Although Howard can and has played blues harp very well, I find it very surprising he doesn’t seem to get the kudos or attention he would seem to deserve on the Forum. Maybe it’s because he plays other styles of harp these days and this is not so interesting to blues players.
He has just won the Grammy for Best Instrumental Composition for The Bela Fleck and the Flecktones song "Life in Eleven" which was co-written by him.
He is a very busy and sought harmonica player and musician (talented keyboard player and composer) and runs a successful Harmonica School. He has bought a lot of attention to the harmonica in the music world as a serious instrument with chromatic capabilities with his exploration and development of overblow and overdraw techniques.
He comes across very well on the interviews I’ve seen of him. He would seem to have everything in spades, yet……….? Is he too good, aloof, big-headed?
I’m from the UK and I’m just interested in how Americans and others view him because he does appear to be a phenomenon and a great ambassador for the instrument we all love.
Howard Levy is an amazing harp player. But I like music for music's sake. I don't like music because it is simple or complex, I like it if it sounds good and feels right. When I heard James Cotton for the first time, I was blown away and decided to start playing harp. Levy's sound, though technically brilliant, doesn't move me.
I just haven't heard a tune by him that really caught my attention. I read something a while back about why pop music catches our ears so often. It's got something to do with anticipation. You expect the music to do something, and it does, and your brain says, 'good work, you guessed right!' It can get boring if it's TOO predictable, but if it's not predictable enough, it get's frustrating. Give me an earworm. (Of course, as you learn more about music, you can recognize longer patterns and your brain starts seeing those patterns instead and your brain changes when it rewards you. Maybe I just haven't learned enough about structure to appreciate it.) That's not to say I don't like listening to his stuff. I just don't seek it out (except when I'm trying to see just how far the instrument can be pushed. He is an amazing player.)
Early in his career, Howard played some real accessible and beautiful harmonica on other projects, including an excellent children's lullaby type recording.
As he matured, his path went skywards leaving a lot of us mortals behind.
Agreed he is technically a wizard, but I agree that the heart and soul are not moved as much by technical brilliance as other approaches to this instrument. ---------- The Iceman
His greatness and impact on the developement of the instrument is just a given. Water and air are amazing - and we depend on them, - but don't discuss them very much. If he didn't 'invent' overblowing, then he certainly is one of the acnowledged pioneers of using the technique to tranflorm the little 'tin sancdwich' into a true chromatic instrument capable of plaing any type of music. (I can hear the collective DUH!)
As noted, he is not primarily blues,- or any other genre. He is just a pro musician and can play anything. Everyone who knows anything about 'modern harmonica' knows and respects the heck out of him.
You have probably listened and enjoyed him more than you realize. He is on everything from Bella Fleck records to Prarie Home Companion.
That being said - I don't often seek out and listen to his music specificaly. I don't listen to Toot's Thielmans much either - but I sure know he's an important presence. ----------
Last Edited by on Mar 03, 2012 12:25 PM
I do have to say, like others here, Howard Levy leaves me completely cold. I REALLY just want to shut it off...
I do remember a video he did playing Amazing Grace in a church. The video was a two-parter and completely blew me away! I think I may have seen it on his website, but it was a while back...
Anyway, because of that performance, I will always at least check out whatever he puts out next.
I admire him greatly. He just doesn't move me that often. ---------- Danny
Howard Levy is jazz man first and foremost, and thereby leaves a lot of people uninterested who probably don't listen to or maybe even like jazz. The fact that jazz, in the words of BB King, is the "higher education" of the blues seems to be irrelevant to many people. They just don't relate to it. Adam Gussow has used, in this forum, the phrase "a jazz man's imagination" when referring to a certain blues harp player (was it Kim Wilson?). There is a difference, and not everyone has that imagination or relates with it. I think Howard has a larger audience and is appreciated more in the jazz realm, as with Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, of which he was a co-founder. Remember, this is the USofA, where jazz, what some call America's classical music, has never had the welcome or appreciation that is has enjoyed in Europe and even in Japan. Jazz players historically and routinely leave the US just to be able to make a living in Europe. Howard's playing will never be fully appreciated on a blues forum in the US. ---------- Matthew
He is a uniquely talented harmonica player. I find his music boring. When it comes up on my iTunes library, I usually turn it off and listen to someone else. I'm not into what he does.
