Do different keys need different embochures
Wed, 06/13/2018 - 18:55
Hey Winslow,
My A-harmonica requires large embochure for holes 1-2 to produce good tone. Does it mean that lower-key harmonicas will require even larger embochure? Will it will get harder as I go lower?
I am also curious why 3-blow does not require as much embochure effort as 2-draw, it's same tone, isn't it?
By larger embouchure, do you mean more space inside your mouth?
You should be able to get all notes to sound on all keys of harmonica without changing the shape of the inside of your mouth. If Draw 2 is shutting down on you - which is a common beginner problem - then you're closing up too much inside. The result is that your mouth is being tuned to notes other than the ones you're playing, which makes reeds - especially the bendable ones - either balk or bend uninteintially, as happens with Daw 2.
Try yawning. Notice how your throat and mouth open way up to allow as much air as possible to pass without resistance. Your throat should be open as if you're yawning and your tongue should be lying like a rug on the floor of your mouth.
With this open air passage, air moving through your mouth and throat should be like a breeze through a giant cavern. And your breathing should be completely silent even when moving large volumes of air. Any sound in your breathing means the air is being dragged, which will cause reed response to suffer, especially on draw notes.
The other important ingrident is breathing deeply and gently from the bottom of your lungs. By getting your entire air column in motion, and letting it pass without resistance, reeds will respond more readily, your tone will get bigger and fuller, and you'll have more to work with when you bend or modulate your notes with vibrato.