Re: Henry Best speed period instrument.

[Corun MacAnndra <corun@access.digex.net>]

Poster: Corun MacAnndra <corun@access.digex.net>

Genevra wrote:
>
>Well Henry, I don't know about Kazoos, but I know the Jew's harp is right up
>your alley and that's been around for a looooong time.  Almost as annoying as
>the kazoo too, but at least it's not quite so nasal...

I really don't know where the term "Jew's Harp" came from, but it's more
correctly known as a Jaw Harp. Perhaps it was that Jaw metamorphosed into
Jew. Anyway, you are quite correct in saying the Jaw Harp has been around
for a very long time. The Mongols call this instrument a Vargan, and even
make nifty little wooden cases to carry them in. They are used in
conjunction with khoomei, the overtone throat singing known among the
Mongols, Tuvans and other nomadic peoples of the Eurasian steppe, and that
was picked up by the Tibetans and is used today by the Gyoto monks for
ritual singing. Khoomei itself is very haunting to listen to, but when the
singer is also playing a vargan it's even more so.

In service,
Corun (who has tried khoomei, jaw jarp and kazoo, but not all together)


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