If you have eclectic taste, there will be times when you love what Howard does.
No one has expanded the musical horizons of the diatonic like Howard.
Having met him once, and spent a little time with him, he is a genuinely warm person and a very good teacher, as well.
However, I have moods where I want to hear Chicago blues, or country blues, or diatonic jazz, or chromatic jazz, etc. I don't listen to Howard all the time as he doesn't speak to the mood I'm in all the time. Much of the time, I don't listen to harp at all.
All that being said, Howard is a genius of the diatonic harmonica. But when I want blues, I don't turn to Howard. It's interesting to note, however, that like with most of us, it was the Chicago blues harp sound that turned him on to the instrument.
I think the most important take away from this thread is that Howard has done more with this instrument than any one else in the world ever AND he can do it while playing piano. His versatility is unparalleled.
He may not be your first choice for blues, but he can play blues as well as jazz, bebop, country, world music, etc.
Personally, he was a significant influence on my playing. I learned to overblow from listening to UFO Tofu. I've gleaned a great deal of technique, finesse and accuracy as a result of studying his playing.
All these skills ultimately improved my ability to play BLUES.
I think it's hard for a lot of us to separate between music that is deeply emotional, and music that speaks to us. Just because a song doesn't speak to you personally does NOT make it unemotional and cold. I also think that too many people write off music that is technically complex before giving it a proper chance. Don't listen to it just 2 or 3 times, listen to it 10 or 20 times, and then evaluate it. After all, if it's more complex, it takes longer for the brain to process. I honestly get bored listening to too much music that's too simple. Don't get me wrong, simple music is also a huge part of my listening. I just think you may be selling yourself short by writing off music as too technical. I believe the most imoprtant element of music above all is groove. And that is something howard has oozing out of every pore. Musicality and emotionality too. Sorry to rant a litlle bit, but I had to get that off my chest. ----------
Last Edited by on Mar 03, 2012 3:08 PM
mabey a set up harp for OB-ETC. can`t get the big fat honk tone like a otb marine band harp.Howard Levy is a fantastic harp player,his style fantastic , but tone is thin compared to ,say, James Cotton, i`m amazed by what he does ,H.L.THAT IS.. But when i hear the honkin` that J.C. Does,it moves me like the hootchie kootchie main.
Last Edited by on Mar 03, 2012 3:17 PM
You guys convinced me. He is a uniquely talented harmonica player. I find his music amazing. When it comes up on my iTunes library, I usually turn it up and listen intensely. I'm love what he does.
With Howard Levy there are times when I find I share Lester Young´s reaction to Sonny Stitt´s circus tricks, as related by Stan Getz: "On a JATP tour Young was catnapping on the bus in an aisle seat when Sonny Stitt took out his saxophone and began walking up and down the aisle playing all his licks. Nobody paid any attention to him, so finally he went over to Young and said, `Hey, Prez, whadda you think of that?´ Prez, his eyes half closed, said, `Yes, Lady Stitt, but can you sing me a song?´”
Levy is to a certain extent the victim of his own fluency, all that technique has gotta come out. But, as Larry says above, on some earlier stuff you can really hear what a formidable musician he is -- not just a formidable technician. Blues is, as far as I know, not one of his primary areas of interest and some people here seem to take for granted that blues is the only benchmark of good harmonica playing.
Well, in many ways Howard is to the Harmonic what Bela is the banjo. I’m sure there’s probably a similar discussion on a bluegrass forum somewhere.
If you’re not moved by jazz or classical you’re probably not going to be moved by Howard, Bela and the likes.
His playing is not unemotional it’s just not grits and gravy. It’s not comfort music that wraps you in a blanket and says it’s going to be ok. Music from folks like Howard, Bela and the likes says it can be hard out there but, it can also be beautiful. It doesn’t come easy and it may not come at all. And like much of jazz it’s about communication and listening. Hearing what one person is saying and taking their idea further or maybe turning it back to them to more fully explain.
It’s about risk and playing the dangerous notes. Living a bit on the edge and taking chances. It is life, rooted in the blues, but always striving to rise above.
