Tip of the Day

Now sit on a chair and listen to a favorite song while tapping your left foot for beat 1, then right for beat 2, then left for 3, right for 4... etc. Make sure your left is always on the downbeat of the new measure (beat one).

This is training you're mind/body to place beats 1 and 3 on your left and 2 and 4 on your right. This simple device helps you to feel where you're at within the measure while playing at all times. Think of this as an upgrade to the standard foot tapping. continue reading...

Interested in how improvising works? Check out "How Jazz Works, Part II" from the Jazz Insights podcast with Dr. Gordon Vernick (search iTunes for free download).

Tapping your foot when sitting is natural to do (ball of foot). While standing try tapping your heel, it's a more comfortable alignment of the body and less stressing on the leg muscles for most people. Give it a try.

Swaying side to side... shifting your weight from your left foot to right foot... bobbing up and down... walking in rhythm... these are all good things to do to stay in time. Unlike your foot, which is quick, when you go out of time when moving your entire body you'll feel your body jerk... this is a sign that you need to work on that part of the song (if you're playing a set piece).

The more you move your body, the better your rhythm will be.

Some chromatic harmonica players, such as Brendan Power for example, use the chromatic harmonica in positions, just like we do on the diatonic harmonica... it's all about using our instrument to meet the needs of the music. In some cases playing the C Chromatic Harmonica in all keys is not the best choice. Blues for example is best played in 3rd Position (2nd and 1st also being used, but lacking the cool sounding chords that 3rd Position has to offer). continue reading...

What's the chromatic harmonica player's perspective? They laugh at us... seriously. Since we play an instrument with a limited pitch set and the fact that we learn by ear (they commonly ready music... not always... but commonly), we're not taken too seriously as musicians. To a trained ear the diatonic harmonica played mediocre is pretty hard to listen to. In most cases the diatonic harmonica player doesn't know they're playing poorly because there's no fatherly figure (or teacher in most cases) to shake their head when something is performed poorly. continue reading...

The perspective of the overbend player is in a way just as dogmatic... their goal is to make the diatonic harmonica fully chromatic. Some would ask, "why not just play the chromatic." That answer is simple... they fell in love with the sound and feel of the diatonic harmonica... the chromatic harmonica is not an option. Studying the masters of the past is there, but the overbend player will extend their study reach to other instruments as well... they're interested in where the harmonica can go without the limitations of the harmonica's natural pitch set and standard bending... continue reading...

Classic blues harmonica players use the standard major diatonic tuning... working within and around it to fit all situations. Studying the masters of the past is important. Tongue blocking for rhythm and texture is important. Mastering bending is important (the ability to extend the diatonic scale range and find notes outside the scale). Knowing which notes to avoid is important. Their challenge is to make it work with what they have.

What's the overbend players perspective?...

Playing in 2nd Position is all about bending... this is the primary reason we play in it. Though 1st Position has all of the notes of the major scale, bending is limited to non-chord tones until you reach hole 8. By tuning the standard harmonica to play in major in 2nd Position you now have the addition of being able to bend chord tones (notes of the one chord... our most important chord). We can of course, and do, play in 2nd Position major on a standard tuned diatonic harmonica by playing 3" and avoiding the 5 and 9 draws, but this slight change in tuning makes it easier. continue reading...