D Harmonica vs Low D Harmonica
Last Sunday at my local blues jam, the song that was called was Aretha Franklin's Dr. Feelgood in E. I had played on the same song the previous Sunday and played in 2nd position. Since this song has a very minor feel, I wanted to switch to 3rd position. However, I only had my Low D harmonica, which I had just received in the mail the previous day. I decided to go for it anyway, and it went over very well.
So my thought at this point is why should I bother playing the regular D harmonica anymore? It seems I can get a more soulful sound with the low D harmonica. It's almost as if I'm switching from alto to tenor saxophone and playing long legato lines instead of in bursts. Am I losing something if I stop carrying my regular D harp?
Interesting. You're right of course. The reason I like to play in 3rd position is that it sounds very musical and it's very intuitive for me (as is 4th position for that matter), so I camp out in the middle of the harmonica and I don't really venture into the first register unless it's necessary.
So what I'm getting from what you say is that the low D harmonica is great for me to play in 3rd position, but of course you can't always play in 3rd position, so if I have to play in 2nd position it will have some limitations.
You got it... cool that you have the Low-D.
Evening sfjorge. Great subject. I'm going to assume some things, so please correct me if I assume incorrectly. When you played in 3rd Position, you most likely used your 4 draw as your home base... as your lowest note... and moved from there up the harmonica. This placed you in a range similar to the A Harmonica in 2nd Position, which is a great range.
If you're an experienced 3rd Position player you would have also gone below the 4th hole for all of the killer bends 3rd Position has to offer, but these are tough bends to hit and challenging to make sound good on that low of a harp. Those lower notes can also be tough to hear, unless you're using an amp like a Fender Bassman, which can really pump out those bass notes.
This same line of thinking goes for 2nd Position on your Low-D, the bends are hard to hit (2" for example) and unless your amp is loud, you'll be hard to hear in the audience.
The standard D on the other hand can be heard well (for this reason it's the harmonica of choice for rock harp players... they play with loud bands, so they need it). The lower bends are also more manageable.
Staying on the 4th hole and above in 3rd Position on your Low-D is a great sound. I wouldn't toss you regular D though, it's a more universal instrument.