Jaw Harp Music and Short Stories

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About Jaw Harps:

There is plenty of information about Jaw Harps, Jaw Harp music and playing the Jaw Harp available – this wasn´t the case a few years ago. So I don´t want to annoy you with all the redundancies…let´s talk about my Jaw Harping. I play the Jaw Harp for a couple of years now.

My very first encounter with Jaw harp music was a homeless man who played a wonderful tune on his Jaw Harp, and we ended up in him teaching me the first steps on this instrument. The next years I tried to copy jaw harp tunes and songs I found on the internet, from Yakutian masters to American country and folk, from Bavarian traditional to free-jazz. During that time I also accompanied a pub-fun-music combo on the jaw harp.

However, a real boost was, when I visited the Ancient Trance" festival in Taucha/Germany in 2019, one of the world´s largest festivals dedicated to Jaw Harping. I learned a couple of new techniques there, and got a lot of inspiration.

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What is the fascinating thing about the Jaw Harp? Or: Why this outsider instrument, and not something "normal" like the guitar?

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Well, there are some huge benefits that come with this instrument. It is not only its price and size (small for everyone´s wallet, small for every pocket to be carried with). I believe, the main thing about it is, as soon as you play it (OK, the Yakuts say, the instrument plays you, and that´s somehow right), you arrived. There is no year-long training as with a violin...your first tune already has the potential to bewitch you. It may not immediately bewitch others, but the Jaw Harp is not primarily an instrument to be played for listeners. It is something very personal, and it touches you inside.

However, if you are a nerd enough, you also can have fun when listening to it. Let´s give it a try: 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvDn18XO7tDBYSwEGcOiNBw/videos

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(or click one of the "play" buttons at the top and the bottom of this page)