Jews Harp care

Hi all,

thought I would write a bit about caring for your jews harp. These notes are mainly for harps that are played against the teeth.

Jews harps are mostly made of metal and playing them puts quite a bit of moisture onto them so always dry them well with a cloth after playing. If not you may find rust develops on the blade or legs of the harp.

If rust occurs then clean it off with fine wire wool and use a little edible oil (corn, olive) to wipe across and dry off the excess, this will stop rust returning.

Try to avoid playing immeadiately after eating as food particles get trapped in the harp and can make rust worse or go mouldy!

Almost all metal 'teeth' played harps should be played by plucking the blade in towards the face. Plucking outwards will shorten the life of the blade and, unless very flexible, it will snap eventually.

Excessively fast or hard playing may bend the upright tang of the blade and this will change the pitch of the harp (lower). Do not attempt to bend it back without heating it to red and bending hot by using pliers otherwise it will easily snap off.

With these simple care methods you can make your favourite harp last years. I've had many of my harps for 10+ years and have never broken any.

If you have any repairs / alterations you feel you cannot make yourself please get in touch as I can repair and retune many types of jews harps.

Happy twanging!

Jonny Cope