Tip of the Day

The listener wants more repetition than the player is usually willing to give

The more active you play, the softer you need to be. The more repetitive you play, the louder you can be (within reason of course).

Open mouth, insert harmonica... that simple.

The common error is to bring the harmonica near your mouth and pucker your lips out to meet the face of the harmonica. Your mouth closes down towards the harmonica, the jaw raises (like when blowing out a candle) and the tongue raises with it, all creating a narrow air passage that's the perfect embouchure for thin, wimpy tone. continue reading...

Our most common position is 2nd Position, and when playing in 2nd Position we draw (inhale) much more than we blow (gives us access to draw bends). For this reason, every time you pick up the harmonica to play your reflex should be to exhale before starting.

This is consistent with 3rd Positions as well, but not so for 1st Position where we focus on playing more blows than draws.

Pretty cool editing software recommended by fellow student Sandor. He states, "It's not for live music, but for studio recording... fixing vocals, and works very well with harmonica. Harmonica caused headaches for other software." He also uses this software to convert what he played from audio to midi so that the midi can be imported into notation software to notate in standard music notation what he played. Thanks Sandor.

When the vocals begin, hold the last note you you were playing softly until the vocal phrase is over and then continue playing (this assumes you were playing a chord tone, otherwise you would of had to change quickly to a chord tone). If you were playing a riff (repetitive lick), keep playing that riff softly through the vocal phrase. Holding a note equals inactivity and continuing an already-established phrase (riff) is inactivity. Change is activity and will distract from what's happening with the vocals.

Whether you're improvising or accompanying, if your lick focuses on the 2 draw, you can play it through the IV7 Chord as well and it will sound good (like the A A B Chorus Form for example).

The simple theory is that the 2 draw (referencing a C Harmonica in 2nd Position, Key of G) is G, the Root Note of the I7 Chord. 2 draw is also the 5th of the IV7 Chord, so it works there as well. If your lick also includes the 3 draw, remember to obey the 3 Draw Rule and bend it down to 3' when on the IV7 Chord.

The default way to present a note is with a slap (http://www.bluesharmonica.com/lessons/tongue_blocking_2)

When it doubt, shake.

If the 3 draw B (or 3 draw quarter tone bend as discusses yesterday) is an emphasized note in your first lick of the 12 Bar Blues progression, and you wish to continue the chorus with that lick as a theme (think Chorus Forms as taught in the Improvising Studies), then when the lick is repeated over the IV7 Chord you should bend the 3 draw down to 3' Bb and 3" A over the V Chord.

Here's the basic theory...

I7 = G B D F (referencing C Harmonica in 2nd Position, Key of G) and 3 B is the 3rd of the chord. continue reading...