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David's Tip of the Day: Holding a Bullet Mic - Made Easier

Posted Wed, 11/27/2013 - 08:07 by David Barrett Admin
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When players first pic up a bullet mic they commonly bring it very deep into their cup... very close to the back of their harmonica. In doing this, they place the bottom edge of the grill into the meaty area of their left hand. This makes the mic harder to hold... they're fighting to close their cup, but the large meaty area of the thumb is fighting them. This can make a normal mic seem very large and difficult to cup tightly (not tight in the sense of muscle, but tight in the sense of air-tightness). continue reading...

Cover Plates = Bright or Dark

Posted Tue, 11/26/2013 - 08:52 by David Barrett Admin
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Simple tip for you today. If you prefer a darker sound (highs are muted), choose a harmonica with enclosed cover plates, like that of the Hohner Special 20. If you prefer a brighter sound (highs are not muted), choose a harmonica with open cover plates, like that of the Hohner Marine Band. continue reading...

David's Tip of the Day: Speech Pattern = Easier to Play or Recall?

Posted Mon, 11/25/2013 - 08:37 by David Barrett Admin
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If you can turn a technique or phrase into a simple speech pattern it can make it easier to perform and remember. Take the slap tongue block technique for example... "HALL" works great. "HA" represents your tongue off of the harmonica, sounding the chord that precedes the single note. "LL" represents the tongue on the face of the harmonica to play the final single note. Together, "HALL" can help you to get the correct relationship of chord to single note in time with the music. This can work well for bending patterns as well. An example would be 4 4' 3 2 being stated as "AH U AH"... continue reading...

Tempo Is Not Set In Stone

Posted Fri, 11/22/2013 - 09:00 by David Barrett Admin
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Though it's nice to work towards playing a song at the same tempo as the recording, keep in mind that the tempo a song is performed at is based on the feeling of the moment it's recorded. If you were to see that same artist perform the same song live a number of times over the period of multiple shows, you would notice that some nights it would be played slower and other nights faster. If you like the sound of performing a song a little slower... play it that way. If you feel it has more impact played faster... go for it and play it faster. This applies to your study songs... continue reading...

David's Tip of the Day: Amiri Baraka On 50th Anniversary Of "Blues People"

Posted Thu, 11/21/2013 - 07:28 by David Barrett Admin
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This just released yesterday on NPR. No harmonica content, but an interesting interview with an author known in the blues community. Amiri Baraka On 50th Anniversary Of "Blues People" https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/checkout-interviews-podcast/id311497152

David's Tip of the Day: Listening to Slow Blues at 2x Speed

Posted Wed, 11/20/2013 - 08:50 by David Barrett Admin
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It can be challenging to track within the form of a slow blues due to the slow tempo and the amount of activity, or lack of activity, that happens within all of the space provided in a slow blues. Using practice software (like the Amazing Slow Downer) to increase a song's tempo to two times its original speed can help to make form elements much more apparent. Listening to a song a couple of times in this way can really help give you a better road map of what's happening. continue reading...

David's Tip of the Day: Delbert McClinton on Hey Baby in 1st & 2nd Position

Posted Tue, 11/19/2013 - 07:53 by David Barrett Admin
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John Lennon on using Chromatic for "Love Me Do," even though in video he's holding a Diatonic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdXzJaCeHP8

David's Tip of the Day: Phone Interview with Kim Wilson, Rick Estrin & Jerry Portnoy

Posted Mon, 11/18/2013 - 10:36 by David Barrett Admin
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This phone interview starts off as an unintentional comedy routine, but then picks up momentum and they all have some pretty cool things to say.

Rick, Kim and Jerry Interview
http://www.modernbluesharmonica.com/board/board_topic/5560960/5451638.htm

David's Tip of the Day: Transcription of Juicy Harmonica

Posted Sat, 11/16/2013 - 08:26 by David Barrett Admin
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As promised, my transcription of "Juicy Harmonica"
https://www.facebook.com/bluesharmonica

You can find the recording on the CD West Coast Down Home Harmonica
http://www.bluebeatmusic.com/product_info.php?products_id=13475

Have fun, this is one of the all-time great blues harmonica instrumentals.

David's Tip of the Day: Annie Raines and "Juicy Harmonica"

Posted Fri, 11/15/2013 - 11:16 by David Barrett Admin
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Here's a sneak peak of my interview with Annie Raines to release at BluesHarmonica.com next Friday. In this snippet Annie speaks on her approach to Improvising, using George "Harmonica" Smith's blues harmonica instrumental "Juicy Harmonica" as a vehicle for discussion. I'll soon share a transcription of the instrumental at https://www.facebook.com/bluesharmonica tomorrow so you can follow along with us and learn the song for yourself. Have a great weekend!

YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntCIYNnA8Ck