So I was at my local op shop the other day and I spotted very odd looking vase with holes in it so picked it up to have look and decided it was some sort of ocarina Xun (instrument) - Wikipedia this sort in fact. Pretty cool thing to find.
So I am hoping to hear from anyone who has played this type of instrument. I have managed to make a sound using it that has some resemblance to a note but not much else.
Bump?
I don’t have any specific experience with that instrument–all the ocarinas I’ve played have a fipple. Some basics from other transverse flutes probably apply, though.
As you’ve presumably discovered, you produce notes by blowing across the opening, splitting the airstream to produce a whistling sound that resonates in the instrument. For this type of mouthpiece, the general tips are things like “smile and blow” (which just sounds wrong, now that I think of it) and “pretend you’re spitting out watermelon seeds”. More technically, that means you want a wide, flat embouchure (lips/mouth position) in order to produce a flat stream of air aimed at the far edge of the opening. Draw back the corners of your mouth like you’re smiling, but leave the middle of your lips semi-relaxed, and try to produce a gentle, steady stream of air.
Covering lower holes while leaving upper ones open will have little, if any, effect on the note you produce. The more holes you cover, the deeper the resulting note will be, because you’re increasing the effective size of the resonating chamber. In my experience, deeper notes are often easier to produce on a transverse flute, so you might try covering most or all of the holes at first. Once you can reliably produce a note, experiment with covering/uncovering the holes one at a time, in order by position, to produce a scale.
I hope something in there proves useful to you. Cool find, by the way–I collect wind instruments, and I may have to look for one of those.