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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! >
about bending.....
about bending.....
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Zirus Blackheart
8 posts
Jan 22, 2010
9:50 PM
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Hmm... bending, firstly i've only been playing since xmass so I don't expect to be able to have it anywhere near mastered yet but it often seems a little hit n miss to me.
I've read a few things on bending, about how its drawing the air over the reeds at an angle rather than straight through the harp or changing the position of your tounge to a higher position in our mouth but I couldn't get a bend at all, in fact, all I would get is what ya get when ya can't 2 hole draw and ya get dead air.
I managed to get my first bend when I read somewhere someone say that its "like whistling, but inwards", that gave me my first bend and it does work but it means I quite often have to pull my mouth too far away from the harp and I get that very thin/lips only sound rather than the full single hole sound.
Other times I just get that dead air sound or that sound where its like the reed isnt vibrating properly and has alot of air too.
The one that most often seems to happens though, is I end up with the same note but with a different tone, kinda like turning down the cut-off n ressonance down on a synth. Usable as a sound sure, but it aint no bend :-/
So i'm wondering how you guys manage it for yourselves :-)
When you all started, and ya got ya first bend, what was it that happend? what did you read or do diferent that first time?
Cheers :-)
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Sign:- - Z -
All energy flows according to the whims of the great magnet.
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Stickman
135 posts
Jan 22, 2010
9:58 PM
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I popped my bending cherry on the phone with Jon Gindick. The most important thing he told me was that it was a micro thing rather than a macro thing. That it was as easy as gently saying coooo-keeee and you draw through the harp. the cooo is the bent note the keee is the unbent note. Hope that helps.
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The Art Teacher Formally Known As scstrickland
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nacoran
856 posts
Jan 22, 2010
11:44 PM
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I had problems with bends for a while. I started my learning on a cheap tremolo harp (which I still can only bend with a great deal of effort) and then moved on to some more cheap harps. Then I fell in love with a G harp that wasn't gapped particularly well. I still couldn't really bend on a regular basis. Then one day I was looking through some videos online and someone mentioned it was easier to bend on higher harps. I pulled out my C harp which had just been sitting there and presto! There were my bends. Once I had a good harp I could bend on I was able to figure out how to move it over to other keys pretty quickly. I think once you can get enough bends to figure out in your head what it is you are doing differently it just clicks.
I think the best description I've heard is the 'drinking a thick shake through a straw' analogy. Don't angle the harp, don't pull it away from your mouth. Drop your jaw a little and use your tongue. Each hole is a little different. A bent note does sound a little different than an unbent note. Really keep that harp as far in your mouth as it will fit, puckered or tongue blocked.
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jonsparrow
1860 posts
Jan 22, 2010
11:48 PM
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i learned how to bend by learning to play the didgeridoo. hope that helps.
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Nastyolddog
81 posts
Jan 23, 2010
4:32 AM
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Hi Bro Z.B these tips helped me when i lip Puserd say the word HE YAW HE YAW HE YAAW HE YAAW With a pronounced dropping of the Jaw,,i just grabed a Harp this very instant and gave it a try it still workes for me,,Narcoran commented on useing a Higher keyed Harp i learnt to bend on D Harp,,i forgot to mention do this lightly Breathing in it sounds as though you are drawing in to hard Chokeing the reeds,,you will get better tone and control by learning to bend lightly and slowly,,Ps this is of my own experience other methods may work for other Persons..
Last Edited by on Jan 23, 2010 4:45 AM
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