bad harmonica after 3 weeks?
I've been practicing for about 3 weeks with a new Hohner Special 20 in A and draw 2 and 3 are hard to draw and sound flat already. I'm not drooling in the harmonica when I practice and I'm definately not playing hard and loud. I took it apart and there's no debris in the reeds that I can see. Is there anything I can do other than throw it out and buy a new one? These aren't cheap and I certainly can't afford buying a new harmonica every 3 weeks! Thanks.
This will sound frustrating, but it's probably your technique. I've used the same Special 20 A thoughout this course and have eight newish Special 20's of different keys (plus a couple of the older "Marine Band" Special 20s). They all work fine.
My suggestion is to post your question in the "Ask David" forum.
Thanks for the replies. The reeds all looked the same and I used a 10x jewelers loupe to inspect them. I viewed the harp tech lessons on this sight before I took it apart. I flicked the reeds and know they work. But I've even tried the pucker technique and I can't even get any sound out of the 2 draw. The 3 draw sounds extremely flat. I'll try the ask David forum. Thanks again.
When you pluck the Draw 2 and 3 reeds and let them vibrate, do they sound at the right pitch? If they do, then it's your technique for sure. Pre-bending (flattening the pitch of these notes without intending to) and blanking out with no sound is a common problem for new players.The solution is to open your airways to allow free, unimpeded air flow from your lungs to the reed.
Play the note (either Draw 2 or Draw 3, then continue to inhale while you take the harmonica out of your mouth. Do you hear any sound from the air movement? If you do, that's drag in the airflow. To free up the airflow do this:
- Open your throat like you're yawning.
- Make sure your tongue is low in your mouth, lying on the floor like a rug.
- Check for silent air movement.
The other thing is to make sure your lips aren't pinching the air flow where they contact the harmonica. The opening in your lips (or the combined lips and tongue) needs to be bigger than the harmonica hole, as big as you can make it and still get a single note.
It's my technique for sure. All your tips (and David's in his forum) were spot on. I need to work on relaxing my tongue and lowering it as well as make sure my lips aren't partially covering the 2 hole. Thanks for the advice and explanation. I can't believe what a great website this is!
Maybe this will be some help to others with the same issue...it's been a month and I'm finally getting some good tone to my 2 draw. What I found helpfull was to tilt my head back which opened my throat and lowered the back of my tongue. Once I knew how my throat and tongue felt I started gradually lowering my head from the tilt. I also tilted the harmonica up more and pushed a little deeper in my mouth. Thanks again for the help. This really is an awsome web site.
I'm glad to hear things are going well. David and the other experts do supply a very high level of support on the forums.
I probably shouldn't presume to pass along any wisdom, but tone is something I try to think about whenever I play. Journey, not a destination, etc.
I'm certainly no expert, but that doesnt sound right to me. I have harps that I play stone cold in the car in the winter, which msut be pretty bad for them, but they all still sound ok -- to me anyway. try checking if its in tune against an online keyboard or something. When you took it apart were any of the reeds obviously differently gapped or anything?