Howard is too bloody perfect it makes me too depressed listening to him.
Seriously I think he is so brilliant with technical skills that are, for the majority of us, way out of reach. Also we should, on our level, be satisfied with where we are at? Many here are able to communicate their music on a level that others understand & enjoy? That is not to say regardless of where we are at that we shouldn't strive to advance our skills.
There are many players here and elsewhere that I look up to. I can understand what they are doing even if I cannot yet achieve the same results. But seriously following someone playing jazz brilliantly in eg 11th pos using every possible overblow & bend with perfect intonation is something I just cannot get my head around.
The song that won the Grammy's is harmonica based-- I listened to it on YouTube, and started a thread on Slidemeister a couple of nights ago. Most people don't care for it, and I have to admit it doesn't appeal to me like some of the best of what the Flecktones have to offer. Has anyone tried to play the song in question?
Good comments, also nice to hear from those who actually enjoy listening to Howard's playing rather than just admiring his virtuosity.
@ timeistight thanks for the word 'mensch' I hadn't heard of it before. I googled it and found a profound and enlightening explanation as to the fullness of it's meaning.
@ Gnarly Good luck to anyone attempting it, I won't be trying it anytime soon though:) ---------- Grey Owl YouTube Grey Owl Abstract Photos
Last Edited by on Mar 04, 2012 1:16 AM
I can't quite understand why Howard has been given a number of negative comments here.
Granted, this forum is Modern Blues Harmonica, but Howard has mastered a number of genres including blues, he's been one of the greatest innovators of the Richter tuned diatonic harmonica. He gave us overblows and I don't know anyone alive who has his intonation on bends.
He's a huge influence on most of the new innovators on our instrument. Boris, Filip Jers, Bart, Alex Paclin to name a few all have more than a nod to Howard in their playing.
Here he is playing with Victor Wooten:
Expand your minds people.......
Last Edited by on Mar 04, 2012 1:26 AM
The problem with Howard is that his music simply doesn't interest me. I find it boring, self indulgent and full of technique for techniques sake. I feel the same about most of Chris Michalek's material and quite a lot of Jason Ricci's stuff. Carlos Del Junco on the other hand is much more interesting to me. He seems to mostly use technique to support the music, not simply to say "Look at me Ma". A lot of modern jazz players leave me feeling this way (not just harmonica players). There are many blues players as well that leave me cold.
I have to admit that I've never really listened to Howard's music before so I've had a quick browse of youtube and the vids in this thread. I don't think I heard one song which I would have listened to again. He is a great player but his music doesn't move me at all. However I think that is more to do with my very limited musical education rather than just pure taste. I listened to a classical music programme in the car the other night and a music critic was explaining the musical emotions and feelings behind a violin piece which was then played. If he hadn't spoken about this first I would have changed the station but I listened to the piece the whole way through and I could see what the critic was getting at and what the composer was trying to convey with his music. It was a bit of a revelation to me.
Perhaps if I had more of this type of musical knowledge I could understand Howards music better. After all he did win a Grammy so better musicains than I'll ever be must think he's doing something right. ---------- Oisin
Last Edited by on Mar 04, 2012 3:20 AM
Brave of you to speak your mind and heart re:technique for its own sake. I hope you get respect for your honesty rather than hammered by others that don't share your sentiments. ---------- The Iceman
i hear alot of people here saying jazz vs. blues with howard levy and jazz on is own being out there compared to blues.I been listening to jazz and blues since 60`s and most jazz horn players [originators] have a big fat, even honk tone,because the base of jazz is BLUES...I bet a lot of harp honk comes from listen and assimilate the trumpet growling and mute waa the jazz dudes started.blues language jazz or chicago or any where else is a fat in your face tone ,looking at the originators...
Iceman - Well I do like to live life on the edge! lol
colman - Yes indeed. Many of the best Chicago/West Coast harp players around are influenced by early Jump Blues and Jazz Saxophone and Trumpet as well as other harmonica players. Dennis Gruenling is a fine example of this.
