Jew's harp


Last update: May 9, 2021


During our investigations in Ratanakiri and Mondulkiri, we could not find a player of bamboo Jew's harp whereas this instrument was common a few decades ago. In order to illustrate this emblematic instrument in the history of Cambodian music, we publish the research that we have carried out among the Êdê of Vietnam and the Oy of Laos. These two ethnic groups share the same general culture as the Ratanakiri and Mondulkiri, namely the playing of gong ensembles and bamboo instruments.

The bamboo Jew's harp is probably one of the oldest instruments in Cambodia if we take into account its distribution area which goes from the confines of Southeast Asia to the Pacific.

The gôč is the bamboo Jew's harp of the Edê, an ethnic group established on the highlands of central Vietnam. The vibrating tongue is surmounted by a small wax charge in order to modify its speed of vibration, thus the pitch of the note. It is used to "sing covered words". Grasped with the left hand, it is placed in front of the mouth while the right hand vibrates the movable tongue. The musician varies the volume of the mouth cavity in order to simulate the words of the song. This confidential narration is perfectly suited to the love court and young men do not fail to use it to court young girls. Songs of a bucolic nature are also performed. It was also played in the past when the roof ridge was completed during the construction of a house, in order to address the spirits.

 

Manufacture and play of a bamboo jaw harp among the Êdê of Vietnam. A film directed by Patrick Kersalé in 2012.