high notes in 12 hole chromatic
I got a Suzuki Chromatix scx-48, 12 hole chromatic, and I am having trouble playing the high notes (9 and above), its really hard to get a pretty sound. is it like that in all the chromatic harmonicas, is it just this brand (If it is i'll know that when I get a 16 hole one I will get a different one) or is it just me? :D
Thanks
:) Thanks I will try your advice
Hey, I tried your recommendations, it sounds better when I put my whole mouth in and not push too hard but theres a slight issue with the 10 hole, it just sounds weird. sometimes its okay and sometimes its just doesnt play, I think it happens if I unintentionally bend it. is there any way to fix it?I upload some sound parts so you can listen for yourself if you can perhaps;
1. this is just the major scale all across the harp, I would like to know if the sound on the high end is supposed to be this way:
2. this is hole 9 draw flutter (I'm working on "Cool Blue" from the website and this part sounds alot different and dissonant than what david plays, the chord that comes out just doesnt sound right to me I dont know if it's suppose to be like that as well):
3. this is the horrible sound of the 10 hole draw after I unintentionally bend or something like that. it happens too frequently and easily... ;(
Would much appreciate your insights and tips, thanks in advance
Ok, in the first sample it sounds like you're giving each blow note a definite push and each draw note a pull. Try to float the notes out more. Other than that, I do hear that slight bend on Blow 10 and the strong one on Blow 12. You need to hollow out your oral cavity asn much as possible, make it a huge, open space so that those notes don't bend unintentionally. Lots of people have the same problem and worse in the top register when they first play chromatic.
On the flutter, you're covering four holes with your mouth and that includes the dissonant combination of Draw 7 and 8 (same as Draw 6 and 7 on a diatonic). To make it sound better, get five holes in your mouth so that the top and bottom notes form an octave
In third sample, you're choking out the sound by having your tongue too far forward and high in your mouth. hear how the reed squeals and squeaks? You're tuning your mouth to a note that it can't play and squealing is the only way it can respond. Same advice as before - make a huge cavern in your mouth. This includes getting your tongue down low on the floor of your mouth.
Will try to do that, thanks!
Okay I experimented a little and what I can say for sure is that for the same embocure and the same exact breath I will get the reed going (the note sounding) for holes below 9 but for holes from 9 and above I will have to "push", just cant get sound with the minimum amount of breath as well as I can do on the holes below it.
The highest two holes (sometimes three, it varies from model to model) have no valves, and that changes how those reeds respond. That could be what you're experiencing.
Valves are the little plastic strips that are mounted over a reed slot on the opposite side of the reedplate from the reed itself. When you blow, the inside valve over the draw reed gets pushed against the draw slot and prevents any air from leaking thru the draw reed, so that it all goes to the blow reed. When you inhale, the outside valve over the blow reed slot gets pulled into place, directing all the air away from the blow reed and through the draw reed.
Valves are designed to conserve air and have some additional effects:
They even out the tonal quality between blow and draw notes.
At the same time, they change the bending properties of reeds - reeds don't bend as easily but have a wider bending range, but with a less interesting tone.
Valves also affect reed response. Directing all the air through the sounding reed makes it more sensitive to strong attacks and more likely to clam up if you hit it too hard.
The other side of the response coin is that when you get to the unvalved upper notes, they may need a bit more air to activate. Making a harp more airtight overall and doing fine reed adjustment can help, but with the harp as-is, you can work to figure out how little you can do to get the reed to activate. It may need more breath volume to activate, but how much more - and where that line is - is worth exploring.
Thanks for the response and the attention winslow, I wanted to write to you all day (just finished work) cause I got a chance to play the hohner cx-12 today, they let me try it in the store and to my amazement the top 4 holes played with as small breath as the other ones, I was really confused. I do not neccecarilly like the muted sound of the cx 12 but it is so easy to play!! do they not have valves on em as well? if not, then what else can explain the difference?
Thanks so much for your replies.
Trouble getting notes to respond in the top octave have two main causes: The player, and the instrument.
The reeds in the high reigster are very short and for that reason harder to adjust for optimal performance than the longer reeds. Also, those reeds are not valved like the lower reeds, and this changes their response a little. In addition, on some models the reed chamber is too big, leading to pitch depression.
The SCX models are solid, well built instruments, but still you can get one that isn't adjusted well enough.
However, let's look at the othe other cause: the player.
High reeds squeal and balk if your mouth is tuned to a note they can't play. To get rid of this problem, you need to de-tune your mouth: open your throat like you're yawning, keep your tongue on the floor of your mouth and, unless you'e tongue blocking, away from the front of your mouth (behind your lower front teeth is OK, as long as you can inhale an exhale noiselessly and with no sensation of suction or pressure.
I often see or hear advice that the high reeds need more pressure to get started. This is true if you don't follow the advice in the previous paragraph (and maybe if the reeds are badly set up). My advice is the opposite: breath so softly that if you exhale on the palm of your hand held an inch from your mouth, you will feel the warmth of your breath but not the wind.
Try the technique advice for awhile and see if that helps. Let me know how it goes.