# Mouth Harp/Jew's Harp **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 18, 2003, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mouth-harp-jews-harp/169494 "2003-04-18T04:03:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![TJ555\_The\_Golfer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/41988e/32.png) [@TJ555\_The\_Golfer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TJ555_The_Golfer)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2003, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mouth-harp-jews-harp/169494/1 "2003-04-18T04:03:53Z")
Anybody have a mouth harp? I just got one today it is really a lot of fun to play. My question is can you play a melody on a mouth harp? I can play along with a song but I can’t really get a melody going. ---
**Author:** ![lorinada](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b5e925/32.png) [@lorinada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lorinada)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2003, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mouth-harp-jews-harp/169494/2 "2003-04-18T04:15:50Z")
I’ve had one for, hmmm, I guess about 30 years. My son recently absconded with it. I once had quite a collection of them, but I kept this one for its sentimental value - it was given to me by a good friend who later on became a professional musician who is now a member of a late-night talk show band. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2003, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mouth-harp-jews-harp/169494/3 "2003-04-18T05:24:42Z")
I thought it was called a _jaw_ harp. ---
**Author:** ![mouthbreather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a698b9/32.png) [@mouthbreather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mouthbreather)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2003, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mouth-harp-jews-harp/169494/4 "2003-04-18T05:30:34Z")
FWIW, I’ve also heard it referred to as a “Jew’s Harp”. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2003, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mouth-harp-jews-harp/169494/5 "2003-04-18T06:12:36Z")
Page 348 of _Huckleberry Finn_: “Prisoners ain’t ever without rats[”, said Tom. “]There ain’t no instance of it. And they train them, and pet them, and learn them tricks, and they get to be as sociable as flies. But you got to play music to them. You got anything to play music on?” "I ain’ got nuffn but a coase comb en a piece o’ paper,[replied Jim, “]en a juice-harp; but I reck’n dey wouldn’ take no stock in a juice-harp.” “Yes they would. They don’t care what kind of music 'tis. A jews-harp’s plenty good enough for a rat. All animals like music – in a prison they dote on it.” ---
**Author:** ![Early\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Early\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Early_Out)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2003, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mouth-harp-jews-harp/169494/6 "2003-04-18T07:01:15Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Enola Straight \* > \*\*I thought it was called a _jaw_ harp. \*\* Only after political correctness kicked in. I’ve also seen them labeled “Bruce harps.” Mind you, calling it a “Jew’s harp” is rather insulting, but if that’s the worst that life can dish out, we can all probably live with it. ---
**Author:** ![Zenster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/cdc98d/32.png) [@Zenster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zenster)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2003, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mouth-harp-jews-harp/169494/7 "2003-04-18T07:42:19Z")
Try breathing in and out rapidly as you play a note. You get a cool reverb effect. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2003, 9:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mouth-harp-jews-harp/169494/8 "2003-04-18T09:34:24Z")
Just to get the terminology clear here. A “mouth harp” (aka. “mouth organ,” “harp”) is another name for a harmonica. As for Jew’s/jaw harp, apparently Jew’s Harp is by far the earlier name, first cited in 1595. Before that it was known as the Jew’s trump. [(Cite)](http://www.jewsharpguild.org/history.html) As for the playing aspects, I could only help you with harmonica…