Custom harps make them better at what they do. Custom harps make things much easier for beginners to learn because the crappiness of the instrument is out of the equation.
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
I think Michael Andrew Lo has done a fine job, too, in his brief odyssey. Maybe the best. I'm proud to call him one of my very-long-distance students. But it's also possible that he got something from Ronnie Shellist or Isaac Ullah, or the 10K project, whatever it is. We're the only four channels he subscribes to. (Of course, it's possible that he's been sneaking peeks at your videos, too, without telling anybody.):
Blues players, Chris. Throw down, big daddy. I know all about Jay Gaunt, and he's fine indeed. But he's far beyond the one-year mark.
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 11:59 AM
Buzzy- No, the debate seems to be about the COST of custom harps. If you do it yourself it ain't the same thing. Heck, I tweak my own harps as soon as I buy them. Paying $150 for a custom harp doesn't really make me play any better than with a $50 MB Deluxe.
Strictly blues is unfair. I don't teach blues or jazz or anything other than how to approach music. Granted I have taught lots of jazz but there simply are not going to be a lot of people wanting to learn blues from me. That doesn't mean I can't teach it as it's very clear that I can play it.
What some consider the be the best blues harp player on the scene today challenged me when we first met. You do know what happened? I made him cry, he slammed his harps into his case, closed up and stormed off. Then he blamed my harp so I gave it to him.
Blues is music like anything else and it's well within the realm of what I am able to teach.
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
Well from my persepctive it's a case of you will always sound like yourself and no one else.
Sure a custom harp will help facilitate you learning curve once you know basically how to play. But it won't make you great.
The only thing that makes you better is practice and the only thing that makes you great is even more practice. Of course that practice has to be focused and weak points constantly addressed and worked on. This is where good teachers come in.
I think a person should learn the basics on stock harps and practice learning techniques.
My thinking is this. If a person always plays custom harps from day one and suddenly blows one out before a gig and can't get a replacement in time, they are going to have to play a stock harp. If they have learnt on a stock harmonica then I believe their technique will be developed enough (assuming they have practised intelligently). Whereas if they only "know" custom harps they are gonna struggle to play it.
I'm not saying I'm right. I'm just saying that's how I see it.
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 12:15 PM
I'm not going to step into the middle of this one, but I just want to say that my first harp was a Hohner Blues Band. Then I got a set of Johnsons. then I got a Folkmaster. All shitty harps. I really feel, looking back on it, that those harps held me back for the first couple years I was trying to play. I remember getting my first good harp (A special 20 in D, that I still have), and it was night and day! I was bending on that harp within a week. I still don't have a fully customized harp (other than ones I've tweaked myself), but I have a D marine band that Buddha tweaked the 3 draw on. I can do more with that harp's 3 draw than I can with my other D harp's 3 draw.
The quality of a harp most definitely CAN hold back your progress as a student. That is a fact, and it should not be part of the discussion. I see the discussion here as between whether I need a SUPER fantastic harp to learn on, or just a good, decent one.
Personally, I feel that the better the instrument, the easier it will be to learn on. And if the goal will be to become a "professional" and to play on a "professional" instrument, why waste money on buying a bunch of crap harps that are going to be tossed anyway, and which may lead you to learn bad techniques?
But what is that "professional" harp? Is it an OTB Marine Band? An X-over? A Custom? A B-rad? A half-valved Promaster? A Fabulous? An XB-40?
I met Chris at a JRicci show here in Phoenix and during our first lesson he worked on my harp, and I noticed a difference and it made playing music on the harp much easier and satisfying. Chris' approach to teaching has allowed me to take my playing to another dimension in various styles of music. He's awesome. I'm glad I was able to learn about what's under the hood of the harp as I know it has led to greater things in my playing.
Adam, i agree with you, that a player who has no breath control can have any benefit from a custom harmonica. I even often notice, that beginners _love_ 3 Euro harps for their bendability! Couldn't believe it at first, but by now i understand that those toys are so leaky, that however hard you suck you never overdo them.
