Spiridon Shishigin -Soul Of Yakutia[Tuva]

The Jew's harp (or Jews' harp), jaw harp, mouth harp, or Ozark harp is thought to be one of the oldest musical instruments in the world;a musician apparently playing it can be seen in a Chinese drawing from the 3rd century BC.Despite its common English name, and the sometimes used Jew's trump, it has no particular connection with Judaism. This instrument is native to Asia and used in all tribes of Turkish people in Asia where it is variously referred to as a temir komuz, agiz komuzu or gubuz.

The instrument is known in many different cultures by many different names. The common English name "Jew's Harp" is controversial and is avoided by many speakers. Another name used to identify the instrument, especially in scholarly literature, is the older English trump, while guimbarde, derived from the French word for the instrument, can be found in unabridged dictionaries and is featured in recent revival efforts.

The instrument is a lamellophone, which is in the category of plucked idiophones: it consists of a flexible metal or bamboo tongue or reed attached to a frame. The tongue/reed is placed in the performer's mouth and plucked with the finger to produce a note. The frame is held firmly against the performer's parted front teeth, using the jaw (thus "jaw harp") and mouth as a resonator, greatly increasing the volume of the instrument. The teeth must be parted sufficiently for the reed to vibrate freely ,and the fleshy parts of the mouth should not come into contact with the reed to prevent damping of the vibrations. The note thus produced is constant in pitch, though by changing the shape of his or her mouth and the amount of air contained in it (and in some traditions closing the glottis) the performer can cause different overtones to sound and thus create melodies. The volume of the note can be varied by breathing in and out.

Since trances are facilitated by droning sounds,the Jew's harp has been associated with magic and has been a common instrument in shamanic rituals.

The Jew's harp is an integral element in the music of Tuva. Known as the khomuz, the instrument is used to play the same overtone melodies used in the khoomei, sygyt, and kargyraa styles of overtone singing. The instrument is also a traditional part of Alpine musical styles, from Hungary to France. The earliest trouve in Europe is a bronze-harp dating 5th to 8th century.





Spiridon Shishigin -Soul Of Yakutia 1
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