert or marketing journal.
The document is modeled after what you might expect to find accompanying any finished, store-ready prototypes.


The Hodja

Travel Document

Travel Document.

The Hhodja is basically made up of 8 or 9 strips of hard wood joined together with glue and covered at the bottom with a piece of metal plate.
The strips of wood are about 7 inches long and are about 0.5 of an inch wide and 0.25 of an inch thick.

They are shaped rectangles (of basic rectangular cross-section with tapered edges— trapezoids then) so as to make the hollowed out interior of the
instrument circular in cross-section when viewed plan-wise.
Basic variations to design can be made to alter the timbre of the instrument. One can envision fabrications from metal and plastic. Being rather eccentric and purist in his outlook, the inventor worked with wood.

About 12 whole fabrications have been completed and attempts were made with solid body hard wood at first. The difficulty with hand boring the holes led to completed designs with strips of wood. The blowing edge can be left as clear wood or finished with metal or plastic.

Instruments pitched basically at Eb or G# and G have all been made.

The invention has a patent pending registration with interested offices of
intellectual property in Nigeria and maybe abroad.
This design can be copied and this document can be downloaded freely from creative commons net centres.

If you are lucky enough to own one of these palmfuls of music, you may pass them on for a fee or for free, provided that the creator’s rights are safeguarded and this document is passed on with the instrument itself.

Download fresh copies at http://creativecommons.com.
Just search under Hhoja.

You might be able to hear actual samples of the instrument played or
see pictures of the creator playing this instrument or see clips of the
instrumental video clips. http://youtube.com/hhoja.

---

Revcanis Music.
© 2010.
Some Rights Reserved.
This is a Shared Rights Initiative.


Manual For the Hexaholoja by Reverend Canon Eugene Isiodu is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at unaisiodu.wordpress.com and also at
Biafran Blog

A Launching Poem

I don't live there now, except in my mind
in memories long repressed but not forgotten
scarcely recounted tales of the dead and rotten
our forlorn hopes and bedraggled clothes
still worn by my women of that unfortunate time
salvaged all around from clan and from clime
No, I don't live there now
except in my mind.

I don't live there now, except in my mind
there, gazing at fading lights in the old man's eyes
a fresh wound set in a scar, the buzzing flies
his missing stump and crooked chewing stick
and even now, the gnashing of teeth
his words, not spoken, make me seethe
No! I don't live there now
except in my mind.

I don't live there now, except in my mind
Mama's voice echoes like a bell, tolls and tells
of 100 dropped bombs and a 1000 riffle butts
plus fresh fires hot, set blazing cold, to old huts
Dad, for his part, in his high polished ways
tells of shattered clay pots and empty food trays
No, I don't live there now
except in my mind.

I don't live there now, the pictures would show
old Ogbunigwes and hollowed-out shells
poses of the brave and their bearded leader
above cadenced phrase, for mind and reader
They miss the despair, get, the kwashiokor bellies
and the Red Cross White Man's blood stained wellies
But, I don't live there, don't ask me why
Of Biafra, pure homeland, except in my mind.