Since we're deep into summer vacation time, I thought I'd risk an off-topic thread. We know that Chris trains dogs and Jason is a mad skateboarder. My own passion, in the years just before I picked up a harp (i.e., age 12-16) and then again for two years in the recent past (2000-2002) was table tennis.
The game I played was NOT your Uncle Charlie's basement game. I played competitive table tennis. In my teens I attended two summer camps--one week, then three weeks--sponsored by Dell Sweeris out in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The USA champ, Danny Seemiller, taught at the latter. In 2002 I attended a camp at Danny's training facility in South Bend, Indiana.
Between 2000 and 2002 I studied intensely--much as many of you are now deep into the harp. I had some talent, but not very much in the overall scheme of things. I had professional-grade strokes but my reflexes, fast as they were, just didn't make the grade. My rating ended up in the 1350 range. But I paid a handful of teachers $40 an hour for many hours of "coaching," which means they rallyed with me, offered pointers, but mostly provided me with, as they say, a "good ball," so that my own strokes felt and looked right.
My teachers included George Braithwaite, a former member of the US Team (one of the guys who participated in "Ping Pong diplomacy" in the early 1970s), Atanda Musa (the best player ever to come out of Africa), Renata Peluchova (former member of the Czech national team), Alex Perez (a Dominican tournament player) and, at the end, Wally Green.
Wally was one of the few top African American players, and certainly the most colorful. He lived in Harlem, not far from where Mr. Satan used to live, and he spoke with a distinctive New Yawk accent, in hip-hop time.
All top tournament players have dazzling abilities, but Wally, although his rating wasn't quite as high as the others (maybe 2200, compared with 2400-2600 for Musa and Renata), had a special kind of intensity that called to me. His attitude was cocky. I liked and responded to that. And he was a nurturing and conscientious teacher, which isn't what one might expect from a guy who was so focused on making it himself. He instilled in me a sense that I carry into my harmoninca playing that the woodshed, the practice hall, is where you slowly and intensely hammer yourself into shape. He was a single dad, raising a small boy. He was a good father.
Here's a video that introduces you to the guy. I believe these days that he's working on a hip-hop career over in Japan. He was great friends with a lot of top European players; they all thought he was cool as hell and used to hang out with him at tournaments. Wally spoke some German. Table tennis pulled him out of the hood and introduced him to the world; and he jumped on the chance and played it HARD, which always impressed me.
I've always said that table tennis and blues harmonica have a lot in common. Bending notes is sort of like putting spin on balls. You're applying a lot of vectoring force to a small object in a very short time-frame.
One thing you may have noticed about halfway into the video above is a lot of glueing action. Tournament players regularly strip off both sheets of rubber and reglue them, usually just before they start practicing and/or just before they play major matches. The feeling of new rubber, freshly reglued, is very much like the feeling of a really, really good harp. The ball makes a loud "snock!" when it hits, and it rockets off the paddle. Everybody glues. Everybody argues about glue, rubber, paddles. The subcultural conversation revolves around this. It's the same thing as our conversation about custom harps, amps, mics. Exactly the same thing. This is what subcultures do. When you participate in several different subcultures, you start to see parallels.
Here's another, shorter video of Wally practicing. This brings back memories. Most people have no idea how physically demanding tournament table tennis is, and how distant the game is from "ping pong." (Ping Pong is a trademarked name for table tennis, BTW. Table tennis players use the term more or less as serious blues harp players use the words "Bob Dylan.")
I am also a fan of table tennis , not a semi pro like you , but growing up in a communist country we didn't had much to do as kids , we had a couple of outdoor tables and used to play 5 hours a day 5 days a week , so I consider myself half decent player .
I find it interesting to hear about people who have found inspiration from others. Here we have an indivdual who inspired you to improve in areas outside of your common interest. The discipline he provided found its way into your harp playing and now your harp playing is inspiring others. Neat how his influence is now flowing through you to others. Cool story Adam, thanks for sharing. ---------- "Keep it in your mouth" - XHarp
I'm gonna go off-off-topic to point out that the Klingon word for success is qapla'. So, qapla' in your playing. I don't know the Klingon word for harmonica. ---------- 'If it sounds GOOD to you, it's bitchen; if it sounds BAD to YOU, it's shitty' - Frank Zappa
I get a little too into ping pong, although I'm not very good. I was at a retreat once, playing ping pong against a very attractive young lady. We'd played a couple games and she asked me if I wanted to 'go outside and get some fresh air.' I said, 'no, let's play a few more games.'
Whodathunk you were into table tennis. I challenge you to a game on my back yard table if you ever get to Hawaii. I would lose but it would be fun. My neighbor has his own paddle at my house and we have frienly matches.
Last Edited by on Aug 07, 2009 6:19 PM
