Online edition of The Official Newsletter of the Jew's Harp Guild - The Pluck-n-Post -
Sponsored by:
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Contents:A Word from the Executive Director |
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A Word from the Executive DirectorJanet Gohring
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Happy New Year! I hope all of you had a great Holiday Season and are enjoying everything a new year brings.
This past year, the Jew's Harp Guild has really grown. New memberships continue to come in and we are very excited about this growth. Little by little, this small "grass roots" organization is fast becoming self-supporting through the membership fees.
We will be sending out membership renewal forms for 1998 during the month of January ... so be looking for yours to arrive in the mail. New members who paid their dues after August 1997, are already current for 1998 ... so those members won't be receiving a renewal form.
We still have 1997 Festival T-shirts available as well as Guild T Shirts ... so if you haven't gotten yours yet, you will have the opportunity to order from the membership renewal form. Or you can order direct by mail or email.
There will also be a spot on the membership renewal form if you want to make an
additional contribution to our "Special Projects". We are still trying to raise
extra funds for:
(1) The Jew's Harp Pictorial Archive Project Coordinated by
Mark and Ronnie Poss Funds will finance the scanning costs for putting hundreds of photos
of Jew's Harps from all over the world onto the Website.
(2) The Sound System Project We applied for the local Leo
Adler Community Fund Grant here in Baker County again this year for a complete sound
system ... but unfortunately, we didn't receive it. So, in this New Year, we will be
devoting a lot of energy to grant applications outside of our local community. If you know
of any granting agencies that fund projects such as ours, please send us their mailing
address and we will write for application forms. The Sound System Project is for
approximately $13,000 ... which is more than we anticipate being able to raise totally by
contributions ... thus, the grant applications.
(3) The 1997 Festival CD Project Coordinated by Wayland
Harman and Dan Gossi Funds will help cover initial production costs for a CD of the 1997
Festival highlights.
(4) The "Molln Travel Fund" Funds will help Guild
Members with travel expenses to the International Trump (Jew's Harp) Congress in Austria
this summer. Several Guild members are tentatively planning on attending the Congress.
This event happens only every 5-8 years and is a world gathering of Jew's Harp makers,
performers and lovers. Official invitations haven't been received yet, so we aren't sure
exactly who will be invited from America. "Official Invitees" will have all
expenses paid for once they arrive in Austria ... but they will still have to pay for
their airfare. Of course, anyone can attend the Congress by paying all of their own travel
expenses. Any monies contributed to the special "Molln Travel Fund" will be
equally divided among the Guild Members who choose to attend the Congress. So, even if you
can't attend yourself, your contribution to the Travel Fund will insure that America will
be represented in Austria.
If you'd like to help us see these projects become reality, your special contributions
will be greatly appreciated.
The 1997 North American Jew's Harp (And Unusual Instruments) Festival this past summer was a great success. All of us are anxiously awaiting the Special Festival Edition of this newsletter, published by Gordon Frazier of Seattle. At last word, he was nearly finished with it ... so we are hoping it will be available soon. We will mail it to all Guild members just as soon as we receive it from Gordon.
Mark Poss, our webmaster, has updated the web site with all sorts of information and photos from the festival ... so be sure to check that out. Great job, Mark! This is such a wonderful way for those who were unable to attend the festival to learn more about it. I especially like all the festival photos Mark has scanned into the web page.
This past fall and early winter were very busy for most of the "Steering Committee", so we didn't have a fall Guild Meeting. We will schedule a meeting sometime in late spring and, by then, we will have lots of things to discuss. If any of you have suggestions for the 1998 NAJHF or things The Jew's Harp Guild should discuss, please feel free to E mail them to us or send them by regular mail. The Guild's growth and impact is directly related to the amount of input we receive from our members, and we love to hear from you. Several Guild members have already submitted suggestions for improving the 1998 NAJHF and we really appreciate their efforts.
So, lots of exciting things are happening in the world of Jew's Harps. Interest in this wonderful instrument is growing by leaps and bounds. Help us spread the word by sharing the Guild with your friends. And help us celebrate the New Year with all the "Twanging" you can muster.