Last Edited by on Mar 04, 2012 4:59 AM
@Kingley: Interestingly, I don't feel much passion coming from 90% of people who call themselves--and whom you would call--blues harmonica players. I hear and feel other good and interesting things, but I don't feel passion: very strong, committed, crazed energy, the sort that is very much alive when we're actually FEELING the blues. I play that way--on "I Want You," "C.C. Rider" (on HARLEM BLUES and on my current album), the uptempo portion of "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," "Southbound")--and Jason certainly plays that way. Rod Piazza plays with a lot of passion; he swings so hard it's scary. Big Walter sometimes did; he his hit notes extremely hard sometimes and you knew he meant them. Cotton on "Creeper Creeps Again" did. Little Walter sometimes played with a lot of passion--on "Key to the Highway" and "Back Track"--but sometimes he just played pretty and complicated, with a light attack. That's great stuff, something to take joy in--and original, certainly. But we shouldn't confuse it with truly passionate playing.
Todd Parrott is a truly passionate player. That's why I love what he does and why he's coming to Hill Country Harmonica this year. Jimi Lee has the same gift. Both players have their own sound, but what they actually play, in the moment, is driven by real passion.
What bores me is excess stylization, a refusal to take risks. I like a big helping of no-holds-barred. I like players who give me the sense that they're reaching for something slightly beyond what they're actually capable of playing. Balls to the wall. Scare me. Show me something I've never heard before. Not every player, not even every great player, plays like that, of course. Jimmy Reed didn't. James Cotton doesn't play like that these days. And of course I'm capable of appreciating a wide range of blues harmonica excellence. But what I really crave, when I'm honest about it, is the crazy edge, and one reason I'm recording more of my own music is to put a bit more of that sort of playing out there. The opening cut on my new album, "Southbound," is a good example of what I'm talking about. It's not the most complex playing in the world--it's nowhere near Howard, Carlos, or Jason's, certainly--but it has the crazy edge. If you like that sort of thing.
One reason that Harp2Heart has fans here is that he plays and sings that way.
Last Edited by on Mar 04, 2012 5:51 AM
It has nothing to do with 'understanding" what Howard Levy does, or whether the music we happen to listen to isn't "serious" enough. That's a fairly presumptious comment. It isn't the blues. A lot of us prefer our harmonica in a blues format. Simple as that.
these discussions are by in large a waste of time IMO. We all know what turns us on and off with music. There is no definition that could be proven in a court of law for definitive puroses to end these evergoing "debates". Passionate, emotional, moving, great, boring, are all subjective terms. If it moves you it does. If it doesn't it doesn't. I could argue jimmy reed is a powerhouse of emotion/a master of blues or a totally boring 3rd rate at best player that should have learned to tune his guitar. There is no right or wrong with art. We are all equally qualified experts. The Music business has appointed itself the gods of what is all these things and they feed it to the masses and the masses follow what they say. Those that disagree will rarely be swayed by another that has an opposite opinion. In most cases it polarizes them further to thier original intentions. I remember when I was playing the black cat lounge in austin one night. Willie Nelson came in and wanted to sit in with my band. I was real excited but the owner Paul told him no. He told willie to his face he hated his voice and couldn't sing in his club. He was welcome to drink beer and listen but not perform. Paul ran his club his own way. He alienated many but knew what he liked and disliked regardless of what the medias preached! I learned a lot from Paul on this stuff. Walter ---------- walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year. " life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller
I started this thread because I was genuinely puzzled why we don't hear more about Howard Levy.
I think the majority of the posts have answered my question. As Walter suggests if someone's music doesn't connect with you then that's the end of the story.
