Newbie Questions: Tongue Blocking and Blocked Reeds
Hi there.
I'm pretty new to the harmonica. I've been playing for a couple months, mostly working from youtube videos and such. I just joined the site about a week ago.
I hadn't seriously tried tongue blocking until last week, and I've got some questions about it. My primary concern is that while tongue blocking I seem to have dramatically less control over my saliva, and the front of my harmonica ends up really wet. I'm concerned that a lot of it is getting into the reeds. Is this just a matter of practice?
I also keep having problems with the 3 Draw and 2 Draw. I assume something is getting caught in the reed. I'll just have trouble making it sound, it will sound really muted, or I'll have to suck on it for a second before it sounds. I don't think it's a problem with the harmonica because I've seen it repeatedly with my C harp and my A harp. I've definitely had more problems with this since I've been tongue blocking.
Hello Mantinone, welcome to the site. Yes, it's a practice thing in regards to saliva, but if you raise your chin so that the harmonica is above the drool line you'll stop most of this. Your second issue could be saliva related, but muted or bent sounds are generally caused by tongue placement. Experiment with opening your embouchure a bit (large, resonant mouth cavity), focusing on lowering the middle-back of your tongue so that you're not unintentionally bending. Watch the video in the FAQ section titled "My 2 draw and/or high-end notes sounds flat, airy or not at all!" Best wishes on this, you'll get it dialed in with time.