Best Wishes for 1998,
Janet Gohring
Executive Director
The Jew's Harp Guild
NAJHF 1997 introduction by |
The North American Jew's Harp Festival is the
Jew's Harp Guild's crowning achievement each year. 1997 marked the sixth annual event, and
the third to be held at the site in Richland, Oregon. The unique flavor of a festival of this sort... held in such a small town, in such a beautiful location, away from hustle and bustle of any sort, is to be savored for many weeks and months afterwards. Just to be there among such generous people, to share the song and spirit of their lives, is a once in a lifetime experience. To be able to return year after year is a grand gift from the Universe. To be part of its production.. is beyond Nirvanna!! |
FOR A FULL WEEK we were a tiny community of diverse humans... a spontaneous commune... as quick to jump to dexterious acts of manual labor as an instrumental jam. It is a joy to work with hardworking people who also know how to fully enjoy a break from the hot summer sun. (There's a refreshing swimmin' hole about 20 minutes from the fest site).
Conversation was also never boring... Old "Indian" survival tricks and lore of the Oregon Trail... or Hi-tech recording options and Web access.... Construction techniques of Jew's harps to slit drums to Porta-Potties and pinic benches; not-unusual topics discussed in a real teepee erected by a Scottish bagpipe player.
There are few places where a retired trump professor from Iowa... in stylish bib-overalls... can reunite with West-coast friends he had only previously met in... Russia.
Diverse, talented, generous, hardworking, human beings...
united in their love of personal, acoustic music...
the thrill of a story well told... or a song well sung..
No media can accurately relay the feeling of such an experience...
So here is a taste of the festival...
We hope you will join us someday.
Back to Newsletter Index
A jam that's left to wander
freely,
Oozes out; is quite unseemly.
That's why we keep our jam about
In crystal jars, clear and stout.
So, when we play at breakfast biscuits,
No mess is made, they're quite delicious.
Jam is great, but a little structure
Keeps it off the floor. Good luck, sir.
HAVING MASTERED BEING ABLE TO HOLD AND PLUCK
your Jew's harp, you automatically moved on to advanced techniques... for any attempt to alter the sound, qualifies. Depending on you experience, please consider this a checklist of areas to work on, or to think about again. I'll describe things as if you've never seen or done this before.Breathing through a Jew's harp gives it presence and makes the sound of a closed throat really stand out. Your air supply has several on/off switches with which you can control the type of sound you get.
The diaphragm serves as the principle bellows for this whole operation. Exhaling at varying pressures in a rhythmic pattern produces a rhythmic and tone change in the sound. Exhaling or inhaling in a start/stop pattern allows a time to make the closed throat sound. Alternation inhale/exhale rapidly produces a vibrato effect. Experiments in combinations of these simple patterns can lead to intricate rhythms.
The mouth, principally the tongue but also cheek and jaw, can be used as a second bellows, usually just for exhaling. The sound is very different than a diaphragm push as the size of the mouth changes rapidly here. If carried to its full extreme, the tongue ends up muting the reed further, accenting the tone shift which had just occurred.
A mild pressure from the diaphragm can be increased or lessened by alterations in mouth size. Changes must happen quickly to have an audible effect on air flow.
The back of your throat can block the diaphragm pressure and release it in a sudden burst, like saying "K". The letter "T" can be used as well, but is a bit trickier to get down. For me, the exhale mode is most effective here and the inhale mode is still in the "experimental" stages.
A rapid opening and closing of the throat, like rolling your "R"s in Spanish, produces a bassy, and difficult to control, vibrato. I mention this because someone, though not I, is probably doing something wonderful with this technique. I've never used it in public.
Tongue movement is the principle means of selecting which tone is predominate. Playing melodies well requires the joint effort of tongue and ear and air in a coordinated assembly.
The throat can also be used to alter the pitch melodically. Producing those few clear low notes with throat contractions and tongue adjustments gives the harp a "hollow barrel" sort of sound. You can close your throat off way down low, as if you had been hit in the stomach and were now choking (sound like fun?). This accents the hollowness and adds variation to the playing.
