Solo Harmonica Study 1 - James Cotton Licks Etc. TA TEE Sounds
I am enjoying the Solo study. I use it as a warm up in the morning.
I have found that the TA and the TEE enunciation for the chords are the key for me. I look at the examples and voice them first. It makes fitting the chords together with correct rhythm and timing because I can pre-plan what I am going to do with the sounds.
For more involved exercises like 1.10 examples, the James Cotton lick, do you personally still have the TA TEE feel when you play? Or maybe should I say that we should still try to use it in a more involved example.
Thank you so much.
Will
This is cool. You are going to answer other questions with this answer.
Okay, I have watched you work with Joe and maybe Ryan and even your own demos. I tongue block everything and I sound the hole to the right. So I should say that I tongue block to the left.
In the song Temperature on the 4th chorus where I believe you call it tongue switching, when I do this correctly I have the sound created on the right and then the left.
From now on what would be the best practice to have the blocked tongue position.? Should I always try to have the note that I want to sound to the right of my tongue?
Thank you for your in depth teaching!
Will
Okay, thank you... everything you bring up is correct. For Hole 1 it's your choice (in other words it's not that important). If you're asking what I prefer the sound of, for me and my students, it's to tongue switch for Hole 1 (tongue on right, single hole on left). For all other holes use your tongue to the left (this is a general statement... there may be times you want to tongue switch for special passage or pucker for articulation purposes).
So, with how you're playing it right now in mind...
Play the 1, then the 2, then take your tongue off to play the chord. If you would like to give the chord an articulation, use a Pull, which is shown in Tongue Blocking Study 3. This is where you place your tongue over all of the holes and pluck off... this is ahead of your studies right now, so just taking the tongue off works.
Before I answer this, I need to know how you play the first hole on the harmonica?... do you tongue block to the right (and to the left for everything else)... pucker... or keep your tongue to the left?