Just exactly does it mean that we are all equally 'qualified' experts? I don't want to sound elitist, but having studied music and having been a professional musician for well over a decade, I think I'm significantly more qualified than someone who dabbles in music a little in their spare time. I don't understand why art falls in to a special category, simply because it's deeply connected with emotion. This would be a ridiculous discussion if we were talking about opinions on a theory of physics, a particular law, or a mathmatical formula. Everyone is entitled to an opinion, and no one's opinion is wrong, this much is true. Opinions can however be ignorant and shortsighted, or informed and educated. I'm not trying to offend anyone, or take aim at anyone in particular,Just giving a little food for thought. ----------
@sammyharp << I don't understand why art falls in to a special category, simply because it's deeply connected with emotion. This would be a ridiculous discussion if we were talking about opinions on a theory of physics, a particular law, or a mathmatical formula.>>
Isn't art always connected w/emotion? Physics, law and math are black/white and are based on formulas and proof (for the most part - except law, I guess - too slippery). I don't feel that you can successfully lump art/math together in an emotional sense. I may feel that 2+2=4 is not emotionally moving, but must accept it as fact. ---------- The Iceman
True, but music is also based on formulas and patterns. We musn't forget that Math is a HUGE part of music, whether we are aware of it or not. Also, Math and physics, etc. which are largely based on facts, are also deeply emotional fields. Albert Einstein was once asked why he was so certain his theory or relativity was right. He replied 'Beacause it is so beautiful'. Many physicists are also avid musicians or music lovers, and there is definitely a strong connection there. ----------
Last Edited by on Mar 04, 2012 8:26 AM
“I think the majority of the posts have answered my question. As Walter suggests if someone's music doesn't connect with you then that's the end of the story.”
That is one way to live life. I choose to live mine differently. If the art connects with me or doesn’t connect with me is just the beginning of the story. Why do I like it, why don’t I like it? Do I not like what’s being presented, or do I not like how it’s being presented? Do I really know what’s being presented?
Have you ever heard a song or a poem or looked at a work of art and thought wow, that’s really beautiful. And then later learn more about the work from your own study or from the artist and then think that it’s not beautiful at all.
Consider of the number of times over the years that a work of art (song, painting, poem) became popular because of the music, rhythm or color palette and was later despised after the actual meaning was revealed.
I believe there is a right and wrong with art. I believe art that creates chaos and whose only intent is to create chaos is wrong. I believe that art that creates chaos with the intent of waking people to make a positive change is good.
“True, but music is also based on formulas and patterns. We musn't forget that Math is a HUGE part of music, whether or not we are aware of it.”
The notation and communication of music may be based on formulas and patterns but the presentation of those scales and formulas can vary dramatically. Not all minor keyed music is sad and melancholy, and not all major keyed music is happy. That is why we discuss music theory and not music science.
I don't agree with that. Physics can actually be used to explain how music is made. Vibrations are vibrations, whether physical or emotional. The reason music evokes emotion is that it physically vibrates in sync with our emotional vibrations. Therefore, you can explain emotion of music in physical terms. I don't think the mental and physical can be separated, but one can be used to explain the other. ----------
Last Edited by on Mar 04, 2012 8:59 AM
I think Waltertore hit the nail on the head. If you're seriously trying to argue that a person isn't qualified enough to know his or her own likes and dislikes, then you're missing the nail and hammering your own thumb (and as for the categorisation of music into serious and non-serious - yeah, thanks for that insight). The problem with this debate is that it conflates two different arguments. One is to do with people knowing what they like and dislike, having their own opinions. The other is to do with expertise in a given field. I agree with sammyharp here - someone who's more qualified is going to be able to explain the effect of a particular piece of music more convincingly. But still, that doesn't invalidate someone else's likes and dislikes.
Edit: By the way, I like Howard Levy!
Last Edited by on Mar 04, 2012 9:54 AM
I think we don't hear that much about Howard Levy on this forum for the same reason that we don't hear much about Stevie Wonder or Toots Thielmans: they're not primarily blues harmonica players. They're simply wonderful harmonica players. Howard has been much more important to the blues harmonica world, IMO, as an influence on other, more blues-focused players (Jason, Carlos, Iceman, me, etc.) than as a blues player in his own right. Regardless of how well he might jam on a 12-bar blues, that's clearly not his main thing.
Quick: name a blues song--something from the Chicago, West Coast, Texas, Piedmont, or contemporary blues tradition--that Howard has recorded. What's his best-known recording of a blues? (Jazz blues not allowed.) I'm sure it can be done--I'm sure somebody on this forum can name such a recording--but I'm equally sure that few of us can.
That's why we don't spend a lot of time discussing him. It's not a reflection on his playing. It's a reflection on his relative tangential-ness to the idiom and tradition that this forum is centered around.
Last Edited by on Mar 03, 2012 3:08 PM