At the other extreme are the high notes produced by closing the throat with the tongue as if about to say the letter "K". This leaves the tip of the tongue free to bounce off the roof of the mouth, producing the high "LA-LA" sound. Doing this rapidly and repeatedly produces a very pleasing trill, however, will take some practice to get fast.
If you slow down the movement of the tip of your tongue, there is a high scale of notes available. This note scale is fuller than its lower relative, because the further up you go from the tonic note, the closer, and weaker, the harmonics. Adding air to this technique will usually overwhelm the high notes with the strong bass note. With practice, it is possible to allow a small amount of air to pass and accent mostly the well matched high note.
Pushing air through the reed with the tongue and cheeks is one way to allow only small bits of air in and out. Staying on any one note is difficult. Pushing the tongue into the reed produces a muted twang that can serve as a very nice accent. Be careful not to let the tip get between reed and frame by using the flat part of your tongue just behind the tip.
Another muting technique is to place a finger on the hand holding the harp against the reed. Variations in pressure and placement greatly affect the sound. This is similar to the variety of harmonics produced by any single muted guitar string, depending upon which node is used. The effect with a harp is not nearly as straight forward, but is worthy of much exploration.
Plucking the reed can be easily divided into "innies" and "outies". After that, it all becomes confusing and is as much a matter of personal preference as it is a necessity.
The OUT pluck pushes the reed away from the player before it snaps back, free to vibrate until the next pluck. This can be accomplished with any convenient part off the free hand. Usually either the pointer or index finger are used sideways across the tip, moving in a somewhat circular movement, bending at the elbow or wrist or both. The thumb can be used much the same or can pluck the reed on its own with a stationary hand.
The IN pluck pulls the reed toward the player before release. Again, a variety of methods can be used. Perhaps the most basic is to pluck the reed with a finger tip using the finger muscle much like a concert harpist plucks a string. The hand remains stationary and the thumb may rest on your cheek. Bringing the hand up, thumb resting very near the eye, allows multiple fingers to pluck in succession, a nice ability on songs with groups of short notes at key rhythmic junctures. (Keeping the rhythmic breaks inherent in a song helps the listener to identify the song more easily.)
Plucking BOTH directions, a half moon back and forth motion is often used. This can be wrist rotation or just one digit. A more straight line approach can be had from the elbow and will usually allow more rapid plucks. Accomplished players may pluck the reed as many as 1,000 times per minute, though usually for short periods, interspersed throughout a longer piece. It's fun to watch a player who is really good at this, and it sounds quite impressive.
Singing through a harp presents a whole new world of possibilities. Having two "frequency generators" going at once allows the player to create intervals, the distance between two frequencies. The harp is highly influenced by vocalizing a pitch which either agrees or conflicts with the pitch of the harp. Furthermore, individual notes of the harp can be "played against." Matching the melody with both voice and harp at the same time can be hauntingly beautiful. Intentional mismatching can be a powerful dissonance, and with good control of vocal pitch, you can shift only slightly out of tune to create "beats"; those spots where two different frequencies reinforce each other, singing through a harp has a nice feature in that the harp's frequency helps guide and reinforce the voice. This interaction is enchanting and makes a wonderful method of meditation.
Many of these techniques can be used with any Jew's harp, regardless of the quality of its construction. As this can vary greatly, so too will your success with things like the high notes, subtle air movements, and voice interaction. Some harps are better suited to one technique or another because of reed flexibility. Soft reeds are more influenced by voice and air, while stiff reeds are easier to double pluck. High pitched harps may be too high to play the high octave and low harps too low to get the tonic to sound clearly.
We are limited in mouth size, but limitless in variations of that precious space. I would encourage you to seek out each Jew's harp own true song; bend to it and then it will bend for you.
