nbalive2005
1 post
Jan 04, 2010
7:34 PM
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Hello, I am a new harmonica player, age 14, got it 4 days ago as a Christmas present to myself. I was looking at the first few JP Allen videos on the web, so i got acquainted with the marvelous instrument faster.
The Beatles, made me admire the harmonica, but when i started listening to Dylan, thats when i realized that i had to at least TRY to learn it.
Started out learning the intros to Love Me Do and From Me To You by The Beatles
Then i saw this link, http://www.harmonica.com/blog/125-the-15-most-popular-harmonica-tabssongs-in-the-world-ever.html
I am currently (trying to learn) Blowing in The Wind ( Easiest), Hey Jude ( Middle ) and Yesterday ( Hardest of the 3)
I also stumbled upon http://www.allguitartabs.com/t/36284/andrew-lloyd-webber--music-of-the-night--harmonica
The Music of The Night - Phantom of The Opera.
Which is on par difficulty wise to Yesterday. Now, my difficulty scale is just purely based on how easy it is for me to play a verse or the phrase, not the whole song because i get tired after playing just a verse or chorus!
My questions.
1. Is JP Allen, a worthwhile teacher? I was planning on getting his try before you buy option when summer came, so i'd have 60 days to practice as opposed to having to go to school every day.
2. Are these 4 songs good 'starter' songs? I shuffle around these songs when i get frustrated with any of them.
3. The frustrating part, i cannot string a whole verse of single notes! If i play for more then 5 or 6 notes, my 'pucker' gets weak and i revert back to playing 2 holes, very very frustrating. When i relax for a few seconds and go back to it, i can play single notes again. Should i practice more on getting clean notes by playing 1 draw, 1 blow till 10 draw ten blow, then playing the aforementioned songs?
4. When i move holes, my top lip 70% of the time stays put, making my lower lip make an awkward move right or left of the original hole, still i get a good sound of it most of the time, but i realize that i cant go on doing that. Any tips or suggestions on that?
Been practicing at least an hour a day since i got it, and plan to continue, sorry for the overtly long post.
PS: I thought for sure my 2 hole was broken, until i started researching on it :)
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jawbone
200 posts
Jan 04, 2010
8:10 PM
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Hey nb - Welcome - Your last line tells me you are well on your way. A lot of players take a long time to figure that one out. My advice would be don't take it too serious right away, don't stress over things and just have fun with it. Things will start to fall into place with time but it may be quicker if you can find someone who could give you some pointers in person, but there is also a lot of good stuff on the web, our own Adam, for instance. I sure wish I had started when I was 14.
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If it ain't got harp - it ain't really blues!!!!
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Kyzer Sosa
75 posts
Jan 04, 2010
8:21 PM
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maybe its just me, but in my 34 years, ive never known a 14 year old to use: aforementioned, and overtly. hmm, oh well....
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nacoran
686 posts
Jan 04, 2010
9:02 PM
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Kyzer- I used words like that all the time. If he's not careful he'll end up a creepy English Major.
Nbalive2005- You might as well practice those songs to practice your pucker as anything else; those are all ones I picked up along the way. There are a few ways to practice. Try learning some stuff from tabs, but also work through some songs playing along with music and trying to create harmonies. Also spend some time just making stuff up and working on getting your tone right. Those are all skills that are useful. Most of all, have fun. Take your harp with you. You'll be surprised how good nice it is to be stuck somewhere, reach in your pocket and find that you have your harmonica with you.
I find when I hear something catchy on the radio or have a musical idea in my head sometimes I reach for my harmonica without even thinking about it. I'll be sitting there and suddenly realize I'm playing something.
Welcome to the forums.
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Aussiesucker
490 posts
Jan 04, 2010
9:28 PM
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Hi NB & welcome.
Cannot comment on the course or instruction offered by JP Allen. But you might like to check out on the following most of which have received some positive feedback on this site.
For Blues it would be hard to find a better site than MBH. However most of the stuff on here is targeted at the intermediate to advanced player.
Harmonica Academy
Howard Levy Harmonica School
David Barrets Harmonica Lessons
Have a look back at a thread titled 'Howard Levy or David Barret online harmonica lessons' which was posted on Dec 13th ie ca 11 pages back. This thread discusses the pros and cons and various recommendations as to the best courses.
Also have a look at a site Harptabs.com as it contains an A to Z listing of thousands of tunes many of which are suitable for new players.
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Ant138
250 posts
Jan 04, 2010
11:56 PM
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Welcome aboard nbalive2005,
I would start with Adams videos.
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jbone
247 posts
Jan 05, 2010
4:42 AM
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nbalive, you appear to be a motivated young man! i find it refreshing that someone at your age is so focused on harmonica.
it is early days yet. as far as lip fatigue, if you just practice a bit every day for a time, your lips will achieve muscle memory and begin to limber up. i have not heard of jp allen, but from the sound of it, he or she is a fine place to start. i have to add, you are ahead of the game since you seem to take actually learning something on harp seriously, and not just noodling around aimlessly like i for one did early on.
adam aka kudzurunner has some great lessons on youtube.
there are several resources besides- mel bay harmonica books, jerry portnoy's master class, jon gindick's book/cd sets, and a host of other sets by other accomplished players. take a look at peter "madcat" ruth. this day and age has brought a world of information to our fingertips. it's a wonderful thing.
my journey began much differently than yours. i was a bit older-17- when i took up harmonica and i blundered around for a long time before i began to really get the idea.
hope to see your posts/questions/reports here! any question you can think of probably has an answer with someone on this or other forums.
welcome!
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tookatooka
949 posts
Jan 05, 2010
4:49 AM
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Welcome nbalive2005 to the forum.
There are thousands of tabs at harptabs.com. Most of the popular tunes are there.
You may also want to check this site out too.
http://harmopoint.com/
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Last Edited by on Jan 05, 2010 4:51 AM
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mankycodpiece
71 posts
Jan 05, 2010
5:06 AM
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nb alive,welcome to the site.where are you from?
you don't need to buy jp allens stuff.there's more than enough good stuff on you tube.
i haven't come across anyone better than adam gussow.
all the best players are on this board and will help you with whatever questions you have.
spend some time in the archives,there's some great information in there.
all the best.
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the frozen canuck
74 posts
Jan 05, 2010
8:35 AM
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Welcome nbalive2005,Frm the east coast of Canada ,home of the dutchie mason blues festival,i`ll second mankycodpiece, Doc Gussow is the best person to teach the whole harp & not just his own playing style
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congaron
387 posts
Jan 05, 2010
8:38 AM
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JP allen has a bunch of free stuff and he will send more free stuff to you if you register on his site. It's a very good start. He has a very basic, down-to-earth teaching style, but you can progress even farther for free when you go to the gussow youtube series. I'm sure all the courses go further into the instrument on the lessons you buy, even Adam's. Ronnie shellist also has some youtube videos that are pretty basic.
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congaron
388 posts
Jan 05, 2010
8:42 AM
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One of the JPAllen principles is that single hole song playing isn't a beginner skill. That is obviously debatable, but this year he sent me 20 free Christmas songs and 20 rock songs in tab that my beginner wife hacks away at. She can play single notes, so she loves to work with the tab. Until you get the basics, playing single note songs can be frustrating and he has a good video on how to get a single note every time for free on his site. Have fun, it's easy to take it too seriously...always have fun.
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