Posted Mon, 09/21/2015 - 15:45 by David Barrett Admin
The only way to tell the listener that something musical is worth remembering is by repeating it. If you don't use repetition, then you're telling the listener that what you're playing is not worth remembering. If it's not worth remembering, then it's forgettable. Who wants to play a solo or instrumentalist that's forgettable?
Posted Sat, 09/19/2015 - 20:30 by David Barrett Admin
In this submission Gary answers questions from students, specifically... dealing with a loud band, mic'ing your amp, using monitors, playing through a vocal mic, cupping the chromatic harp, stage presence, dealing with feedback, using a wireless mic, creating deep tone and playing softer.
Posted Fri, 09/18/2015 - 08:30 by David Barrett Admin
The goal of this lesson is to continue advancing your overbend skills while simultaneously filling in the harmonic/theory knowledge that’s required of a traditional blues player to be able to apply/execute overbends well in our common three positions (1st, 2nd and 3rd). This will be achieved by studying chords (arpeggios) and chord scales (a combination of chord tones and scale tones), all to give you more material to play while improvising. continue reading...
Posted Tue, 09/15/2015 - 09:33 by David Barrett Admin
"If you think you got it, record yourself and listen back to see if you 'really' got it" said Rod Piazza in a conversation regarding preparation for the performance of a song.
It's difficult to listen to yourself closely enough while playing to make an accurate assessment of your performance. Make use of the easy tool of recording (most of us have phones or computers that have recording software and microphones built in) for self-assessment. continue reading...
Posted Thu, 09/10/2015 - 08:56 by David Barrett Admin
Open mouth, insert harmonica... that simple.
The common error is to bring the harmonica near your mouth and pucker your lips out to meet the face of the harmonica. Your mouth closes down towards the harmonica, the jaw raises (like when blowing out a candle) and the tongue raises with it, all creating a narrow air passage that's the perfect embouchure for thin, wimpy tone. continue reading...
Posted Wed, 09/09/2015 - 08:22 by David Barrett Admin
Our most common position is 2nd Position, and when playing in 2nd Position we draw (inhale) much more than we blow (gives us access to draw bends). For this reason, every time you pick up the harmonica to play your reflex should be to exhale before starting.
This is consistent with 3rd Positions as well, but not so for 1st Position where we focus on playing more blows than draws.
Posted Thu, 09/03/2015 - 07:52 by David Barrett Admin
When the vocals begin, hold the last note you you were playing softly until the vocal phrase is over and then continue playing (this assumes you were playing a chord tone, otherwise you would of had to change quickly to a chord tone). If you were playing a riff (repetitive lick), keep playing that riff softly through the vocal phrase. Holding a note equals inactivity and continuing an already-established phrase (riff) is inactivity. Change is activity and will distract from what's happening with the vocals.