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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! >
Defeated by Saxophone solo
Defeated by Saxophone solo
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bernmurd
11 posts
Apr 22, 2009
12:28 PM
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A while back I asked about transcribing horn parts to harmonica and ideas to help do so. The thread got poofed when the hosting Co did some work on the servers or something like that. Anyway, I got the song(well a reasonable facsimile...I'm happy). Well everything but the solo and the ending. the ending has a harp in it, but so much is going on that I lose it in the mix and the solo has whipped me. I'm sure that some of you will hear it and have it figured in no time, but I'm new-ish to the harp and wanted to be ambitious & push myself, but now I'm admitting defeat. So can you guys help? Is something that over time gets easier or is there some method to learning horn parts on the harp.
The song is Please Decide by the Slackers. They're a ska band from NYC, but the song is very un-ska ish. If you're familiar with grooveshark.com or lala.com you can hear it there.
thanks
Bernie
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sopwithcamels266
5 posts
Apr 23, 2009
9:22 AM
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May be I can have a go at replying to your post. A part from playing blues harp now and again ive been a jazz saxophonist for many many years so I may see things a little different.
I am not familiar with the music you mention so I will have to sort of generalise.
The inventor and Adolph sax died before he had had a chance to hear its full potential in music.The way it is desighned facilitates improvisation. Its an easy instrument to improvise on when starting out .Like all instruments however you have to work hard if you want to get good.
There are a lot of similarities on the diatonic harp. Having said that its a tall order to a nail a good horn solo.
If you like the solo my take on this would be to go for the approach not the note for note thing.
In fact that is what everyone should do on instruments take the approach.
Case in point we have all heard the blues harp player who does My Babe or Off the Wall or any of those and plays Walter note for note on the solo, pointless.
In my world we get the same thing guys spending 18 hours a day for 2 or 3 years on combinations of Coltraine substitue harmony cyle exercises.
Then they go out and do that,pointless.
There is a guy i met years ago Howard levy now he has nailed a fantastic unique way on harp but again he has to tailor his approach on the instrument.
The reason I came onto this forum because I was so impressed with Adam Gussows approach to playing harp.
I could hear in his playing the Ray Charles groove thing, I hear jazz influence and instant appeal.Yet it was all played in a kind of blues groove way.
Now that to me is clever because it hooked me and I
hadn't even heard of the guy until 5 weeks ago.
He has evolved into his way of doing it, and that is THE trick
So back to the original point I would aim for an approach to the melodic line that you can be comfortable with and kind of go from there.
I don't class my self as a good harp player I am OK
I use 4,5,6, overblows including bends thats my limit no overdraws , yet anyway.
So I kind of develop an approach to playing blues harp with those tools.To be honest last year I cheated and retuned 7 draw on a harp because I wasn't popping 6 OB fast enough on a up temp intro.
Anyway good luck I'm sure on this site one of these harp cats will be able to help better than me.
Just trying to spin a different angle on it.
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bernmurd
12 posts
Apr 24, 2009
7:19 AM
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Thanks Sopwith for the reply
I've been playing along with the song and the approach you suggested is what I've have been doing. Just playing the horn parts as what sounds similar to them and cool to me. I like the whole improvisational thing about the harp. That’s why I’m so drawn to it, but I think that for something like this is just a matter of time and practice. I can’t get the solo because my skills are lacking. Tough to admit, but something to work at and shoot for
Thanks,
Bernie
edited because I can't spell :)
Last Edited by on Apr 24, 2009 7:19 AM
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gene
178 posts
Apr 24, 2009
2:53 PM
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I don't know if this even approaches answering your question, but:
When I tab sax parts for harp, I tab for the key the sax plays (which is different than the key of the song) then I play those tabs on a harp that is the same as the key of the song. (Or tab for second or whatever position and play it on a second position harp.)
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