Peace! Wayland
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Pictorial Archive Index - UNDER CONSTRUCTION
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| We are an organization dedicated to preserving the
history and art of this, and other, ancient, unique, or culturally significant acoustic
instruments. Towards that end, we are developing a pictorial archive and database of these unique instruments. In the months and years ahead we hope to create the most comprehensive archive of this kind in the world. We hope you will join us in this effort and send us pictures, audio clips and information of your important finds. |
THIS IS THE FIRST of the series we hope to include in every
issue of the Online Newsletter. The presentation of this column, and the entire archive,
is in a state of construction. Please bear with us. The developement of such a database, designed to utilize the capabilities of the internet, is a large undertaking for a volunteer organization. We feel it is a worthy goal however and will strive to make it the best we can. More volunteers are needed in the technical aspects of database development and CGI programming. If you wish to donate some time to this project please contact me. MDP |
The following PA entries can be seen on the new JHG Homepage (jhghp.htmll)
Austrian Harps from the
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RECORD # Name: Year: Country: Maker: Material: Length: Width: Handmade?: Manufactured?: Collection: Comments: |
#PA000066 Pre-1940's Austria Stamped on frame / Unknown Steel x x Yes No Larry Hanks Makers initials on each end |
Harps from the
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RECORD # Name: Year: Country: Maker: Material: Length: Width: Handmade?: Manufactured?: Collection: Comments: |
#PA000060 1980 - 1950 - 1990 (left to right) Laos and South China Hmang Brass / Bronze x x Yes No Ingrid Berhout The most sensitive space-age[?] harp. Made to sing or speak through. Love it!! IB |
 Post Your Notes
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We encourage everyone to send us news, questions, and other contributions!! |
Date: Sun, 21 Dec 1997 20:47:40 -0600
To: mposs@qwest.net
From:Fred Crane
Dear Mark,
>snip<..... I have been receiving more information about the Congress, and a few days ago I got a copy of the tentative program. So you can revise as you see fit.
The Congress will open on Monday June 22, 1998, at 10:00 a.m. Presumably everyone will have arrived from Vienna the day before. Monday through Wednesday will be mostly round tables and papers on overtone music, trump schools, playing and manners of production worldwide, the trump and eroticism, the trump and music therapy, the trump in popular and art music.
The remainder will be mostly concerts and workshops. Planned are concerts by national groups, and two sessions of free combinations.
The official close and departure of participants is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on Monday the 29th.
Everything is free for the invitees--travel inside Austria, meals, and room. Others will be charged a fee for all this, to be determined.
Just who will be invited is under consideration. It depends on the funds available. Presumably the official invitations will go out in January some time.
The person in charge is Manfred Russmann, Postfach 53, A-4591 Molln, Austria. His e-mail address is maultr@ris.at
Yours,
Fred
Date: Tue, 6 Jan 1998 14:35:43 +0100
Dear Jew´s Harp Enthusiasts!
We are the Jew´s Harp Friends of Austria/Europe in Molln. We are just organizing the "International Jew´s Harp Festival 1998" and the "3rd International Jew´s Harp Congress". We invite you to have a look at our homepage http://www.stn.at/homes/maultrommel/
Please, make our festival popular and give this information to all jew´s harp friends you know. When you have your own homepage, please set a link to our homepage-adress. When you are interested in coming to our festival in june 1998 give us an email.
We´d be very happy if we meet you at our festival in june.
Heinz!
Date: Mon, 12 Jan 1998 17:04:52 +0100
Verein Mollner Maultrommelfreunde
Rußmann Manfred
Postfach 53
A-4591 Molln
maultr@ris.at http://www.ris.at/homes/molln
Dear Jew's Harp Friends!
As you know we are organizing the International Jew's Harp Festival 1998 in Molln/Austria
in the time of 22. - 28. june. Our plans for the programm:
Opening, Symposia, round tables, special evening concerts (alpine style, modern style, jazz rock pop)
Nature excursion, free-day, in the evening big fire of summer solstice
Jew's Harp trip around the world, concerts with Trumpist from all over the world
Basar, Workshops etc...
Date: Tue, 30 Dec 1997 19:56:32 -0600
To: mposs@qwest.net
From: Fred Crane
Dear Mark,
If it isn't too late to add this to the Website: I've acquired several really good trump CDs lately, and you might want to make a new addition to the list of them on the JHG site, and erase the recommendation for Roots & Rhythm as the preferred company for ordering from (as I have found them less satisfactory for several reasons).
