help

PSA - Filisko Harmonica Teach-In
The yearly Filisko Harmonica Teach-In will be coming to the SPAH Convention in San Antonio this August 11, 12 & 13th.

Nearly all aspects of the harmonica will be covered by some of the world's very finest specialists, including David Barrett, Mike Caldwell, Jerry Devillier, Robert Bonfiglio, PT Gazell, James Conway, Peter Madcat Ruth, Will Scarlett, Grant Dermody, Rob Roy Parnell, Ronnie Shellist, Michael Rubin, Todd Parrott, Brendan Power, Cara Cooke, Lonnie Joe Howell, Johnny Bishop, Connor James Frontera and Buzz Krantz. continue reading...

The standard thing to do is to learn what Rice Miller played and you play it as well. Since this song is in minor, I recommend that you make sure to play all of the 3 draws as 3' (matching the minor 3rd found in minor) and deemphasize, or delete all together, 2+'s and 5+'s (the major 6th will clash in minor).

Another approach is to create your own solo. If you do this, make sure to stay to the Blues Scale (http://www.bluesharmonica.com/lessons/movement_exercises_study_2_scales), it contains no notes that will clash with minor.

"What do you do about the iv7 Chord?"

Playing the same i7 chord lick over the iv7 chord is the answer. The i7 lick is G G G Bb C which are all notes of the iv7 chord (C Eb G Bb). Though the rest of the band moves away, you're still playing the same rhythm and contour as them. Though they're not the same notes, they are in harmony with what the band is playing.

We don't always get this lucky, but we'll take it when we can! Give this a try by playing along to the original track.

When a song is hook-driven like this one is, your first approach to accompaniment is to play the hook as well.

The hook on the i7 Chord is 2 2 2 3' 4+ (Root, Root, Root, flat-3rd, 4th). Though he's playing on a Bb Harmonica in 2nd Position, let's reference the C Harmonica in 2nd Position to make talking about the music theory easier. The notes would be G G G Bb C. continue reading...

Our next song on the School of the Blues House Band Standards list is "Help Me" by Rice Miller. This iconic tune is one of the rare tunes in minor, F Minor to specific. Miller uses the Bb Harmonica in 2nd Position, and although there are some rough areas of major against minor, he still makes it work.

Your homework this weekend is to listen to the song and try to copy what he plays in the opening chorus and solo. On Monday we'll discuss how to approach both accompaniment and improvising. continue reading...

These are the things to have with you for your first lesson...

1) Printouts of the current songs you're working on (as well as maybe one you can already play well, so you can give them a taste of what you can do).

2) Download the MP3s (original and jam tracks) to your smartphone or burn a CD if that's more convenient (I have students bring their songs on a thumb drive, it makes it very easy for me to load onto my computer and use with my preferred programs). continue reading...

The top of your tongue is wider. If you find yourself pushing your tongue on the face of the harmonica to cover enough holes for a tongue block technique, use more of the top of the tongue (tip under the harmonica) and go back to using a light touch on the face of the harmonica.

Yesterday I shared with you the important tip of using a yawn to create an embouchure conducive to creating big tone. Today I share the second element of how I create big tone on the harmonica... it's the word "radiant." This helps me to both play softly and direct warm/radiant air through the harmonica. Playing softly is at the core of controlled technique and the ability to play with dynamics (playing softly as your default provides a large dynamic range in performance). continue reading...

Watching your foot while playing is helpful. If you find your foot stall, then you don't own that particular passage. This is what I said a couple of tips ago. Now let's make sure you REALLY are in time. Set your metronome to the desired tempo of the song you're working on and place it next to your foot. This will help you to stay in time with your metronome by giving you a visual confirmation of the tapping of your foot. As you develop your awareness of what your foot is doing this won't be necessary, but this is a good way to get started.

It's not guaranteed that a fast lick will have a movement pattern, breath pattern or both, but it's worth looking for... the discover of them can help make a fast lick much easier to play.

Your Tongue Block Study 3 song ("Gary's Blues") contains a great example in Bar 6 of Chorus 5. Note that each beat has you moving up one hole and coming back, all with the same breath. For the next beat you move down the scale and blow, then using the same movement. Rinse and repeat and you have the entire lick. This discovery will help you to play this lick much more easily. continue reading...