How To Blow a Conch Shell

Maybe "American Idol" winners aren't abandoning their guitars to play conch shell concerts, but fans of the fluted, pink-lined shell are puckering up for the annual test of "conch musicianship" in Key West. The Conch Shell Blowing Contest takes place Saturday, March 2, 2019 as a salute to Key West's seafaring heritage.
The tradition of blowing a conch shell in the Florida Keys began centuries ago. In the 1800s, when the local economy was largely based on salvaging cargoes from ships wrecked on the nearby reef, sailors attracted attention by blowing piercing blasts on the shell.
"There wasn't a ship that went out that didn't have at least one conch shell on it for communications," said veteran contest winner Clinton Curry.
Here, Curry offers conch shell blowing tips for aspiring "pucker pros."

[@TianaLuo]

"A deep, harsh note boomed under the palms, spread through the intricacies of the forest and echoed back from the pink granite of the mountain." -William Golding, Lord of the Flies

[@gabumonboys]

Literally what made me curious to look up conch shell blowing.

[@jasonwang9321]

The Mad Hatter same here

[@ahinoj]

The Mad Hatter same

[@venusschreave7808]

Me too.

[@br12_]

I am literally on that page right now

[@mikea9019]

all hail the magic conch shell

[@terreriacraftkamafe6983]

spongebob lol!!! Squidward fail

[@JuliaMyntyDaniel]

All hail the Helix Fossil

[@JijoBreadman]

Mike A I am

[@reaper2579]

THE CONCH CALL AWAY!

[@danielcardenas4307]

Ha!

[@xariawoodard8623]

99% of Everyone here either read lord of the flies or watched Spongebob 😂

[@billyanderson321]

Xaria Woodard I’m that 1% that bought one of these shells in Galveston and me and the kids are trying to make some noise lol

[@armedmage]

Or the Anchorman movie.

[@gauravgandi1398]

I am the 1 % then. But almost all Hindu household have it as it is in tradition to blow the conch during rituals.

[@HorizonIncarnate]

Both

[@notjack2093]

I just remembered we had a conch shell. But yeah. LOTF reminded me

[@Kqrl69]

Whoever has the conch gets to speak

[@Kqrl69]

also RIP Piggy

[@jackwalsh3199]

Lol

[@herry0221]

Don’t forget Simon

[@4gerars500]

Yes

[@stephaniejordan9066]

😐🐚

[@davideddington5174]

Whenever you hear the conch shell horn in coastal villages and town in Belize it signals the arrival of the fresh fish coming in from the Caribbean Sea. The sound is quite melodic and beautiful and you can hear it for miles around. Just listening to this horn reminds me of how much I miss the long lazy days of my vacations on the Caribbean Sea coast of Belize

[@kareemabdul3773]

Yup especially in Trinidad & Tobago

[@colby6054]

Piggy: "I HAvE tHe coNcH RaLph!!1!!"

[@NateCraven318]

Tru

[@Jcremo]

Ouch.

[@Emma-ut5kr]

me: doing a project for this book and explaining the conch shell

[@chasington5102]

I was curious what it sounded like

[@ramanchandran1608]

The characters of the Bhagavad Gita, upon the battlefield immediately prior to the great war, they blow upon their venerable conch shells and generate tremendous sounds.

[@hardstyle3196]

Bro I like those scriptures. Taught me that were only entitled to the action and not the fruit of our actions

[@chitrauttamsingh825]

They all had their different conch shells. Different sounds were used for different purposes.

[@thesilentone2090]

LORD OF THE FLIES!!!

[@bxnzo]

Who came here from Lord of the Flies?

[@pundziusavril]

me lol

[@laela6289]

Not me. I just had some tiny conch shells and I was wondering if you could whistle with it.