BUT from the point where some initial breath control is available for the player a custom harmonica makes sense as it largly helps to refine breathing. This was at least my impression when i bought a harmonica from Tony Ramos within my first year of serious playing (i had tooted on cheap tremolos for 15 years then without getting beyond O Susanna).
oh, and PPS: I've learned a shitload (I mean a SHITLOAD) from Adam's vids. But I have also learned a shitload from Chris too, just by hanging out with him a little bit at his house. I can see how a REAL student of his would excel VERY quickly at whatever that student wanted to learn... ---------- ------------------ The magnificent YouTube channel of the internet user known as "isaacullah"
Adam, Do you own any custom harps? You seem to be a little dogmatic when it comes to playing old school marine bands. Why is that? I feel like a custom harp would suit your playing. Even Dennis and Kim Wilson play custom harps.
As an owner of shitty harmonicas and custom harmonicas, custom harmonicas do make my playing better because they actually play when I need them to. Look at any video comparing customs and OTBs and it is clear which SOUNDS better.
Kingley makes and excellent point custom harps won't make great but they definitely make you sound better and will help you improve. You're also right that if someone busts up their custom before a gig they might be screwed. I can confirm this because I have experienced it many times LOL!
But just because I can play an OTB harp doesn't make me a better player. In fact most time playing OTB harps makes me sound like a much worse player.
Buddha's harp he made for me was like a breath of fresh air. It wasn't entirely apparent at first but the more I played it the more I was able to see how much having a high performance harp was helping me.
I dropped that one on the floor and busted the 1 blow reed and he is fixing it for me. Since sending it back I only have one decent harmonica, an OTB slightly modded GM. Not having that custom harp has made me realize how important custom harps are to what I want to achieve on the harmonica.
Cuz I know who he is talking about, and the story is true as the other artist mentioned something about it to me. Let's just say it is someone who is considered quite awesome. And they are under 50. ---------- Mike Fugazzi http://www.myspace.com/niterailband http://www.youtube.com/user/NiteRail http://www.twitter.com/NiteRail http://www.facebook.com/mike.fugazzi
aslive3 says Kim Wilson plays custom harps. That may be so, I don't know him. But Wilson is an official Hohner endorser. My question is this: Are Hohner endorsers "allowed" to play custom harps -- such as Buddha's -- if they are based on Hohner harmonicas?
Adam Gussow is also an official Hohner endorser. Adam, what are the rules? I'm curious about this.
What the hell is the argument? Surely no one would disagree with the following statements:
1. A high quality instrument is better than a low quality instrument if what you value is quality.
2. A high quality instrument allows for better playing but doesn't in itself cause better playing.
3. Students who practise for a long time are better than students who have practised for a short time: this is clearly true more often than it is not true.
4. Personalised tuition from a good teacher is more effective than non-personalised 'distance' tuition from a good teacher.
5. It is reasonable for a beginner to refrain from spending $100+ on a custom harp as their first harp unless money is no issue.
6. Anyone who makes custom harps has a vested interest in arguing that more people need custom harps.
7. Saying things like "all of my harp students are light years ahead of most others" constitutes arrogance; saying things like "let's see you teach being a musician" constitutes sarcasm; implying that jazz as a genre is better than blues as a genre constitutes narrow-mindedness; telling others you made a well-known harp player cry in order to further highlight your own awesomeness constitutes a kind of grubby, adult version of playground boasting.
8. Arrogance, narrow-mindedness, boasting and sarcasm are undesirable qualities.
---------- jodanchudan
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 1:50 PM
Rick, Kim Wilson plays Joe Filisko customised Marine Bands.
I would assume that Hohner don't care if their endorsees play custom harps or not, as long as they fulfill the endorsee contract requirements for promoting the brand, personal appearances, etc.
As an endorsee Adam should be able to throw more light on the subject. Unless of course he has been sworn to secrecy.
I hope all top-rated musicians aren't arrogant, narrow-minded, boastful and sarcastic!
On second thoughts, maybe it would be a good thing. I'd probably find developing those traits easier than hitting the right notes on the three draw bend.
"Saying things like "all of my harp students are light years ahead of most others" constitutes arrogance"
Nope, fact is fact. There is no arrogance involved.
"saying things like "let's see you teach being a musician" constitutes sarcasm;"
Nope. It was a challenge.
