I'm surprised there hasn't been a video lesson about this yet. It's very useful and prominent in the styles of famous harp players...
First a definition:
The tongue can be used to start or attack notes differently, which changes the color of the notes and adds variety to the sound of the harp. These articulations can be associated with various spoken syllables, like saying "ta" or "ka" or "da" or "ha" or "ga", etc.
I'd suggest simplifying them after you've compiled your list - for example there's no difference between D, T and N when your mouth is constricted by the harp (all three are palatals): how open your nose is will already be part of your playing anyway. Nor is there a difference between a G and a K (both gutturals). Those legal eagles who point out the difference in explosiveness, I'd say control your explosiveness by feel, not by rote.
I quite like hee dee hee dee (which is really the same as Portnoy's Hutta Hudda) etc when I'm feeling too lazy to do a tucka tucka, but especially when I want it to swing more. I call it heedee because it reminds me of Cab Calloway, but the vowel you pronounce will be further back than that.
Whether you do takada or tadaka is a matter of personal preference and susceptibility to tongue twisters! I prefer takada.
For me the problem is not articulation but forgetting to reverse my breath when I'm doing a train rhythm. It's kind of hypnotic - my breathing responds to my articulation. Perhaps it's because I'm used to the oboe where you only ever blow. ---------- Bollocks, Wiglaf!
Last Edited by on Oct 19, 2009 2:48 AM
It's a topic that rarely seems to get discussed, but is nevertheless very important to us harp geeks, or should be.
With regard to what Andrew said:
'Nor is there a difference between a G and a K (both gutturals). Those legal eagles who point out the difference in explosiveness, I'd say control your explosiveness by feel, not by rote.'
I'm not sure that's strictly true. Barrett points out on his DVD that ga will help to bend a draw note slightly: it's deeper in the throat than ka, at least it feels that way to me.
I don't think I can add to the list, but I would love to know how to articulate 4<' 4< 5< triplets at speed.
I once had a version of Ragged and Dirty on which the harp played that passage repeatedly at M.M. = circa 205. That's bloody fast and probably not possible without the right articulation - does anyone know that version? It was just guitar and harp.
Also, there's this passage at around 2:50 - 2:53:
I imagine that there's some serious tongue twisting going on there. ---------- YouTube SlimHarpMick
"Barrett points out on his DVD that ga will help to bend a draw note slightly: it's deeper in the throat than ka"
Point taken, but I'd stress that it's better to practice articulated bends for themselves, rather than compile huge lists of articulations that you think will accomplish this for you.
(I was going to crack a joke about how good American harpists would be if they weren't so anti-hamitic (Arabic has an amazing range of guttural consonants), but I don't think they'd get the joke.) ---------- Bollocks, Wiglaf!
You can get some really nifty chord rhythms going on with just these types of articulations. One I do to warm myself up (and which also sounds cool, I think) is this:
+Ha +tucka -nucka +tucka -Ha +tuck -Ha
The last "Ha" should be held for two beats, which makes this a 2 bar riff. I play it first all down low on the 123 or 1234 holes, and then I will vary it by playing all the "nucka tucka" parts on the 123, but then going up to the 345 for the "Ha" parts (blow and draw). It's darn easy, but I think it actually sounds pretty good, and it's also good on recycling breath (ie. you won't run out of air). Once I get "limbered up" on it, I'll replace some of the "Ha"s with single notes (2, 3b, 4, or 34 draw), and then filling in some bars with "solos" by wailing on the 4 or warbling the 4 and 5. ---------- ------------------ The magnificent YouTube channel of the internet user known as "isaacullah"
Last Edited by on Oct 19, 2009 10:29 AM
for nice repeated note tongue slaps breathing in or out, or to articulate runs. sounds pretty neat on a drawn out three draw bend. i work to drop the back of my tongue and open my throat while doing it, the vowels help with that
Man,the combinations are endless! Basically,you're talking(or singing) through the harp.Trying drawing on only one hole and see how many different sounds you can get.I think its one of those factors that contribute to all those nuances the top harp players get.
