Frankie
44 posts
Feb 06, 2018
8:24 AM
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I hate it when I do not have a note in middle of my favorite song.
I have to start learning overblow asap.
Can you please share the video that helped you learn the trick?
I already watched some videos in youtube but just want to know if I am missing some thing
Thanks
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Bike&Harp
169 posts
Feb 06, 2018
9:18 AM
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If you want to learn to overblow play the 6 hole blow note and bend it down until it chokes then you should get an overblow if your harp is set up nicely. The other holes are the same. OD's are a bit more difficult. Jason Ricci has videos on them and Adam too.
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SuperBee
5240 posts
Feb 07, 2018
2:32 AM
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I didn’t learn from a video.
Jimi Lee told me the 6 ob was a lot like a 8 blow bend.
So I learned to blow bend 8 and then tried it on 6 blow of a D harp.
That’s how I first managed it.
That was a pretty tight little D harp.
Used to be that I’d need to specifically set the harps up but now I find I can overblow in quite a few stock harps. They usually can do better though, with some specific attention.
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Frankie
45 posts
Feb 07, 2018
5:55 AM
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How much to pay for a harmonica customized so overblow is possible and easy on holes 4, 5 and 6 ?
Special 20 , Marine band etc what so ever
I need to make it as cheap as possible.
Would it cost a lot?
Last Edited by Frankie on Feb 07, 2018 7:41 AM
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Bike&Harp
170 posts
Feb 07, 2018
7:44 AM
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No OB on hole 8. What you're hearing is just some weird overtone ringing or something. Most common holes to overblow are #4 #5 #6. Overdraws on #7 #9 #10. In order to overblow you need to be proficient in blow bends and draw bends as well. Otherwise you don't have the necessary control of your technique. A lot of people at the start become obsessed with this as if it's some sort of holy grail. The cart ends up coming before the horse and it's not really a good road to go down. Key of G is maybe a bit low for learning OB's though you should be able to get #6 without too much trouble. Set the blow reed fairly close to the plate but not so tight that it won't play or lags when you play it. Then act as if you want to bend the reed. Keep on bending until the note go's down and then the OB will kick in. Check the reeds are as straight as possible you don't want a big bow in them which will frustrate the technique. Also some stock harps are too airy and need to be embossed to tighten up the tolerance of the slot. This makes the reed respond better to your breath force.
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MindTheGap
2494 posts
Feb 07, 2018
8:02 AM
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If you are set on learning overblows then I'll bow out of the discussion. I learnt it from one of Adam's free videos.
But if you want the missing notes, apropos of the discussion on the MF about jazz on the diatonic, you might have a look at the PT Gazell half-valving thing. Apparently you can buy these from Seydel.
Not sure I'm going to pursue this myself, but it looks a lot more satisfying than OB. Firstly because it's a bit more definite i.e. not reliant on having a customised harp. Setting them up for good OB does involve compromises - Superbee would explain.
Secondly because the bends from half-valving sound better - but that's my opinion. I can easily replicate the kind of expression I hear people use with the equivalent single-reed bend on a Chromatic, so I guess I'm likely to be able to do that on the harp.
It's not just about hitting the note, it's about shaping it. To make an OB sound expressive except as just a passing note, you need to be able to bend it too.
Last Edited by MindTheGap on Feb 07, 2018 8:04 AM
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Frankie
46 posts
Feb 07, 2018
10:46 AM
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Bike& harp : I liked the way you explained it
The cart coming before the horse :)))
MindTheGap I am thinking about Suzuki promaster valved just to experiment what it has to offer...
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SuperBee
5242 posts
Feb 07, 2018
11:31 AM
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I think you misunderstood my reference to hole 8.
It’s a blow bend in hole 8 not an overbend.
However, my tutor told me that over bending hole 6 was very similar to blow bend in hole 8, so I learned to blow bend first, then applied that approach to hole 6, and sure enough I produced an overbend. This was how I achieved my first overbend and over the last couple years I’ve noticed the skill has improved even tho I rarely bother with the technique. I can often get the ob 4 5 and 6 on stock harps, and usually tongue blocked
Od 7 is the only overdraw I’ve ever achieved and I’ve only 2 harps I can do it on, both G harps. I can only do it tongue blocked too. Which is indicative that I don’t really have a grip on it.
I had a client asked me to set a harp up for her to learn the technique. That’s really the only reason I bothered with it in the beginning. Now I test every new harp that comes my way to see if I can do it and to my surprise I continue to improve despite this very minimal care approach. At this rate I may become adept should I live long enough. Life extension technique is getting better all the time so look out Howard levy in 200 years you may have some competition
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Bike&Harp
171 posts
Feb 07, 2018
12:31 PM
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Bee: It was one of Frankie's posts saying he had got an OB on hole #8 i was meaning. You can OD that hole but you get a note that is a duplicate of one you can get naturally so 8 OD is kinda redundant. I can get OD's on 9 and 10 on a lot of harps but the tonal timbre of the note is horrible and it's not musical to my ears anyway!
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SuperBee
5245 posts
Feb 07, 2018
5:49 PM
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Oh, ok. I can’t see that post but maybe it’s been edited
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Bike&Harp
172 posts
Feb 07, 2018
6:31 PM
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Bee: Post deleted i think.
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Bike&Harp
173 posts
Feb 08, 2018
8:16 AM
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The problem i have with overblows is i convince myself i hate them and then further down the line i kinda miss the extra notes! So... I think the secret is always if you can use them musically then they can be a great tool. The problem is cos it's an advanced technique beginning players try to learn them and they try to play them in everything they play and it sounds bad.
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MindTheGap
2499 posts
Feb 08, 2018
8:28 AM
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After a lot of listening, I conclude that only the best players can make OBs musical, except as the occasional passing note.
With the harp, I think people can sound pretty good quite quickly - so I suppose there's a disjoin between those skills and OB which might take a lot longer.
With a lot of other instruments, you can expect to sound pretty bad for quite a long time, I mean years.
Last Edited by MindTheGap on Feb 08, 2018 8:29 AM
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SuperBee
5252 posts
Feb 09, 2018
3:21 AM
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Ha! I just saw on Levy’s site he says to try a blow bend on 8 then move down to the 6 and do the same thing to get the 6 ob.
I shouldn’t be surprised. Jimi Lee knows his stuff. I spent 18 months taking lessons from him and he managed to even get some things through my special needs learner filter. Not cheap though.
Hey! He’s gonna be at HCH18!
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Frankie
48 posts
Feb 09, 2018
10:40 PM
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SuperBee I tried every thing under heaven but it does not work however I am not an experienced player. I need 456 hole at least 5 or 6 notes for passing only.
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SuperBee
5255 posts
Feb 09, 2018
10:50 PM
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How is your blow bending? Can you get a blow bend happening reliably and with good intonation?
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