I'll post no pics, but let me say this....after burning Adam's lesson? on St. Louis Blues...(can't overblow, had to improvise) for nearly three hours yesterday...both sides of my upper lip have developed SERIOUS blisters. Today? I KEPT PLAYING IT. What the hell is wrong with me? Whoever else maims themselves to do what they love and then follows it up with more of the same?
Great.... now...two things...A small investment in lip balm AND I've got to take some time off. (sigh)
My throat is sore this morning due to practicing throat vibrato. I took it down to another level last night, eg. oy oy oying deeper down in the throat and it hurts this morning. ----------
Last fall I went to a bluegrass festival, and played harp from 10 pm to 2 am on night, and 10 am to 2 am the next day. I think that was a real turning point for me with the harp.
1) Seal those combs! 2) Cut away the protruding wood!
One thing you probably haven't considered is that there are layers of dried on saliva and/or dead skin on the cover plates that have hardened into shapes than are cutting your lips apart. What you should do every few weeks is get a GOOD quality, lint free paper towel (NEVER be a cheapskate here because cheap stuff gives off lint and you don't want to be breathing in that at all), and get some isoporpyl alcohol, preferably 91% by volume, which you can get for cheap money in any drug store, and periodically clean off the cover plates. You'd be shocked at just how much crap has dried on them. ---------- Sincerely, Barbeque Bob Maglinte Boston, MA http://www.barbequebob.com CD available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bbmaglinte
yep. When my marine bands put grooves in the corners of my lips, I put on the blistex and switch to harpmasters or special 20s....lol...it's a disease.
Last Edited by on Dec 11, 2009 12:20 PM
I play sp 20's...so, no rough edges to speak of, and i keep toothpics handy to keep gunk out of the holes and in between the plates and covers, im pretty sure that friction was my enemy that day...tryin the same lick over and over, moving up and down the harp repeatedly.
"...What you should do every few weeks is get a GOOD quality, lint free..."
You've got to be joking! :) I have Promasters. I polish them with chamois or microfiber towel every time I put one down!! My Golden Melody--not quite as often.
Been there done that and will not use wooden harps for extended periods. Newer plastic harps ok but some like the Manji have protruding reed plates that can also ouch.
barbequebob> agree but disagree ie instead of every few weeks make it a daily regime. I use Kendall Webcol - Skin Cleansing Alcohol Wipes + lint free cloths. The wipes are inexpensive ie I was buying them in small lots from a local pharmacy but when purchasing a box of 200 the price was only cents per wipe. With my harps I also strip them and clean the comb & plates & covers in warm water with a denture tablet, then wash off in clean water and allow to air dry before reassembly. They come up like new & even (my imagination) sound better.
Kyser> dry lips could be the cause. In dry windy weather I have to prevent myself from constantly licking my lips as it only makes them worse. Moisten the harp with your tongue.
Last Edited by on Dec 11, 2009 7:36 PM
I used to take a bit of flak here because I used Gordon's Gin in a little spray bottle to clean my harps--and I did it really frequently because the taste was a LOT better than that Isoshithole stuff some people use.
Now I use a product called Mi-T-Mist--available at Guitar Center. It's some stuff woodwind players use to clean their mouthpieces--spray a little on the covers and into the hole--wipe it off with a lint-free cloth--it leaves a nice minty flavor and cleans away the gunk nicely. I try to do this once every day I use the harp--and I go through and clean them all and check them the night before I go out to play.
To keep the gunk that collects just inside the holes out--a denture cleaning brush works great--just flik the brush into and away from the harp and it'll flip it out at the drummer. A really good shot will hit the high hat and make a little tinky noise.
Even at that, there is just no substitute for doing a full Jason Ricci number on your harps every now and then--I've seen this make a tired harp good for another life in the fast lane--without even re-tuning it. Here is how to do it--from Jason himself:
