“To be a warrior is not a simple matter of wishing to be one. It is rather an endless struggle that will go on to the very last moment of our lives. Nobody is born a warrior, in exactly the same way that nobody is born an average man. We make ourselves into one or the other.
I'm not sure,but I think people are getting too upset worrying about ANYBody is saying about Anything. You can see who is posting (DON'T READ)if it will get your panties in a bunch. I sicken myself reading any of this s$%t instead of practicing.
Right about that blueharper, I removed my comment, it was stupid to respond.. nah... it was even stupid to read M's quotes... and face it.. if somebody is soooo confident about himself and above us mortals, why would this person have an endless need to show off at a harmonica forum.. of all places.... ---------- DutchBones Tube
You guys seriously don't know how to have fun. You'd all do well to study Miyamoto Musashi and his attitude of excellence.
Not once did I attempt to hide who owned the Musashi moniker and not once did Musashi pick on anybody or cause a stir. Nearly everything posted by Musashi was a quote from his book The Book of Five Ring. The attitudes and ideas found in there can be applied to whatever you guys are doing.
You guys need to seriously chill out and get to practicing rather than get spun up by some 500yr old dude's advice.
The biggest problem with this board is the nickmanes. That generates too many keyboard commandos. There are certain people here like Jason, Adam and Myself who's real identity is known but for so many others you have a cloak of anonymity and that makes you feel like you have bigger balls. A board like this would be a better place if there were more accountability and less BS. I'd bet most of you wouldn't post if we all knew who you really were.
I run my own board and the requirement is we all use our own names and guess what? There is no BS sniping and personal attacks like you see here.
As for me and my own attitudes, all I ever tried to do it help others on this board. Sometimes I get pissed off but for the most part I have been generous with my time and knowledge.
The biggest difference I see between me and many of you is, I'm looked upon as a peer rather than a guy that can really help you. For most of you here, I am not your peer, I am not your friend, I am just a guy trying to help you become a better harmonica player and musician. Sometimes that take a little push in the right direction.
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
Last Edited by on Mar 01, 2010 4:37 AM
Do I need to read Musashi's book in order to become one with the cosmos?
Seriously, though, Chris is an extremely accomplished and advanced player, with an extraordinary depth of knowledge. What he may lack in tact, he makes up for in expertise.
We are fortunate to have him posting here. Some complain that he is an egotistical show off. Well, if he wasn't, he probably wouldn't bother posting here at all. In reality, there's a lot more most of us can learn from him than he can learn from us. We should count our blessings.
Last Edited by on Mar 01, 2010 4:50 AM
for what you do hvyj the book of five rings wold be beneficial. Basically, if you intend to fight you must resign yourself to two things, you're willing to die and you are willing to killer.
If you're going to cut somebody make it a cut that will kill otherwise it's wasted effort.
Of course things are different in this day and age but there is nothing wrong with trying to be the best you can be which is what Musashi represents.
“Do nothing which is of no use.”
“In fighting and in everyday life you should be determined though calm. Meet the situation without tenseness yet not recklessly, your spirit settled yet unbiased. An elevated spirit is weak and a low spirit is weak. Do not let the enemy see your spirit.”
Link to a playlist with 14 videos http://www.youtube.com/share?p=29A507CACBFD025F
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
Brett w Clarke white Male Brn 15/4/60,Home town Newcastle NSW Australia,,Hobbies Harmonica,Customizing Harmonica Mic's,walking my dog,Playing Harmonica with my Guitarist Bro,Ebay user name(scruffyk9)inventor of The SK9 Little Honker Blues Harp microphone sold in the Harmonia section Ebay starting bid $55 - Buy It Now bid $60,best features rugged good looks you can't improve with a Chain saw Love all women evan the bad ones,no religion,Prefferd Harmonicas Hohner SP-20's & Lee Oskars 1 of 6 foundation members of the HARMONICIST COLLECTIVE www.hunterharps.com check my Pin on the weres waldo map if you wish to drop by..
Last Edited by on Mar 01, 2010 5:13 AM
The reality of the situation is that there are very few players indeed (they do exist...Sugar Blue, Joe Filisko play EVERTHING TB for example, there are others) that are wholly in one camp or the other. So it's questionable as to whether treating the 2 as mutually exclusive is helpful. Even guys who predominantly lip purse will use the tongue to switch to octave splits/jumps, conversely a lot of guys who TB predominantly will still revert to lip pursing some notes, like blow bends or very low notes on the diatonic (especially tenor tuned) for definition.
I am aware of a literal handful of players who TB everything.
Just to clarifty on Kingley's post of Feb 27, 4:22am..
Rod Piazza mixes it up, as did Bill Clark & Gary Primich, as does Kim Wilson, Jerry Portnoy, ...I think there are a lot of assumptions made with respect to traditional style players, that "They all" TB...they all might employ it at some stage, whether or not they typically play the majority of notes that way.
Paul Butterfield gets mentioned a lot with respect to LP playing but he never revealed to anyone AFAIK as to what he actually did...there's some dodgy quality mid 60's TV footage on youtube of him doing Born In Chicago & Juke...intro to BIC sounds like a tongue slap?
I once recorded 3 clips of me playing the same phrase as best I could using 3 different embouchures (1x TB, 2xLP), no deliberate articulation to give any clues...NOBODY got it right, correcty identifying all 3 approaches).
Not all TB'ers sound the same, not all LP'ers sound the same...there's more to the final result. You can LP with a large cavity, you can TB with a smaller cavity at the front of the mouth, or it a larger one at the side.
Concentrate on making good music, you'll only do this when you are comfortable, so that's the most important criteria.
Well, maybe the part where Sun Tsu counsels not to act unless the situation makes it advantageous to act... yeah, that could help keep a harp player from over playing.
I feel more oneness with the cosmos already (and I haven't even had my coffee yet).
Buddha- For the record, my name is Nathan Smith. I friended the group Facebook page a while back. There is a pin in the map that shows where I live. I use a nickname online because it's easier to track down posts I've forgotten about with a semi-distinctive handle.
You are right, you didn't hide who your new name was, but by switching names just after a running argument in one thread, and by deleting parts of threads in a way that backed up your story that you were being picked on for no reason in the thread made several people very upset.
I have no problem with your bluntness, although I think a lot of the information you give people could be delivered just as well if not better in another way. In my experience, the very best teachers can adapt how they teach from student to student. There are certainly people on this forum who respond well to your style. There are certainly people who don't.
I really didn't want to get drawn into the middle of this argument. I'm at a point in my life where this sort of stuff stays with me a lot longer than it should. I'm being honest here. Sun Tzu would probably warn me not to show weakness, but here is the deal. I'm one of a couple guys on here tasked with deleting spam. Moderators can delete or edit posts and threads, but we can't lock them short of just screaming at everyone. Mainly we deal with spam. Occasionally members as for a moderator when threads get overwhelmed with arguments.
I'm a moderator because the moderator before me got fed up with the arguments and the flack he took for trying to keep the peace. The position was offered to a couple other people first, because they didn't want the hassle. All we are trying to do is to keep the arguments from driving people away from the site, offer any useful insights we have (I've only been playing for a couple years so usually my insight comes down to knowing who you need to ask.)
The biggest difference I see between me and many of you is, I'm looked upon as a peer rather than a guy that can really help you.
It's all relative, though, isn't it? I see areas where you are clearly superior (OBs, modal jazz), but I also see areas where you are less accomplished than some other posters (blues).
This is a discussion board - the great equalizer of the modern age. I think that if you come to a discussion board and expect everyone to accept everything you say as gospel, and to never be challenged, then you need to manage your expectations better.
I think you have a lot to offer. But, like Nathan, I think that you might want to try a different bed side manner. And, hey, I need to work on mine too.
I am who I am. I don't ask others to change, I just accept them for who and what they are.
Let's not get into Chris can't play blues. Blues serves no real purpose to my mission which is to advance the harmonica into new genres.
What I play is MY choice. I've had bebop phases as well as blues, funk, folk, country, indian etc...
That said, I don't teach blues or jazz, I teach the harmonica and how to approach music. My music is my personal preference as much as it is your personal preference to play what you desire.
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
Exactly. And a point that has been made repeatedly here by many including myself.
But the actual point was you were discussing who were peers and who were subordinates. In your view we are all subordinate to you, not peers. At least that's how it reads. (Unless you delete it subsequently). My response is, if you make a statement like that be ready for people to point out the obvious.
Exciting exchange of posts between you and the dog's (that's english slang to you) Who are you and what is your musical provenance please? Just so we know :)
Exciting exchange of posts between you and the dog's (that's english slang to you) Who are you and what is your musical provenance please? Just so we know :)
I'm familiar with that slang term, Nick.
I'm a blues player.
Cheers mate
Ev630,
Obviously you think I need some form of harmonica instruction. Teach me what you are best at.
Thanks.
Not at all. That is not at all the point I am making. Please don't twist and spin.
The point is simple. You infer in your post you are superior to people on this board. I pointed out in response that you are superior to some in places (OBs, modal jazz) and inferior to others in places (blues). Therefore don't expect all of your statements to be seen as black-letter law and don't expect everyone to unquestioningly kiss your ass.
There is no question you have a lot to offer. Offer it or don't, but don't hold your breath waiting for people who play the blues to build a temple to the Buddha.
Nick, here's an example of what I'm into. Straight ahead Chicago stuff. The rest of the clips are just aimless noodling and noise making to sell or demo amps.
Sorry, I missed two questions directed to me here. I must apologize since I don't check this too often, and I don't want anyone to think I'm avoiding questions.
Re: Ryan (on 1st page here whether Adam was referring to the TB approach & techniques "as a whole" or the tone of the single notes played with TB specifically when I quoted him. And then you saying that "I'm still not convinced that TB gives individual notes a bigger richer sound than LB (when it's done correctly that is), like many people claim."
I can't speak for Adam, so I'm not sure what he meant and you raise a valid point to his original meaning.
All I can add is that I hear a difference in tone with every player I've asked to do this, from absolute beginners, to professionals who've been playing for years. I would say that even though I believe one can get a very good sound LB, when utilizing TB "correctly" (or should I say learn, practice and use to the point where they can use it to it's full advantage), there's a difference in my experience and with dozens of players & students I've known. But even for people trying it out the first time, I (and almost 100% of them) can hear the difference with a single note. And one more thing I'll add is that many students & pros I know don't utilize TB more because they never learned and/or worked on the finer points of TB bending & control. Not a criticism, just an observation.
Re:MichaelAndreLo (also on 1st page asking if i think TB is more relaxed than LB)
I think it depends on the player. Some beginner LB'ers and TB'ers play with too much tension in general. That's kind of a stage that most people go through when learning though and hopefully un-learn, regardless of approach. I wouldn't say it's totally true that TB is more relaxed, since some people tense up too much in their mouth to learn it and/or push too hard with their tongue while learning it. But overall I think TB is more conducive to a relaxed approach. While at the same time it can be an easier way to "feel your way" up & down the harp, give you added richness in tone, give you added textures & effects available at the tip of you tongue (literally!), and rhythmic chordal variations not available while LB.
Re:Ev630 (clarinet)...I'm a big Pee Wee Russell & Kenny Davern fan myself
Thanks, German Harpist. Your advisory is called for.
Luckily, the full moon was last night and things will soon be settling back into collegiality around here.
Given the recent disasters in Haiti and Chile; given the sacred function of music as a force for creating community down through time; etc., etc.; I can't help but feel that this forum is leading a whole lot of good people to waste lots of needed heart & soul energies on anger, aggression, and trivia. It shouldn't surprise me, but it does. I keep imagining that people here are smarter than that--or wiser than that.
Good conversation is a valuable thing. Division is a terribly easy thing to create, and it gets in the way of good conversation.
What is the trombonists' equivalent of lip pursing vs. tongue blocking? I'm sure that violinists have endless debates about the proper wrist position--even while thousands of people die in earthquakes. And I'm sure the debates are worth having. What's the ideal way of throwing a frisbee? When you buzz on a kazoo, should the tip of your tongue be on the hole, or on the roof of your mouth? But I'm also quite sure that the insults aren't worth making, and reflect a lack of considered reflection about the truly important things in life. Harmonica techniques, as important as we're inclined to make them, just aren't important enough to fight over. Lip pursing! Tongue blocking! Anyway who has been shaken by a near-death experience, as I was back in 2000, will understand this comment.
I wonder how our debates, and our insults, look to violinists?
Please make more music.
Last Edited by on Mar 01, 2010 7:38 PM
Man I love Pee Wee Russell. Kenny Davern is new to me, I'm ashamed to say. I also like Hubert Rostaing from the Hot Club of France, on the Django's Blues LP.
My dad was a clarinetist so I grew up with this stuff and was made to learn the instrument from a young age, and Mezz Mezzrow's "Really the Blues" was one of the first adult books I read.
