Difficulty bending Seydel 1847 in D
Hi Kinya,
I have watched your video's on reed gapping and had some success in improving the bendability of a problematic 3 draw on my new Seydel 1847. However it is still suspiciously more difficult to achieve than any of the bends on any of my Marine Bands, Crossover, Lee Oscars or Special 20.
I understand that as we increase in harmonica pitch, the shape we need to form inside the mouth changes so it is possible I just need to get used to how to achieve the bends in the key of this Seydel (which is D). However, my other harmonicas span a range from low F to C and whatever variation is required between those instruments has felt fairly minimal and intuative to me, so I am finding it hard to accept that 2 semi-tones up from C everything becomes suddenly and dramatically more difficult. I have much less trouble on the other bends (other than this particularly difficult 3), but still notice a difference there too.
I am hoping that you may be able to shed some light on whether there are any customisation options which I should explore further before concluding that I have a dud, whether it is at all likely that I have a dud, and whether you can think of any reasons, technique or instrument setup-wise which might explain why this particular harp is giving me so much more difficulty than the others.
Some observations:
1. There is some kind of strange interplay happening between the 1 & 2 draw which I can't account for. When I am drawing the 2 steadily, if I then remove the tongue block from hole 1 to start sounding 1&2 together, I get a long choke on the 1 as though it's gap is too large, before it finally kicks in (starting slightly bent flat), but if I just play the 1 on it's own from rest it responds just fine.
2. I have noticed that when I put the reed plates on a flat surface, they are bowed in the middle. The look pretty good when they're back on the comb with the screws in, but is it possible that this is having an effect at a very small level?
Many thanksJoe
Thank you Joe, your sound bite will help me assess and respond to your query.
In the meantime, if resident Seydel expert Jon Harl wishes to contribute his thoughts, we would all appreciate it ;o)
Your Harpsmith, Kinya
Hello Joe, we appreciate your attention to detail--you are a serious student of the diatonic harmonica.
I've watched/listened to your video twice through, then listened to audio track on the third playback. My recommendations at this stage of your development:
Choose one type of reed material for all your diatonic harmonicas:
- Brass (most popular for ease of playability/voicing, least popular for longevity, easy to modify)
- Bronze Phosphor (a good compromise between playability and longevity, relatively easy to modify)
- Stainless Steel (less popular for playability, but extremely popular for longevity, difficult to modify)
- Aluminum (stay away from these discount harmonicas)
Master the bio-mechanics of playing each note in perfect pitch
- This means engage your muscle memory, learn to play/listen for each separated (clean) note--do not slur up/down to a bent note. Scales can be boring, but are perfect exercises (and challenging, especially when switching positions)
- Compare the notes you generate against a reference tone (i.e. Chromatic Tuner, Harp Ninja, Keyboard, Guitar,et.). When each note is played in unison, it will be clear as a bell, but if you hear an occilated (warbling) sound--you are playing the note out of tune :o(
To summarize, I believe most of the issues you are experiencing will actually melt away as you become more proficient with your playing techniques. This is what makes our harmonica so wonderful, yet so frustrating at times.
Your Harpsmith, Kinya
Here is a copy of Winslow's timely post:
That metallic ringing you're hearing is an inharmonic overtone - one not based on multiples of the fundamental frequency of the reed. It'soften attributed to torsional vibration - the reed vibrating from side to side in addition to vibrating along its length. Some makes sof harmonica, notably Lee Oskars, are especially prone to torsional vibration, but it can happen with any harmonica.
What it means diagonstically is that your mouth is tuned to a note other than the bent pitch of Draw 4, and that you're achieving the bend more by force than by persuasion.
Try this:
- Start playing the unbent Draw 4 very softly.
- Without increasing the volume, slide the note down in pitch to a one-semitone bend and sustain it.
- If the bend suddenly pops in, that still indicates that you're not really tuning your mouth to the note.
- if you still hear the metallic ringing, again, you need to focus your oral cavity resonance.
So what do you need to do to make your bend more persuasive?
It's all in the tongue.
The tongue does two things to bend a note:
- It defines the back wall of the tuned chamber by narrowing the airflow with the K-spot - the humped up place on the tongue that also makes the K-sound, with the K-spot raised to the roof of your mouth.
- When you inhale with the K-spot activated, you'll feel suction at that point, even when inhaling gently.
- When you exhale through the K-spot, you'll feel air pressure at that point.
- It sizes the tuned chamber with two types of tongue action:
- Sliding the K-spot forward or back along the roof of your mouth, like moving a slide along a guitar string. This moves the back "wall" of the tuned chamber to change the size of the chamber and tune it to lower (farther back for a bigger chamber) or higher (farther forward for a smaller chamber). When your tongue is on the harp, you have less front-to-back range of motion than you do when the tip of your tongue is free to move, but you still have some.
- Raising and lowering the portion of your tongue that lies between the K-spot and the tip of your tongue. This is like raising and lowering the "floor" of the chamber to make it larger (lowering the floor) or smaller (raising the floor).
Play around with the K-spot and sizing the chamber at low volume (gentle breath flows) and you'll find how you can bend without squeals.
Kinya, thank you for the responses. There's a lot of information here which I'll need to reserve comment on until I've had time to explore it all fully. Suffice to say, it sounds suitably sage!
How can something so simple looking, be so COMPLEX!
Your Harpsmith, Kinya
I've noticed in other threads that a recording of the problem is appreciated. I'll make that this week and post it here.