Ask Harmonica Expert Winslow Yerxa

Hi

i have a problem with bending:

i can bend from a half step to a full bend ok, but if i try to do the reverse, bend from the full bend to a half step bend (or to no bend), a "gap" happens, no sound between the notes.

exemple:

draw hole 3: 3 -> 3' -> 3'' -> 3''' ok, no gap, the sound flows constinuously

drae hole 3 (reverse): 3''' -> 3'' -> gap, no sound, interruption -> 3' -> 3

it happens more in holes 2 and 3 (A tuning promaster no valves). continue reading...

I have many harmonicas from different companies and all are fine except my Seydel blue sessions brasIt is F harmonica the 3 hole draw bottom note Db does not sound at all no matter how hard I try.Does working on gap of draw hole resolve the issue?Does the gap need to become closer to plate ?      

Hi Winslow,

Following the posts on the major chords, I am kind of lost.

What are the notes to be played in blues ?

If we take the G scale.

• The notes of the G major scale are : G A B C D E F# G
• The notes of the G blues scale (pentatonic minor + C#) are : G Bb C C# D F G

If we take the notes from the major scale and the notes from the blues scale then it sums up to 10 notes out of the 12 possible notes (this excludes G# and Eb only). continue reading...

In the process of learning music theory, I’m wondering why the chords I, IV and V are major when major chords are happy and blues are supposed to be sad. I’m surprised blues doesn’t use minor chords.

Which brings me to my main question: Are minor keyed harps better for sad songs because they have minor chords?

I know some harmonicas like lee oskar melody maker makes so many changes to harmonica that might make me as beginner

confused .  I am not buying that harmonica because it might have bad effect on me

But That one extra note country tuning gives me can be very helpful

Should I just buy country tuning harmonica and work on it?

Please let me know why I should not. 

thanks

Countersunk Reed Plates continue reading...

Hi Winslow,

I was wondering if you had an opinion on whether using compression (Dynamic Range Compression) is a good idea when mixing, and is it used often?

After all, we are taught from the beginning the importance of varying dynamics. continue reading...

Hi Winslow,  What do you think are the benefits of being able to tongue block switch single notes out of either side of mouth and

what style of music is best for this style of playing?

This is just out of curiosity, but I thought you might know.

I was listening to the early recordings of SBW1 (out of that compilation from Monument Records) with some attention the other day and noticed that he never used a shake on any song (at least on the first CD). I also noticed he repeatedly used the same fill over and over, but that's another story...

Was it just part of his style? Did other players used it at that time or did the shake came to be later on?

Thank you

Stef

Hi

i have a problem with the hole 1 draw: i can't play it loud.

I put my tongue the lower possible and drop my jar the max i can, to get a good tune. But the sound in hole 1 draw isnt as loud as the other draw holes.

Wheun i close a litle bit my mouth, in other words, when i don't drop the jar the max neither put my tongue the lower possible, I can play the hole 1 draw louder, but the tune ins't as good.

So i have to choose between playing hole 1 draw loud with poor tune or playing it low with good tune. It happens in several harmonica (A, Bb, C...) continue reading...