draw bends...continued
David,
I've been on your site for about 6 months and I continue to learn much. Thank You.
I have followed all your advice with regard to draw bends and I find that I can bend with little effort. The problem is that I cannot get my bends as low as you do in the lessons. Obviously I use you as my benchmark.
Tue I've only been at it for 6 months but I've been working it hard. You make it look so effortless. How long did it take you to be able to reach the full depth and range of your draw bends?
Thanks and regards,
Charrison7734
Hi David,
On a related note, I'm having trouble with 3''' on my C harp.
I don't think it's technique, because I can play half-steppin' and hit all the bends on my Bb and D harps. 3' and 3'' are okay, but 3''' won't sound.
What would cause one harp to not bend as far as another? Blow reed isn't set correctly for the pair of reeds?
(I don't like my C harp, which is a Hohner Blues Bender, and feels and sounds like a toy compared to my other harps which are all Hohner Blues Harp MS).
Morning Jeremy. You already self-diagnosed it. The Hohner Blues Bender is a budget, entry-level harmonica and is in no way built to the standards a higher-level player like you're becoming needs.
Greetings David,
Regarding draw bends you advised me that I might be humping my tongue too far back in my mouth past the "sweet spot".
I was indeed doing this and so with a little more practice I am doing much better. Thanks a bunch!
Regards,
Chris harrison
Great!
Morning Charrison7734.
I'm not a good example. When I was learning there was no material on the subject, so I didn't even know what a full bend was. By the time I figured out how far each hole could bend I was already playing for four years and started teaching and could bend to that depth okay. Control of my half step bends was a different thing, that took a lot of years of work.
I can offer what's common for students over my 25 years of teaching...
My private students commonly don't start learning how to bend until about the six month mark, so you're already way ahead of the game. Most students it takes them about six more months to get full depth, but in most cases not with all the bends.
Of course everyone is different... some students get great at it in months (rare) and some take years to achieve (not too rare). So, keep working it, but know you WILL be able to, you just don't know when.
P.S. it's all about experimenting with which part of your tongue is humped up where in the mouth. Experiment with the rear, the middle, the front... keep in mind that some students are going too far back, past a bend's sweet spot, so don't assume it's about moving your tongue further back or using more of the back of the tongue. Also watch the bending videos again and read the MRI paper I wrote, especially about the 3" where I show pictures of the tongue lowered in the middle (creating a ramp from the front to the back).
Keep experimenting, you'll get it.