Here are a few CDs with trump music throughout, that are new to me since the last list I sent in. And I have a new favorite company from which to order: Multicultural Media, RR3 Box 6655, Granger Road, Barre, VT 05641, USA. The telephone for ordering is 1-800-550-9675. They carry, or can get for you, a large part of the trump CDs that are in print, including the hard-to-get ones published in Europe and Asia. Ask for their excellent catalog, with good descriptions of the contents of all the records.
The first two are the best recordings of the morsing of South India that I've yet heard. JVC VICG-5349-2, Percussion Music of Madras, with trump almost throughout, as a background instrument or very often in solos astonishing for their speed and rhythmic accuracy.
Music of the World MOW145 (also issued by Exil-Musikproduktion, Bielefeld, Germany, and Indigo, Hamburg, as Exil 5521-2), The Karnataka College of Percussion, "River Yamuna." Trump in 6 of the tracks, including some fine fancy playing.
PlayaSound PS 66009. Trân Quang Hai, Guimbardes du monde/Trumps of the World. This 1997 CD proves Trân to be one of the greats of the trumping world. The 17 tracks are played on a considerable variety of trumps from Europe, Asia, and Indonesia. Most of them are improvisations, of great variety and inventiveness.
ATS Records CD-0489. Maultrommel Molln. 16 tracks, recorded live at the festival "Maultrommel 96 Molln," with performers from Austria and neighboring lands, and Ivan Alexeyev and Spiridon Shishigin from Sakha/Yakutia. Full of great stuff, though I suppose my favorites are Anton Bruhin's improvisation "The Gnat," and "I bin va Moin aussa" by the Mollner Maultrommler, with peachy-keen trumping and singing by Manfred Russmann. To order this one, send US$30.00 cash (which is always just a bit risky) or by international postal money order to Verein Mollner Maultrommelfreunde, Marktstrasse 1, Postfach 53, A-4591 Molln, Austria.
Fred Crane
Date: Sun, 14 Dec 1997 13:56:51 PST
From: "Mia Larson"
To: mposs@qwest.net
Hello!
Thank you for your wonderful homepage! It has helped me a lot during the time I've been
working on a project about mideival music instruments. If you're interested, the Swedish
word for Jew's Harp is MUNGIGA. Just in case you were wondering!
Once again, thanks a lot, I hope I'm getting better at playing the Jew's Harp thanks to
your "How-to-play-page".
Mia Larson
Mia,
Thanks for your thanks!! It means a lot to us to know we do what we set out to do.
Mark ( JHG Webmaster)
http://www.lm.com/~norulak/
Tom was nice enough to ask our permission to use the Jew's Harp defintion we developed for the JHG website. And we agreed (its the only real accurate defintion around.) The shirts are high-quality and well done. [Thanks for asking Tom... and thanks for the speedy delivery of the shirts. Mark]
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M. D. Poss
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The Festival Highlights issue of PLUCK has hit upon delivery problems... It is our hope that the problems will be cleared up and that delivery will occur soon. Any questions about this issue should be directed to the PO Box 92, Sumpter, OR 97877 address.
A slightly altered design of the Jew's Harp Guild T-shirt is now available. The new
design includes the Huey P. Long quote:
"Properly played... the Jew's Harp expresses the deepest feeling of the human
soul."
under the logo.
See the JHG STORE for further information. A picture of the new design is now online.
As you can see, the JHG WebSite has a whole new look. I hope you find it readable and easier to navigate. It was neccessary to remove all of last year's festival pictures to make room for this year's. Many of the design changes were prompted to conserve disk space and better organize the information we're accumulating.
The JHG STORE and JHG INFO pages have seen the most changes. Old newsletters had to be discarded (for the time being) but previous "WFED" and "Mouthing Off" columns, and articles of intertest, have been archived. These can be accessed from the JHG INFO page, where the updated LINKS now resides as well. I urge you to peruse the pages and let me know how you like 'em.
Have a Great Trumpin' Year !!
Yours in Music,
Mark
