How, where and when authentic traditions of Jaw Harp music of Siberia and the Far East have been forming.

This article reviews the milestones in the formation of acoustic, musicological, and cultural attributes of tonal organization in indigenous traditions of jaw harp music across Northeastern Eurasia – as related to the timeline of its geographic distribution. Phonology of jaw harp playing is compared to singing and speaking in establishing traits specific to jaw harp prosody. Based on the theories of harmonic residue and harmonic templates, a new model of phonological classification of jaw harp articulations is put forward. Phonological contrasts between jaw harp articulations are determined by the configuration of harmonics. Their configuration depends on mechanical properties of the material of which jaw harp is made. Different constructions of jaw harp produce different types of spectral texture. The general timeline of human mastering of various manufacturing technologies most likely determines the timeline of the succession of specific textural types. According to the entirety of the known information, the emergence of pan-cultural authentic Eastern Eurasian jaw harp tradition can be dated by 7–5 thousand years ago – after the establishment of the institution of personal song and prior to the formation of modern language families of Siberia and the Far East. The first part of this article defines the terminology required for accurate identification of music works created within the framework of traditional timbre-oriented music and for its adequate description. The article presents the preliminary results of the study of the perception of jaw harp articulations by its indigenous performers.