Tip of the Day

Let's now sum up everything we've discussed...

1) The larger the mouth cavity, the bigger the tone (large cavity = lower frequencies can be produced)

2) The most common cause of poor tone is to have your tongue raised (tongue raised = smaller cavity = lower frequencies cannot be produced) continue reading...

The second most common error for new students when learning how to use the Wa Wa is to use dips with each Wa of the hand. The dip is a technique where you start by playing a note bent and then quickly raising it. For some reason, it's almost universal for students to want to do a dip with each Wa... as if there were a string attached from their hands to their tongue. Though this is a valid option to couple these two techniques, the tonal change of the Wa is much more pronounced without the additional pitch change of the dip.

It's common for students to hear a Wa Wa being played on one note and mistakenly think that a separate breath is used for each Wa. Though it can be done this way, the Wa effect is much more pronounced if you use one, even breath (no volume changes) and ONLY the hands to separate the notes (the hands are what create the Wa affect). Go to Solo Harmonica Study 4 and look at page two of the PDF transcription... first bar of the 4th Chorus. All seven of those 2 draws are played with one breath, using a Wa to give the sense that they are all separate. continue reading...

For those of you that haven't had the years of experience bending, to have the mouth cavity naturally tuned to each reed you play, let's give you an idea of what this feels like.

Grab any harmonica and bend the reed that's the most comfortable for you. Do this a couple times, focusing on the location of your tongue and jaw. Start bent and slowly allow your bend to slide up in pitch until you reach the exact point where the note is sounding at its originally-intended pitch. You are now tuned to that reed.

Take the harmonica away and move your mouth around to reset your embouchure. continue reading...

From yesterday... "Grab an A Harmonica... play a 1 draw... then a 4 draw... and then a 6 draw. What do you observe your tongue and jaw, i.e., the mouth cavity, doing?"

If you have years of experience bending on the harmonica, you'll find that your jaw slightly drops and the back of your tongue moves slightly back for the 1 draw. Even though you're not bending, your mouth cavity (which includes the position of the tongue) is poised to do the bend if you desire to. continue reading...

"E" is a great location in the mouth to show someone how to bend on the harmonica (this is similar to a 4 draw bend on a mid-range harmonica). Bending is created by producing a constricted air passage and tuning the point in front of the constriction (towards the harmonica) to the pitch of the bend you're trying to create. If your mouth is tuned to the reed you're playing, then your tone will be fine for every-day single-note playing. If your mouth is tuned higher in pitch than the reed, then your tone will suffer and may cause unwanted affects (bending, airiness and/or stalling). continue reading...

In the video "A Master Class in Jazz Performance and Creativity with Pianist Kenny Werner" found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Un3p614XExc Kenny speaks of why it's important to silence the critical mind in performance. At 2:50 he states, "The zone is created by not criticizing yourself in performance. You cannot afford to criticize yourself in performance... that breaks the zone... that breaks the groove. But of course you may hear notes you don't like, but don't key in on that." Thanks to fellow student Annemarie for sharing this.

Vocalizing "E" as in "Key" without the K... is a good example of where you don't want your tongue for normal play... but where you do want your tongue for bending (this would be equivalent to a 4 draw bend on the C Harmonica for most people). Look in a mirror with good lighting and observe the location of your tongue for this "E" position. continue reading...

Accompaniment King judging comments are now in. Take some time today and listen to some of the entries. Before listening to each one, read what Gary Smith, Rick Estrin and Mark Hummel have to say first so that you can listen for the elements they bring up. This is a great lesson. http://www.bluesharmonica.com/accompaniment-king

Let's start by helping you to become familiar with your oral cavity and how its resonance is affected by your tongue location and the size of your throat.

Vocalize "E" as in "Key" without the K... and while continuing to sound this, slowly change it to "OH"... and then slowly to "AH" and then slowly to a yawn while still vocalizing. Picture in your mind's eye the location of your tongue relative to your mouth and what happens to your jaw position for "OH" and your throat for the yawn.

More tomorrow...