How to play Fujara
To learn how to play Fujara you need to learn how to hold it right first:
- While trying out this "manual" always check the pictures shown below. They are depicting one of the best Slovak Fujara players playing /and holding/ his Fujara.
- Don’t attempt to cover holes with the fingertips, but rather use the ‘pads’ of the first joint of your thumb and middle fingers.
This guide is written for right-handed person.
The Fujara is played standing with legs spread apart slightly.
The Fujara is held mainly by your left hand, particularly by your thumb and fore-finger:
grasp the Fujara with your left hand approximately where the top hole is located, prop it up against your right thigh and place the fingers of your left hand as follows - thumb on the back and fore-finger on the front of the Fujara flute main pipe holding the main weight.
Then cover the upper hole with your middle finger and place your ring and little finger slightly to the left side of the Fujara main pipe. Now you should hold your fujara with the help of your right thigh firmly.
Your left hand should now be located somewhere near your navel.
Cover the middle hole with the thumb of your right hand (root of your thumb on FS FuYara) and the bottom hole with your middle finger. The fore-finger of your right hand lies softly on the front of the flute main pipe - it is closer to middle finger than to thumb. The ring-finger leans softly against the right side of the main pipe. The little finger doesn't need to touch the pipe at all.
Using your hands prop up the Fujara against your body:
lowest part of the main pipe is propped up against the outer /right/ side of your right knee, then against the front of your right tight, the middle part of Fujara main pipe should be propped up against your chest /or sometimes your belly/ and with the mouthpiece in your mouth and the air pipe propping up slightly against the left side of your nose, sometimes propping also slightly against your forehead you can finally start to play your gorgeous Fujara.
But while reading this "theory" don't forget that in the end it is you who will play it, thus adjust your holding of your Fujara to suit your needs so that you feel as comfortable as possible.
I wish you endless hours of fruitful and comfortable playing.
Fujara unique ornaments:
Scatter is a high-intensity ornament particular to the fujara overtone flute that is often used at the beginning of songs. It begins with a high-itensity, repeated percussive blow that can be made by saying something like "DA DA DA Da Da Da da da da ..." Where the pressure of each "Da" gets less and less and the fujara descends through the overtone scale.
Woosh An ornament added onto the end of some notes in a song. It is done with a steady, rapidly increasing blow of air that cause a very fast ascending scale up the fujara.