Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1883-07-07
The Iewsharp.

many it is called .'Maul Harmonica;''
In Denmark, .Mund- harpe;;'in Sweden,
..Mingiga;'i in France, .Guinbarde;" in
Italy, sT'fromba;;'' and in the Highlands,
'.Tromp." The Greeks Of Smyrna call
it, in limitation Of it's sound, sBiambo."
In the Netherlands and Tyrol it has for
. long time been the delight of the
peasants, the laborers and their fami-
lies, and at present it seems to be in
exceptionally great favor in America,
where an Englishman has established a
factory of these vibrating Instruments;
and so brisk has the business been that
another factory has been started recent
~, where the commonplace jewsharps
are turned out in hundreds of thous-
ands. The jewsharp is composed of
two parts, the body and the tongue,
denominated by the French 1.-The soul"
The body has some resemblance to a
certain kind of corkscrew; the tongue
consists of . little strip of steel, Joined
to the upper part of the body and bent
at it's extremity, so that the fingers may
touch it more easily, Notwithstanding
it looks so simple an instrument, it is
not complete until it has been the
subject Of thirty distinct operations;
and yet, as the London Figaro says,
the whole price of the cheapest variety
is but six shillings a gross. "a
The first noted performance on this
simple instrument is mentioned in the
memoirs of Nine. de Genlis, in which
is described the astonishing power of a
poor German soldier, named Kock, on
the jewsharp. This musician was in
the service of Frederick the Great,
who was, as is well known, a passion
ate lover of music, and q good amateur
player on the flute. One night when
kock was on duty under the windows
Of the King he began to play different
tunes, and did it SO skilfully that it
attracted the attention of the monarch.
who at first thought he heard a distant
orchestra. Surprised to learn that such
an effect could be produced by a single
man with two jewsharps, he ordered
him into his presence; but the soldier
refused on account that he could only
be relieved by his colonel, and that if
he obeyed, the King would punish him
next day for having failed in his duty.
The King, instead Of being offended at
the answer, called the soldier to
the castle the following morning,
and having heard Kock perform
several pieces, discharged him from his
service with a generous gift. Rocks
success was entirely due to his natural
taste for the art, for he had no knowl-
edge of music. He made a fortune by
travelling and playing in private and
public. Kock used two harps at once,
and produced the harmony Of two
notes struck at the anne moment, which
at that time was looked upon as some-
thing extraordinary, considering the
limited power of the instrument. In
order that the illusion produced by his
playing should be greater, Kock always
required that the light should be extin-
pushed. Kock afterwards settled in
Viena, where he lived to the advanced
age of more than eighty years.
1t was reserved, however, for a Ger
man herdsman and laborer of the name
of Eulenstein to acquire great reputa-
ton as a player, after ten years study,
He appeared at concerts first in Paris.
in January, 1926, and in London, in
June, 1926, where he executed italian,
French and German airs to the great
admiration of the amateurs and profess
SIGNALS alike. He played with Mr..
Stockhausen, who accompanied him
on the pedal harp pianissimo, touching
the chords lightly, so that Mr.. Eulen-
STEMS part could be perfectly heard.
The following is the result Of his dis
coveries concerning the jewsharp and
by which he convertedthis meagerinstru-
ment into one ''of the most elegant,
harmonious and pleasing character" as
a critic of that time writes.
A jewsharp taken singly gives almost
any harmonic sound you wish to pro-
duce, as a third, a fifth, and an octave.
If the grave tonic is not heard in the
bass jewsharp, it must be traced to the
player, but not to the Effectiveness of
the instrument. The jewsharp has
three different tones; the bass tones of
the first octave bear some resemblance
to the flute and clarinet; those of the
middle and high to the vox humana
stop Of some organs; lastly the harmon
ic sounds are exactly like those of the
harmonica. This diversity Of tones can
always afford a variety in the execution,
but as in the extent of these octaves
there are a number of spaces which
cannot be filled up, the most simple
meditation is impossible. Mr.. Eulen-
stein overcame that inconvenience by
joining sixteen jewsharps, tuned by
sealing-wax, at the extremity of the
tongue. Each harp then sounds one of
the notes of the scale, diatonic OF chro-
matte, and the performer can fill all
the intervals, and pass all the tones by
changing the harp. That these muta-
tons may not interrupt the measure,
one harp must always be kept in adj
vance, in the same manner as a good
reader" advances the eye, not upon the
word he p%ronounces, but upon that
which follows. The various sounds of
the jewsharp are obtained by the at
traction and repression of air, the cur
rent of which is broken by the tongue
of the instrument. The pressure of the
lips, with the breath, i to deter
mine their gravity and a%cuteness. Con-
s%equently this little instrument is very
fatiguing to the lungs and pernicious to
the teeth, because its application, when
the tongue is put in motion, produces
nearly the effect of the vibrations of a
0iaDaSOn nine.