[@lindes_adaks]

The Toxic Tiger me lol

[@tomlam5241]

^^aye me

[@cashlewis19]

I just finished it and omfg I'm absolutely amazed

[@johnnycalote2299]

Every time he blows the conch Mermaidman and Barnacleboy come to the rescue

[@surelyyoujestin4871]

Johnny Calote WHA WHA EVIL EEEEEEEVIL BARNACLE BOY WE HAVE TO STOP DA EEEEVIL EVIL EVIL EVIL EVIL EVIL EVIL EVIL EVIL EVIL EVIL EVIL EVIL EVIL EVILAAAAAAA

[@ZBreezee-nb2rl]

And a Fat Boy too

[@chitrauttamsingh825]

We indians use it for auspicious events and prayers. It keeps your lungs strong and protects you from diseases. It also removes the negativity form your house. I blow it ever evening after lighting the evening lamp 🙏

[@SuperSlick1996]

Thank you for this I was searching for the mystic history and lore :)

[@chitrauttamsingh825]

@@SuperSlick1996 best blown after your morning bath

[@Vishal-yf5yc]

Absolutely correct 💯💯

[@xxxkratosxxx9232]

Hindusim thought this beauty divine to the world🕉🙏

[@peterrefermat8999]

1:41 that man in the bottom left really just dabbed 😂😂😂

[@marshoul2717]

so many peeps from the Lord of the Flies lol

[@mistmoon1292]

Brass players would have this EASY, dang this sounds fun!

[@AnthonyRamirez-uo1lr]

I play baritone yet I still can't get over how small the mouthpiece is😂

[@peterrefermat8999]

Rip the conch 😔

[@1927su]

I found a neat old conch shell at a yard sale years ago! Furniture may come & go as the decades pass , but that conch moves with anywhere I go! I love it!

[@music4thedeaf]

Same ive had it for hella years

[@Mjhm5870oy]

Great video! I enjoyed the presentation and music and the joy on everyone's faces practicing the conch. I was just doing some research on transportation along the NJ canal systems of the early 1800s and was surprised to learn that boat captains often used conch shells to alert lock tenders to ready the lock. I see you know and appreciate your history as well in the Florida Keys. I learned a lot today. Thank you for sharing this!

[@FloridaKeysTV]

+TrekkerJohn24 THANK YOU for the kind words

[@Cyberdemon1542]

He kind of spat.

[@polaroidproductions3198]

Whenever he blew into it, his mum would come down

[@subscribeplz3652]

He blew from down here

[@comellizza9532]

1:40 guy in the bottom left corner Dabs

[@jules9704]

Lol

[@confusion.5614]

i'm shook i thought the dab became a thing in 2015

[@misatzu]

Always amazed by what people are able to spot in seemingly eventless videos.

[@soakingpillow3643]

Lord of the flies brought me here lol

[@arcaderabbit7788]

I HAVE THE CONCH, JACK!!

[@chelseaonlyfansinstagram9961]

Piggy

[@tomlam5241]

Ralph

[@gxfinity2496]

Super meme Samneric

[@shirobunny-chan2265]

Jack

[@polaroidproductions3198]

Simon

[@squidfresh3082]

Shitass

[@ZMAN166]

I'm hear because I just started reading Lord of the flies

[@joeltm8697]

Zack Moore Music 7 years later and I’m having to read it lol

[@treymoen1036]

@@joeltm8697 same haha

[@banan9432]

Same but I'm 7 years late

[@Aisayaax]

*here

[@lolking3144]

ALL HAIL THE MAGIC CONCH!!!! FOR IT HAS SPOKEN!!! LOO LOO LOO LOO LOO LOO LOO LOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!

[@jdp8101]

That's it....I"m getting one tonight. This dude is super nice about teaching too. My kinda guy. Thanks bro. 👊🏾

[@larryholyfckknucklesjohnso1831]

Nobody: Ralph: *blows the conch shell for a meeting*

[@luisagf1385]

I'm writing a Lord of the Flies essay that's due tomorrow and here I am...

[@sriraags3602]

In Indian mythology a conch shell is blown to signal the start of a war

[@chitrauttamsingh825]

It is also used for auspicious events and prayers.

[@satyamsalunkhe7072]

Indian history not mythology 🙂

[@Ro-yl5cm]

The number of Lord of the Flies comments on here makes my heart happy

[@travman261]

awesome video i have a story one day i was stopping by a random garage sale and found a conch shell lol i bought it and was looking at for a week wondering why there was this hole at the end so my first thought was its a instrument looked it up now im here at this video and discovered i can play the conch shell lol im proud lol because during that whole week i was busting beats out of it and free-styling now i have a new sound

[@btetschner]

That is exciting to see that it is possible to do that. Thank you for the video.

[@irishtaco9056]

SO MANY LOTF PEOPLE I DID NOT EXPECT THIS LMAO-

[@judsonlindsey7891]

all hail the magic conch

[@MrRANDUM145]

is this almost like the articulation and embouchure of a brass instrument??

