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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! >
High harps, low harps
High harps, low harps
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Andrew
401 posts
Jul 05, 2009
5:08 AM
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I was noodling at the train station on my Eb harp the other day and realised that my bends were all done in the mouth, not in the throat, and after playing with a few harps at home, I decided that Bb and below required throat bends and D and above required mouth bends. C is on the cusp, but tending towards high.
This makes it harder for beginners to learn bending, I guess - the beginner has got himself a C or a D harp, and someone who prefers an A harp tries to teach him how to bend.
Adam recommends a C or D harp for a beginner, but points out that his first 40 or so YouTube postings are done on a Bb harp.
Do you think mouth or throat bends are easier (I think throat)? So should a beginner start on a Bb or A harp, rather than on a C or D?
Last Edited by on Jul 05, 2009 5:08 AM
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Greg Heumann
97 posts
Jul 05, 2009
9:34 AM
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Its a little dicey defining one as a mouth or throat bend. Clearly every harp requires adjustment but for me all bends are done in that area of the mouth far enough back as to be called either. New players SHOULD practice in multiple keys so as not to develop bad habits that don't translate well from harp to harp.
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/Greg
http://www.BlowsMeAway.com
http://www.BlueStateBand.net
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Blackbird
93 posts
Jul 05, 2009
2:50 PM
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My experience has been that the key of the harp didn't matter as much. It's all muscle memory as well as how well they've played out of the box. I have a few different styles of harp (Hohner blues, marine band, spec 20, golden melody, Syedel/Weltmeister Blackbirds, Lee Oskars) in a variety of keys and As an example, my Bb Special 20 plays and bends better out of the box than my Lee Oskar D does. I tend to use a C harp as my benchmark, and of the half dozen of those I've played, they all respond differently.
The Weltmeisters really taught me how a well made harp can help because they immediately just bent effortlessly, compared to anything the Hohner harps have done. I've done very limited and minor tinkering with my harps, realizing that I can't afford to destroy more than one at a time, as well as the age-old argument that you don't need to do it much if you learn how to play (let's not get into another out of the box vs. custom harp debate here! Plenty of those already!) The minor tinkers I have done have helped more than any particular key or mfg has. And part of it is still me finding those muscles that allow me to bend a well set-up harp, vs. one that's a bit leaky or new, all with the same awareness and effectiveness.
That's my story and I'm stickin' to it...For now. ;)
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mickil
320 posts
Jul 05, 2009
2:55 PM
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Tricky question. I think that when I bend on a D or higher, I focus the air stream more at the front of my mouth; at least, that's what it feels like. I hope I'm making sense.
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'If it sounds GOOD to you, it's bitchen; if it sounds BAD to YOU, it's shitty' - Frank Zappa
http://www.youtube.com/user/SlimHarpMick
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snakes
292 posts
Jul 06, 2009
9:53 AM
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Not sure about throat versus mouth, but I did notice that the lower harps (like the key of A) required a much less subtle approach to bending and that was conducive to learning how to do my initial bends. Once I learned how to bend then I was better able to get in tune with the subtleties of the higher harps and bend on those harps as well.
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