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My problem is that I cannot blow into one hole at a time when playing a harmonica. What is proper technique?
By admin | February 28, 2010
jpennin21 asked:
I am a beginner that just got a C Harmonica.
It is tough for me not to blow in a couple holes a time.
I just need help learning to do one hole at a time properly.
Halogen Track Lighting
I am a beginner that just got a C Harmonica.
It is tough for me not to blow in a couple holes a time.
I just need help learning to do one hole at a time properly.
Halogen Track Lighting
Topics: golf swing |
March 1st, 2010 at 4:04 am
The holes that are surrounding the holes that are blowing in.
March 2nd, 2010 at 2:59 am
Everyone plays differently. The conventional wisdom is to make a fish face so you have an hour glass shaped opening to blow air through. There is the lip blocking method which is also called the whistle method where you blow and draw like you had a straw in your mouth. There is the tongue blocking method where you give yourself a big fat tin sandwich, and block the channels that you are not using with your tongue. You have to slobber a lot using the tongue block method. Whether you use the whistle or the tongue block method, you should get as close to the reeds as possible. The reeds perform better the deeper into your mouth the harp goes. It sounds like you have a rather loose method and you are catching more than one channel at a time. You should be able to get crisp clean clear single notes. There is no such thing as a two note chord. It’s either one note, or three or more notes at a time.
Enough of that conventional wisdom garbage. The advice above is what you hear from everyone else but me. Granted that you are a beginner, I highly recommend that you take the experts advice for a certain period of time. You should be able to use all the methods at will. But note that the experts themselves tend to gravitate towards one method or the other.
If you blow into two channels at a time, just make sure that you hit the extra channel to the left, not the right, of the intended note.
You are going to have problems with the harmonica itself if you use a loose method. If your harp is in equal temperament it is going to sound awful. It will sound good if it is in Just Intonation. Equal Temperament is best for playing in unison with other instruments that are also in Equal Temperament, that is, if you are playing one note at a time. Chords sound awful in equal temperament, and they sound great in just intonation. The problem with just intonation is that it is difficult, not impossible, to get different instruments to play well in unison. There are many different ways to tune an instrument into just intonation, and only one way to tune to equal temperament. So the “cop out” position of the manufacturers of musical instruments is equal temperament.
Those are the kinds of problems that you are going to be faced with if you don’t tighten up your technique.
You can always tune the harp yourself. It can get expensive with the mistakes you make. But there are replacement reed plates available for some harmonicas. Tuning instructions come in the Lee Oskar box.
Try putting a drop of elmers non-toxic school glue above and below channels 1, 4, 7, and 10. Please don’t replace with some toxic glue if you don’t have the good stuff. This will help you keep track of where you are on the harp. You will also find that putting the same vice grip on the harmonica every time will improve your aim. You should work on your grip if you have any intention of using hand effects, Wah wah wah! See my citations and fish around. You will find instructions on grip.
Let me give you some cites.