[@OverlyEpux]

Spodermen Exactly

[@xxzchjlxx]

Who else saw this just because of Lord of the Flies

[@lucaswitek8342]

lord of the flies????????????????

[@veronicap.358]

Loving it!!! Thank you goi g to try here in Maui when the sun begins to set down

[@scuba616]

I was just in Key West a few days ago and bought a conch horn. Im trying to figure out if it's real or not. I absolutely love blowing the horn and would love to learn to play it the best i can. I have also been fascinated about conch snails since my visit.

[@1976oswald]

that was an E (measured with the 432 hz tuning system)

[@andre7089]

432hz sounds flat to me idk

[@yeadontwearitout]

This is what you resort to when you try and distract your English teacher from the fact that you didn't do the assigned book reading

[@owenmasry4778]

L O R D O F T H E F L I E S

[@user-wh4vt8jx2r]

When you haven’t read lord of the flies so you’re hella confused

[@meltdown3340]

Lord of the flies.

[@Skhruffy]

Thanks to this video, I got to style on my high school english class a few years ago lol

[@Polymoriphine]

Very talented!

[@MikeK2100]

Just got one! A Shofar is next!

[@TheBeteljuice]

thank you for that great video!

[@reenabenny1931]

Oh my God thank you. You teached me how to blow like that

[@Ryguy-ce8lu]

If a conch she'll has already been conked or broken with a small hole to create a vacuum as said in video, can the she'll still make a horn?

[@williamjhunter5714]

I have a 24" Syrinx shell trimmed to 21.5" as a horn. The opening is si large that the hand technique in the opening doesnt do anything but it makes a nice deep note that has a lot of bass.

[@edvdylanfan]

THE CONCH SIGNAL!

[@mariofalz]

TO THE INVISIBLE, BOAT MOBILE!!

[@cloudycrisps7290]

here I am after reading lord of the flies many are near for the same reason the people span for a millenia all wondering how the heck ralph did this.

[@bijoybhattacharyaskaleidos2777]

Very nicely presented. Wish to add, in Indian Sub Continent, Blowing of Conch Shells has been part of daily life, be it daily worship Rituals in Morning & evening, all Hindu Temples, Buddhist monasteries, its essential. Any Event, Public ceremonies, Inaugural event mostly starts, with Conch Shells blowing. Guests Arrival, welcome Ceremony organised ( Conch, Typical Sound by Tounge Twisting " Ulu Dwani, Showering Florals / Petals, putting Sandalwood Paste on Forehead & later Garlanding) , wherein usually women & girls attired in Traditional Sarees/ Saris of White with Red Border lining, lineup & dozens of women Blowing Conch Shells, Twisting. It's very colourful too. Secondly, Epic Mahabharata, has plenty use of it, to herald beginning of War, Ceasefire, end of Day's Battle etc. Conch Blowing has been our essential Rituals in daily life, since time Immortal..

[@stephaniejordan9066]

I just picked up my conch shell to learn to play it it's amazing how jealous people envy this video.

[@benjonesthe3rd200]

They need to march around with the shells playing Louie Louie. That would be HILARIOUS

[@dirtysniper3434]

As long as you don't use it with the black box I'm not complaining

[@neelpansare5980]

Hi, thanks for the info.Please help me with my query, Is bloodshot eyes after blowing a conchshell a normal thing? Or should i be concerned. Thanks for your response.

[@acopocoloco2375]

The way he put his hand on shell. smooth

[@riyasinha8921]

Proud to be sanatani... In our dharm conch is blown... 🙏

[@mmallick3224]

Playing of conch in Hinduism is considered a sacred sound. It produces positive energy and erases negativity from the environment. It is usually played twice. In ancient time it also marked starting of a battle. Conch is also used to make Bangles called Shankha, worn by East Indians (Especially Bengalis) and Bangladeshis. If a woman wears those bangles it means she is married.

[@joeltm8697]

It’s interesting how we’re all here from Lord of the Flies no matter what year we’ve had to read it for school

[@mxphxsto8334]

I didn't read it for school but yup, pretty much

[@hello-gk5cz]

Unfortunately we didn't read it at school, but I am here from it

[@Seánasadventure]

me: psssshhht i can do that.......(a few minutes later) my cheek hurts

[@ourfamilyoutdoors7331]

I found three conch shells at a thrift store today one was made into a horn and man is it cool. I buzzed into it as soon as I left the store and got some looks in the parking lot. I’m in Canada so Conch shells aren’t super common

[@jacksettlemusic]

Hi, my conch shell "mouthpiece" ended up with a diameter of 1 1/4". When I try to play it, it just seems to magnify a terrible sound produced by my lips. Is the mouthpiece too wide or am I not doing something right with my lips? (I am a choir singer, not a brass player, so I have never tried to do something like this before). Thanks!

