I lived in Ulaan Baatar for three years and became familiar with what I know as HUMI singing, although there is no way on God's Earth that I can actually achieve any of these effects, and not for want of trying to learn.

Last weekend I was in Edinburgh and, it being the festival, the place was crowded with street performers. Sitting quietly in a church doorway I saw a small man playing a Murin Hoor (Mongolian Horse Head Fiddle)so I wanderewd across and said "Sain Bainuu". I rapidly explained that was the limit of my Mongolia except how to direct a taxi driver and to ask for "guruv peev". That was OK because he was japanese but had been in Mongolia for a year studying Humi, did I want to hear some....yes please! This guy was as good as any Mogolian throat singer I had heard when I lived there, he'd soon built up a large appreciate crowd, a number of whom asked me about this type of singing, if I'd taken the hat around he'd have made a packet.

Keith