1' on G or A harmonica
Dave, I am comfortable with all bends on all harmonicas, except 1' on G and A.
It feels like it requires more space in the throat than I have. I can hit it accurately occasionally, if I almost swallow my tongue, stretching all muscles in attempt to keep embochure as wide as possible, and choking poing as further from teeth as possible. It requres a lot of muscle work, very open mouth, it feel awkward and tone is gurgling.
Do you have any tips?
Perhaps it's the fact that I am using HarpNinja as reference, and 1 draw is tuned considerably sharper on Hohners? (That's how all unbent 1 draws are shown on HarpNinja).
If I play by ear - I can make 1' distinct from 1, but not as distinct as 2 and 2'', for example.
I tongue block everything.
Interesting. I have checked my HarpNinja on piano, and it matches perfectly. So, the software is accurate.
G, A harps I have are 1+, 1, 2, 3+ ~10-30cent sharp.
I thought it's normal. All harps cannot be wrong in the same way? I will go check with Kinya...
Hmmm... interesting. If it's an acoustic piano, it could be flat (strings stretch). If it's a digital piano, then you got me on that one! I've never heard of a harmonica more than 3 cents sharp. Tell me what you come up with.
I would say keep experimenting with your tongue block bending, but you may want to experiment with pucker bending on hole 1 as well. The advantage of puckering for the 1 is that your tongue can move back, unrestricted from having to have the tongue on the face of the harmonica. Just move it straight back... it will run into the gum-line, creating the bend. It's very common for players to pucker hole 1. Again... don't abandon TB'ing hole 1 though, it's nice to have the option.
Kinya said: "Unless we throttle a reed to death (usually from bending), harmonica reeds tend to creep sharp (#) rather than flatten (b)".
I've also noticed that HarpNinja is tuned to A=440 (piano), but harmonicas are usually referenced to A=442. So, my HarpNinja will show +7cent just by that fact.
So, it seems I will need to do some harp-smithing - Kinya gave me the recipe.
On the other hand I think I can hit occasinally good low 1', if I draw softer than usual. It also helps if I imagine doing the same pitch without harmonica.
Drawing softer is smart, in many ways... so keep doing that. I still have my doubts on a harmonica being 7 cents sharp, but if Kinya says that it's possible for all the reeds to move up that far, then okay. I still recommend you contact the software company... I have seen the program read sharp before, so it may be a known issue. Just a good idea to double-check before you spend all your time tuning. Saying that... you'll need a tuner to tune your harmonicas anyways... check your tuning on the tuner before taking it apart.
Hello RB. Are you puckering, or tongue switching for that 1 draw?
By the way... Hohner is not tuned higher in pitch than the other manufacturers. Manufacturers commonly tune their harmonicas from one to three cents higher, and there are 100 cents in a half step... that's a very minuscule amount between manufacturers. I'm not sure why HN is registering so high, you might want to contact the software developer, he is very responsive.