"implying that jazz as a genre is better than blues as a genre constitutes narrow-mindedness;"
Nope YOU ARE implying one is better than the other. Jazz is more complicated and thus more difficult to teach than blues.
telling others you made a well-known harp player cry in order to further highlight your own awesomeness constitutes a kind of grubby, adult version of playground boasting."
Fact is fact. And in fact, I made him cry TWICE on two separate occasions. Once during a head cutting session, the other time was directly due to the beauty of my music. If it were boasting I would mention his name.
Would I be boasting to say I am wearing a blue shirt? NO because it's a fact and a part of reality.
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
"I hope all top-rated musicians aren't arrogant, narrow-minded, boastful and sarcastic!"
Most of them are. All you need to do is listen to some interviews or read some autobiographies.
Humility is for liars and mediocrity. Be proud of who you are, do not be afraid to tell others who and what you are even it if means getting killed. This is the path of the some of the greatest men to ever grace the planet.
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
From what I remember hearing once it ties endorsees to a number of personal appearances per year to promote the Hohner brand, and promoting the brand on their recordings, websites, by way of an endorsee statement, playing Hohner harmonicas (albeit customised ones in some cases). In return they get a discount on their harmonicas.
I could be wrong on many of these points. But as I recall that was about the jist of it.
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 2:15 PM
Whoa, Buddha! That is cynical beyond words (or nakedly self serving).
I've come to know many top musicians and performers in my careers as journalist, actor, and musician. The arrogant, narrow-minded, boastful and sarcastic players are usually insecure wannabes. The top guys are mostly easygoing and great. There certainly are exceptions, but I've noticed a distinct humility in the the very best players I've met.
"Humility is for liars and mediocrity. Be proud of who you are, do not be afraid to tell others who and what you are even it if means getting killed. This is the path of the some of the greatest men to ever grace the planet." ... Hitler, Stalin, Bin Laden ???
Try Jesus Christ.
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
I was a hohner endorsee from about 1985 until I faded out of the scene in the mid 90's. There were no obligations I knew of. They only gave a small discount on the price compared to if you bought them at a major harp dealer outlet. The only time they gave me free harps (posters, hats, patches) was when I was piloting the rainbow harmonica program in the austin city public school system. Hohner had a magazine that came out a few times a year if remember right called easy reading. It covered their endorsees happenings. When I got back into playing out around 2000 I contacted them. They said they dropped me because when I moved from austin I left no forwarding address. They did give me a discount on a bulk buy and sent the form to reapply but I never did. Things may have changed from when I was with them. The entire staff I dealt with had. Walter
I am new here and never heard of Buddha before coming here and have to say my inital meeting has been quite comical. I have met some way out cats over the years, and he is right up there. I wouldn't use one of his harps if was giving them away with a condo in malibu included.
Here is the Bible's take on pride. I don't think Jesus Christ was the right citation for your argument in support of arrogance. According to Christian scripture, pride is one of the seven deadly sins.
I think a harp player (or any artist) would be better to embrace humility. It encourages work and practice. It avoids comparing one's self to others. Pride engenders bitterness and envy. What good is that to a musician?
Stay humble. Work hard to get better, on your own terms. Measure yourself by your own abilities and aspirations. Have fun, and play the blues!
let's not get into Bible talk. I believe religion and the bible is nothing but a mechanism of control for the weak.
However, it's clear that Jesus was not a humble man as you all would like to believe. Persons of humility aren't going to be killed and made into a public spectacle.
Even read any of the "secret" gnostic texts?
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
I am not disputing facts. I am saying that the way these facts are employed is self-aggrandizing. In this sense, "I am wearing a blue shirt" is not equivalent to a phrase like "light years ahead", which is emotive.
Secondly, I am not implying that blues is better than jazz by saying "implying that jazz as a genre is better than blues as a genre constitutes narrow-mindedness". I am saying that it is narrow-minded to imply that one genre is somehow better than another (which you do when you say in another post "it's just blues") when they operate according to different criteria. Personally, I prefer jazz, but I wouldn't say it's better than blues.
