Q re your performances
David,
This question is really just out of curiosity. Your recordings all sound very mellow and smooth but my Marine Band, Manji, Sp20, and Rocket all sound brassy, to different degrees though. I think the Sp20 is the most mellow and smooth of the bunch but it’s still way brassier than your recordings. I can especially tell when I play your performance tracks over my recordings as a check on timing. Yours is smooth and mine sounds like I should be in a New Orleans band. That’s not to say I dislike this sound, far from it, but I’m just really curious about how you achieve your sound.
Is this a result of your technique or is it the type of harp that you play? I believe you play customized harps. Is the sound a result of the customization?
BTW, I hope you don’t think I’m prying.
Thanks in advance,
Ace
wow. Now I really am intrigued. It’s amazing how this small, little instrument can be so complex. Thanks.
Hello Ace. This is not prying, I'm happy to share any tips that help you.
Though I love my harmonicas (customized by Joe Filisko), that dark tone is all me... it's not a trait of the harmonica (custom harmonicas are actually more "bright" than out-of-the-box harmonicas). You are correct that the Special 20 has a darker tone. I started on the Marine Band and then at age 16, a professional harp player in my area recommended the Special 20's for their smooth combs (back then, Marine Band harmonicas were vert prone to swelling = pain). I then switched back to Marine Bands in the mid 2000's when I discovered that even though they were brighter in tone, that I create the dark sound from my embouchure and cupping, and the brighter harmonica creates the cut needed to make me heard. I have a dark sound, so a Special 20 just makes my playing sound muddy/muted. The lesson here is that the fat, dark tone comes from you and the cut comes from the harmonica... this is why the majority of professionals plays Marine Band harmonicas.
You have to actively work on your tone. Your tongue position is key (check in the mirror with the harmonica out of your mouth). The goal is to have the middle-back of your tongue lowered and your throat open to achieve a warm, bassy tone. Your cupping is also important (for amplified playing)... studying my lesson on cupping will pay off.
With all this said, tone is like wisdom... it takes time. Right now you're focusing on technique. Though one can focus on tone, it tends to be the case that we wrestle with technique first, being cognizant of tone, but focusing on that more as we get a handle over the basics of technique (you will have mastered the basics after L7).