Route of airflow when bending?
Hi David!
First time posting, let me take the opportunity to thank you for the site!With less time on my hands structured learning helps a lot! :)
Sorry for the longer post, I'm sadly not sure what information might be important on giving guidance and what is completely irrelevant.(Using A harmonica)
I've started learning harmonica in the middle of December, first 2-3 weeks puckering and then subsrcibed to your site and started TB.I'm doing mostly level 2 studies from your site now, but as I found bending really interesting (and needed 3'' to some folk songs) I've tried to experiment on and off with it, always having quick and easy success puckering but - for a long while aside from whole 2 - exactly 0 success TB.
For the last 3 weeks I'm basically just doing minimal practice on other stuff aside from trying to make bending happen, trying to find all kind of resources, maybe something clicks. Reading the bending chapter in Winslow's book made a small breakthrough as I started to be able to sometimes hit hole 3 and 4 bend(s), but even with 10x practice it is not even close to pucker bending - not effortless at all, not stable, can't hit all the bends all the time (I mean just going for example 3 -> 3' -> 3'' -> 3''', nothing advanced).
This made me think that I do something fundamentally wrong, positioning either the harmonica or my tongue bad or just having a clumsy middle section on my tongue :)
And now the question (?) part: as I understand part of the good bend is controlling the flow of the air. I feel like I'm having trouble achieving airflow ONLY between the tongoue and top of my mouth (palate?) always feels like air slips through the right back side of my tongue and my grinder teeth.
Is that someting that usually happens for beginners? Or is it not a problem at all and I just needs to practice? Or should I guide air to the right side of my mouth and constrict the flow there somehow?
I have trouble deciding whether it just needs more time or I need to take a step back and (re)work the basics to have a better chance succeeding.
Best regards,Máté
Thanks for reply!Will keep on grinding then! Struggles feel much better now that I've read your answer! :)
Máté:
As an always-learner myself, I'll add one more idea to David's great suggestions: RELAX. As David points out, it's not the breath pressure. Less is frequently more. When learning bends (and even today, when working on blow-bends) I have to constantly remind myself to relax and focus on the resonance in my mouth and throat. Make sure your shoulders are down and sitting easily (not hunching up and trying to hit your ears, as I often find myself) and that you are breathing easily from the diaphram.
And yes, add patience. It's a fun lifetime exercise.
Thanks for the advice!
Actually after I've read Davids answer I became more relaxed, not trying to force my tongue into positions that badly and the bending improved tremendously on holes 3-4 which I practice (of course still shit and not accurate, but feels way better). I think it might be what you just wrote - try feeling more and force less.
Hello Máté.
I'm glad to hear that you're enjoying your studies.
You stated, "not effortless at all, not stable, can't hit all the bends all the time." This is typical of bending--all of those qualities develop slowly over months and years. I know that it's frustrating, but it's just the nature of this technique, which was never meant to be done on the harmonica. Work on your other skill sets as bending slowly develops.
I also feel air flow to the right of my tongue (when performing the standard tongue block with the tongue to the left of the harmonica), but I feel more flow over the top. With this said, I wouldn't focus much on this... there's so little airflow when playing the harmonica (except when playing very loudly, which can damage your harmonica), that it's almost imperceivable.
The main focus with bending is tuning your mouth to the pitch of the bend you're trying to play (tuned chamber instead of air compressor). Hump more of the back of the tongue, in the back of the mouth for lower bends, and more of the front of the tongue, in the front of the mouth, for higher pitched bends.
In most cases, the student is not raising their tongue high enough in their mouth for the bend. The key is to experiment, experiment, experiment. I recommend you review all of Bending Study 1 multiple times--each viewing something else will click (each piece of advice will mean more as you get closer to the end goal).
Keep at it, you will get it, you just don't know when.