I think you are an excellent player and teacher and I'm sure your custom harps are excellent, but stories about how you made a great harp player cry TWICE because of the beauty of your music would do more to build your legend if they were told by others. ---------- jodanchudan
jodanchudan, those stories are told by others. I was challenged to teach blues and it was implied that I can't effective teach blues because it was implied that I don't effectively play blues. My point was that I can play blues so well that I effectively become a snake in the weeds when challenged.
Ok guys, I'm mostly just jesting with all of you.
My definition of humility may be different than yours. I believe one reaches a point of humility when they accept who and what they are in this life. And when a person gets in touch with themselves they become liberated from all that makes people suffer.
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
Buddha, I may not have read the Gospels in the same translation. It's just that I couldn't agree more with what Rick Davis said about top musicians. My experience.
On the other hand, saying that jazz is more difficult to teach than blues is missing the point. I have been a serious jazz player in my early days, and dropped everything to study indian classical 20 years ago. Now, that's "difficult", as you would put it. But no, it's not. And I've teached too (because my master allowed me too, that's the way it goes).
I've picked up the (blues) harp rather recently. And even with my background of a well learned musician of "difficult" music, I don't find it any "easier" than any other instrument or any other style.
And that's my take on that : great musicianship is not only about playing the notes. Many can do that. A great musician would settle on subtleties, on "small thing". That's what make him great. And you never can boast on "small things".
Wow, it's interesting how an innocuous thread on blister-packed Hohners has morphed into 'something completely different' as Monty Python would feature. ---------- Todd L. Greene, V.P.
"Personally, I feel that the better the instrument, the easier it will be to learn on."
I tend to agree. Another thing that really accelerated my development as a musician is when I began to play ET harps.
I play no other instruments, but I do play harp in multiple positions. My ear for pitch and my ear in general began to improve dramatically once I stopped playing harps with compromise tuning that had all those flat notes.
Once i started to play ET, I began to hear the notes I was playing at proper pitch and and began to get a feel for what (for example) a flat 7th is actually SUPPOSED to sound like and for a change I was playing in much better tune with the other musicians. My playing improved dramatically because of that.
Custom harps respond better to technique than stock harps. If a player doesn't sound better on a custom harp, that player needs to learn better technique. Because if a player's technique is more-or less fundamentally correct (even if it is still developing) that player WILL play better on a custom harp.
Now, the reason for a new player NOT to get a top end custom harp is that such harps are built to optimize performance for am individual player's particular style of play and a new player probably hasn't firmly developed a particular style yet. I suppose that's one reason Buddha offers different levels of customized instruments. But I don't think any of them come in blister packs--he uses wax paper.
Last Edited by on Jan 28, 2010 3:23 PM
Rick, to be clear. I don't call myself Buddha. It's the name many people have independently called me. Anyway, I'm not buddhist or christian or anything. If you want to label me with some kind of religion, Taoist would be the closest to how I naturally am.
I really don't want to talk about religion etc... this is not the place for that. My old forum was but this is not.
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
Buddha - if you're just jesting, or lashing out because you felt unfairly criticized, then no hard feelings. That's fair enough. ---------- jodanchudan
Mostly Jesting because I've returned from the PO and don't feel like working.
I do believe we all have a place in this life. And seriously speaking, my role is not that of a musician but rather a catalyst. I do everything I can do to help people see things in a different light. It's my wish for people to see things for themselves and not blindly judge based on what they hear or have learned from others. For me to accomplish my "mission" it's necessary that I push boundries. Your roles in life are possibly different. Whatever you do, I encourage you to find yourself from within and never turn your back on yourself again. Only good things can happen when you truly know who and what you are. Its only from that point of being that we can be generous and loving towards ourselves and others.
---------- "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell
I just looked back at the first post in this thread and it was like looking at a sepia photo where everyone's dressed in old fashions and no one's smiling and everyone looks thin and tired and there are more horses than cars. It could well be the case that all of human emotion is contained in this thread. ---------- jodanchudan
Well funnily enough in my original post I didn't ask ANY questions about the blister packs. I merely used them as a segueway into my question about Hohner and the Marine Band 1896 (classic).
What I asked was a series of questions as to why did Hohner not just change the MB 1896 rather than creating the Crossover and MB Deluxe.
So I'm not quite sure where you all think the blister pack question came from?
