General question
I was wondering if the chromatic players on this list started with chromatic or switched to it after a period of time with the diatonic? Also are many of you playing both, or have some of you giving up the diatonic and gone 100% chromatic.
Thanks
Little Walter did play chromatic on a number of his records. Have a listen to Lights Out, Blue Midnight, Teenage Beat, Blue and Lonesome, Crazy Mixed Up World and Up the Line for examples. He also sometimes mixed diatonic and chromatic on the same recording.
That's interesting, Gary. I'll have to give another listen. Walter's sounds were so unique that it's hard sometimes to tell what he's doing (or maybe even playing). I heard something about the picture thing somewhere. Maybe it was another artist.
I just got my new Seydel De Luxe Steel Chromatic yesterday and started playing on it last night. I had no issues picking it up and playing it truly chromatic in multiple positions. However I have been playing diatonic for almost fifteen years. I also have a good understanding of music theory, and scales, and music reading. As well I have played different harmonica layouts and position playing. So this all helped. Thus I found the Chromatic to be less intimidating than I originally thought and wondered why I did not pick it up earlier. Of course a chromatic has its pros/cons compared to diatonic. Neither one is exactly better than the other, just different. I play a wide variety of music and found the diatonic just couldn't cover some of it due the missing notes. In the short amount of time I've had it I am enjoying having at least two full octaves of every note available. Of course I will still be playing diatonic for the real bluesy stuff. Certainly a personal decision based on the type of music you want to play.
BC
I started diatonic and chromatic nearly simultaneously as a teenager and found no real difficulty moving between them. It's not a case of giving one up to play the other, either, as each has its own strengths that are unique.
Got my Suzuki Chromatix v2 (SCX-48) about a month ago, wow and I am enjoying it very much. Its just a pleasure to play. Different sound, feel, style but all musically developmental and I feel complimentary to the diatonic. I still put in the same time commitment to the diatonic and just find time to do chromatic playing. I considered getting into chromatic earlier but am pleased I left it to this stage of my learning the harp.
Thanks for the response. I posted the original question.
A little background: I am musician and I play jazz piano. I studied music theory in college and have played professionaly for 40 years. I started David's couse one year ago and while I am enjoying playing blues on the diatonic, jazz is where my heart lies.
I wanted to find out if others are playing both, if they compliment each other, and how steep is the learning curve for chromatic.
I find myself wondering if I could eventually get good enough on the chromatic to pull it out on a gig.
The responses so far are really helpful. Thanks
Jazz can be played on the diatonic, but it requires far more effort simply to achieve the level of chromaticism required, as the diatonic gives you only 19 out of the 37 notes of the chromatic scale in its three-octave range, with the remaining 18 notes created by pitch alteration (bending to lower pitch and overbending to raise it). Howard Levy is the standout name among diatonic jazz players. He can and does play in all key positions. I once heard him play Body and Soul in Db, using an A harmonica - and making it musical!
Chromatic gives you a reed for every note, but it's no easier to develop the technique to access the notes in a way that makes sense musically. As with most instruments, you have to learn all the keys, and learn to coordinate the three elements of motion getting from note to note - hole change, breath change, and slide change.
Most blues harmonica players who play chromatic play it only in third position, as in playing it in D on a C chromatic, using the big Dmi6 draw chord as the basis. Or they may hold in the slide and play it in Eb. Or use another key of chromatic to play this way in other keys. Occasionally you may find someone playing it in second or first position. The ability to play in additional key positions is rare among blues harmonica players.
Thanks for the clear and detailed response.
you should check PT Gazell, he plays it on a diatonic but half valved, which improves bending capacity (don't ask me for the technical details) and sounds very impressive.
Hello
I tend to get a lot of excess saliva when i play my chromonica 270 especially when i play octaves. i have only been playing it for a month although ive been playing diatonic for a number of years.
Any advice.
Cheers
Andy
Hello
I tend to get a lot of excess saliva when i play my chromonica 270 especially when i play octaves. i have only been playing it for a month although ive been playing diatonic for a number of years.
Any advice.
Cheers
Andy
Gday mate. You'll find that a wider embouchure coupled with toungue placement probably stirred that up a bit. It's literally something you will either get used to or work around, however I can say from personal experience, try not to lean forward or tilt the chrome downward. If found that any excess saliva generally becomes problematic when I do these things.
Hope that helps
I poked around with chromatic for a while after I started playing diatonic. My personal experience is that they are not comparable. By that, I mean that they are really two completely different instruments. Again, this is my personal opinion, but to me, it was like playing a trumpet, then switching to sax. Both are wind instruments, both are made from the same material, but the similarities stop there.
I stopped playing chromatic because I felt I would have to devote a lot of time to it and I have enough instruments to mess around with already. Maybe later down the road -- if I develop a deeper interest in jazz, which the chromatic seems to excel at -- I'll pick it up again.
I know some big blues players have played chromatic. Some diatonic players like Little Walter I don't think actually played the instrument, but rather held one in pictures instead (I was told it was because it was easier to see than a 10 hole diatonic). Maybe that's apocryphal, I don't know.
Regardless, the chromatic is a pretty cool instrument. I definitely had fun while playing with it. I just didn't have the time to add it to my kit.