I no longer really listen to the trad jazz but occasionally I'll dig out Fountain's LP "Crescent City". I just love the B-side, especially that take of Basin Street Blues. Fountain's phrasing and tone are unbelievable.
(sorry for lack of harp content, let alone thread content)
Yea, Kenny (who was a close friend of Pee Wee's & kind of a protege) gave me a copy of Really the Blues and also of Pee Wee's biography. Great stuff. Kenny was awesome. Feel free to contact me offlist if you wanna chat about OJC-Old Jazz Clarinet ;)
Hi, I'm curently reading Musashi's GORIN-no-SHO(the book of five rings) and I can say that it's a really interesting book. I know I'm a bit off topic but It's just to bizarre a coincidence.
Hi BadAss-H your 4 paragraph is a very good Observation,I'm recovering from patial Blindness cornial transplant in the left eye i relyed heavly on my Hearing,now I'm made to think back 24 years 95% blind i got my OP 4 years back i still have exceptional hearing i to can hear the difference in Tone..
The thread seems to be calming down.Good Thing.I could say who I am,but it would'nt matter.Every body should practice or play or whatever advances what we do.I'm not sure if if it is this forum,but someone said "Keep it in your mouth" Oh,by the way I'm listening to Amy Winehouse.
Yes, rpoe I updated the list! I got to take care of one of Artie Shaw's wives. Her name was Evelyn Keyes and she told me that Artie loathed his audience because they would dance to it! I guess not until be bop did jazz become listening music. They went off and moved to spain and he just practiced nonstop even though he wasn't playing concerts. I guess true artists are always underground, even if they were the biggest things in their day!
SORRY - I took it here (along with Drew I guess), didn't mean to get this far off-topic. I just didn't feel right not posting these since others were posting clips.
Pee Wee played with everyone from Bix to Thelonious Monk. And not really categorizable, aside from being very musical, "whiskey-toned", and able to wring the most abstract bittersweet melodies this side of Lester Young.
Kenny (who was also friend/protege of Pee Wee's), was also his own man. Seen him dozen & dozens of times. Great guy, grew up playing blues in strip joints in NYC and considered best of his generation. These clips don't even do them justice, but we can't see them live anymore. I sure miss Kenny.
Ok,You want every clarinet player,every sax player every horn player.I know every one gets there influences somewhere.I am really computer illiterate,but even I can find this stuff somewhere. Maybe it is time to end this thread.
Although it was a digression, raising clarinet players was pertinent to the discussion of how physiognomy can affect the tone of any wind instrument, not just harp.
Uh.... Except maybe bagpipes and Cambodian nose flutes.
No Ev630 is was pertinent to show cool examples of good musical playing. We all know you're rather obsessed with saying "physiognomy" as much as possible, which seems more important to you than musical clarinet playing. Any discussions involving the word "physiognomy" are done/over.
Please would every one please stop this open cyber fight it is doing nothing for the rep of MBH or the very reason we are here the Harmonica,I'm not pointing fingers there has been more than 1 antagonist to this thread it must be stopped Please we are Abassadors for our fine instrument it saddens me deeply what you are doing for the rep of the Harmonica Please forget about your self think about the Harmonica
No Ev630 is was pertinent to show cool examples of good musical playing. We all know you're rather obsessed with saying "physiognomy" as much as possible, which seems more important to you than musical clarinet playing. Any discussions involving the word "physiognomy" are done/over.
I have no idea why you react so hysterically and aggressively. It was a valid point in response to an observation you made. Why are you behaving like a child?
Dennis, I'll contact you offline. May be able to dub you some clarinet LPs to CD that are out of print.
Last Edited by on Mar 02, 2010 12:32 AM
Some of the postings here and on a few other things like the OB arguement, have had too much of a tone of somebody insulting someone's manhood with ridiculously over testosterone-like responses that border on who's trying to be tougher than the other guy. It's really sad, and too often something Harp-L was and in many ways, still is notorious for. It's like getting some one drunk enough, they suddenly have "liquid courage," and now with the computer, it's easy to hide behind the screen and your keyboard and get "computer courage." It's flat out bullying at its worst, and here my few words on that:
SHUT UP WITH THAT ALREADY AND KEEP IT IN CHECK!!!!! IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH IT, GET OFF THE FREAKING FORUM NOW!!!!!! ---------- Sincerely, Barbeque Bob Maglinte Boston, MA http://www.barbequebob.com CD available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bbmaglinte
