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David's Tip of the Day: Repetition is the most important element in songwriting

Posted Mon, 09/21/2015 - 15:45 by David Barrett Admin
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The only way to tell the listener that something musical is worth remembering is by repeating it. If you don't use repetition, then you're telling the listener that what you're playing is not worth remembering. If it's not worth remembering, then it's forgettable. Who wants to play a solo or instrumentalist that's forgettable?

What's New: Gary Smith Contributor Submission #47

Posted Sat, 09/19/2015 - 20:30 by David Barrett Admin
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In this submission Gary answers questions from students, specifically... dealing with a loud band, mic'ing your amp, using monitors, playing through a vocal mic, cupping the chromatic harp, stage presence, dealing with feedback, using a wireless mic, creating deep tone and playing softer.

What's New: Bending Study 10 - Overbending Study 3, Scales and Arpeggios

Posted Fri, 09/18/2015 - 08:30 by David Barrett Admin
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The goal of this lesson is to continue advancing your overbend skills while simultaneously filling in the harmonic/theory knowledge that’s required of a traditional blues player to be able to apply/execute overbends well in our common three positions (1st, 2nd and 3rd). This will be achieved by studying chords (arpeggios) and chord scales (a combination of chord tones and scale tones), all to give you more material to play while improvising. continue reading...

David's Tip of the Day: Tone - Gary Primich

Posted Fri, 09/18/2015 - 07:45 by David Barrett Admin
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"One note played richly and beautifully is worth a thousand notes with no tone." To see Gary's full interview go here http://www.bluesharmonica.com/gary_primich

David's Tip of the Day: Take Chances on the Bandstand - Joe Filisko

Posted Thu, 09/17/2015 - 12:33 by David Barrett Admin
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This quote comes from a panel discussion with Dennis Gruenling, Rod Piazza and Joe Filisko at a past Harmonica Masterclass Workshop. I asked the panel what they like to hear in other players when listening to them on the bandstand and Joe states, "I do think it's very important that you take chances on the bandstand and I think the audience really enjoys seeing you sweat a little bit and seeing you go into new territory. And if you fail... if it didn't work out... continue reading...

David's Tip of the Day: One Hole Away - Charlie Musselwhite

Posted Wed, 09/16/2015 - 07:56 by David Barrett Admin
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Let's continue with more memorable quotes from artists...

At my 1998 Harmonica Masterclass Workshop, Charlie Musselwhite was fielding questions from students and just answered a question about playing on the high end of the harmonica. The next student asked, "But what happens if you play a wrong note?" and Charlie said, "Well, I'm only one hole away from the right one." continue reading...

David's Tip of the Day: Record Yourself - Self-Assessment

Posted Tue, 09/15/2015 - 09:33 by David Barrett Admin
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"If you think you got it, record yourself and listen back to see if you 'really' got it" said Rod Piazza in a conversation regarding preparation for the performance of a song.

It's difficult to listen to yourself closely enough while playing to make an accurate assessment of your performance. Make use of the easy tool of recording (most of us have phones or computers that have recording software and microphones built in) for self-assessment. continue reading...

David's Tip of the Day: Laws of Blues Harmonica - Repetition

Posted Mon, 09/14/2015 - 08:20 by David Barrett Admin
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The listener wants more repetition than the player is usually willing to give

David's Tip of the Day: Laws of Blues Harmonica - Accompaniment

Posted Fri, 09/11/2015 - 14:18 by David Barrett Admin
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The more active you play, the softer you need to be. The more repetitive you play, the louder you can be (within reason of course).

David's Tip of the Day: Laws of Blues Harmonica - Deep in the Mouth

Posted Thu, 09/10/2015 - 08:56 by David Barrett Admin
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Open mouth, insert harmonica... that simple.

The common error is to bring the harmonica near your mouth and pucker your lips out to meet the face of the harmonica. Your mouth closes down towards the harmonica, the jaw raises (like when blowing out a candle) and the tongue raises with it, all creating a narrow air passage that's the perfect embouchure for thin, wimpy tone. continue reading...