What's New!

On tuesday (tomorrow) there will be a scheduled down time as we do some server maintenance. The site will be offline for approximately an hour beginning at 6:00 am MST. Thank you for understanding and sorry for any inconvenience.

Microphone Tools & Materials
In this lesson Fritz Hasenpusch "The Harp Mic Man" shows us the common tools, materials and methods used for working on microphones. Fritz covers: contact cleaner sprays, soldering irons and heatsink, adhesives, multimeters, drivers, gaskets, coatings and output connectors.

Mics - What You Need To Know
In this video lesson you'll learn about the most common blues harmonica microphone bodies, elements and output connectors. Also included is an audio recording test of the microphones shown in the videos.

Aki Kumar Submission 3 - In this submission Aki shares his experience in the recording studio as well as how to approach playing fills.

Blues Chromatic Study 5 - In this study we'll use all of the techniques you've learned so far for the chromatic at BluesHarmonica.com! Also included is a solo section on the G Diatonic Harmonica in 2nd Position to show how you can switch between the chromatic and the diatonic in the same song. Our study song "The Big One" is a rock beat in the key of D. This study is for advanced skill level players. You'll need a C Chromatic and G Diatonic Harmonica for this study.

I'm off to the San Jose Harmonica Masterclass Workshop (http://www.harmonicamasterclass.com/ca2007.htm). I look forward to seeing some of you there! I'll be off the site until Monday... sorry for any delay in advance to posted questions.

In this submission Mark checks in from the road on the East Coast.

In this submission Gary works with one of my student bands from School of the Blues. Gary walks them through common signals used on the bandstand, how to play breaks, how to rehearse a tight ending and how to gel together as a band.

In this lesson Joe learns how to bend!

The Microphone Element (also known as the Cartridge or Capsule) is the engine that makes a mic work and gives each mic its unique tone. In this video lesson series by Fritz Hasenpusch "The Harp Mic Man" walks us through the common elements used by harmonica players: crystal (commonly Astatic), controlled magnetic/reluctance (commonly Shure), Dynamic (again, commonly Shure) and Condenser. He'll walk you through the history of development, construction and what microphones they were commonly found in. continue reading...