[@florencia5704]

So Cool...Thank You!

[@jazlynadams4413]

Can you do this with a welk to?

[@francesfearon6379]

This is so cool!!!!

[@mikenorledge4110]

life, love, pretty much the frequency for existence, the conch shell horn sound mimics the frequency of human life/the world/the universe itself .. good call my good friend!

[@Thor.Jorgensen]

He's blowing Shelly.

[@infinite5795]

We Hindus have been using it for the last 8000+ years, during all religious ceremonies, war times etc. It is considered very auspicious in Hindu culture and it cures many lung ailments, stomach and mind ailments, depending on the types and blowing techniques, there are whole books or ancient literature on it, it's like Yoga and traditional Hindu medicine( Ayurveda).

[@MeteoricStoneofShatteredSouls]

How small can these be? I have one at 5" that I cut. I can't get any sound from it.

[@TravisHeinze]

You can hear the ocean when you put it to your ear.

Hi, Can the mouthpiece hole be bored on the side of the shell near the end, so that the shell is held perpendicular to the face, or can it only be from the end tip?

[@bijoybhattacharyaskaleidos2777]

Traditionally, in Indian Sub Continent, its held horizontally, straight allowing sound to travel bit longer ( Rifling effects ) By making holes sideways, sound generated will be lesser

[@turtleboy991]

I got one! I FINALLY got one!! I can make my own Conch horn!! Quick question; is it okay if the shell has the hammer mark??

[@jakec5618]

Where do u get one from ?

[@Ylluria]

Hiya! Might you have any recommendations about where to get a prepared (already sawed & drilled) conch affordably and respectfully/sustainably..? Thanks so much! ^_^

[@isaaconpluto]

ive actually had a conch shell since 2017 cause i went on a cruise but never knew how to play it

[@baglabhakta-TantrikShakta]

0:55 where on the net, can i buy this kind of conch ? It's for make Puja.. thank you

[@omniflake87]

Can you please tell me where I can buy one ? appreciate your help !

[@Redneckofgaming]

My great grandmother had one but I can't say what it was used for at one time

[@sarcamahardika]

Nice

[@tonycasimiro4034]

ALL HAIL THE MAGIC CONCH!

[@keithc728]

I have one. And use to play it all the time. Now it sits on my mantel.

[@sbarwal]

From where I can purchase this?

[@azeemhirzanafzalnizam8141]

It's like playing trumpet

[@garethalford682]

Sounds like a Wookie choir

[@mauriceg.j7065]

Oh you got me there.

[@zinzolin14]

I also learned why my shell has a "conched" hole on it now

[@xxxkratosxxx9232]

Hindusim thought this beauty divine to the world🕉🙏

[@judygambel2801]

What i dont understand is why its catagorise as a woodwind

[@keykoji7134]

Do the ones from amazon work? Conch shells aren’t exactly plentiful in New York.

[@Timeward76]

Any conch should as long as its the right shape and has a place to blow into. The shape is what makes the sound.

[@jagvijaytinkuka7973]

too good ....

[@Sam-rk6lq]

Does anyone know the name of the background music?

[@yoshyfoods]

Conch music

[@mrblack9791]

thats like ear fluid shape

[@pitshants132]

I was like 7 years old and I went to Hawaii and went on this boat ride. I was the youngest aboard so I was given the opportunity to steer the ship for a bit. Captain handed me a conch and told me to let the shore know we’re coming in. I couldn’t get it to sound. I know I was just a dumbass child but not being able to make it sound has haunted me for 20 years lol.

[@empress9554]

That’s kinda cool

[@elizabethlancioni4248]

we r reading it in school right now

[@michaelkatt1319]

Guess it’s time to go eat! Anyone understand the reference?

[@jegny2819]

I have that shell do I have to cut off the spiral bit??

[@FloridaKeysTV]

Yes, and that contributes to the pitch of the shell

[@zakirajakalana425]

How many?