Tongue blocking or lip pursing in some holes
Fri, 10/23/2015 - 07:41
Hi, Is it an error to combine the tongue blocking with the lip pursing? I read in some sites like Adam Gussow one that for the two first holes to use the lip pursing is better and have better sound and easier bending with cleaner sound, and then you can combine those technics when playing... what you think... and what is your advice? I used to play clean notes in single hole without tongue blocking, but your videos move me to try the tongue exercises... very rare at first.
Sun, 10/25/2015 - 08:08
#2
Perfect David, i will do.
Perfect David, i will do in that way, thanks a lot.
Hello CONDE. I recommend you learn the material as it's presented in my instruction to develop the skill set of tongue blocking. Have fun learning the techniques. Once you're able to do it, you can decide when you use pucker and when you use tongue block... you won't know how to choose this intelligently until you can do both well.
It is common for players like yourself to end up playing a mixed embouchure style (I did for many years). This means that you'll commonly pucker holes 1 through 3 and switch to tongue block for holes 4 and above. Whenever bending is used (since you've already developed the skill set of bending in a pucker), then pucker.
So... if a lick uses a 4 draw bend and then moves down the harmonica, stay in a pucker. If a lick like 2 3 4 5+ 6+ is played, then you pucker 2 and 3, and then switch on hole 4. At hole 4 you can use the common tongue block techniques like slaps, flutters, octaves, etc. You may find this approach a good one for you... many do.
"the two first holes to use the lip pursing is better and have better sound and easier bending with cleaner sound" is incorrect, both embouchures can do this well.
It's best to just look at the facts objectively. Both embouchures are valid embouchures, and players will eventually learn both. If you start with pucker, like you and I, then learning tongue blocking as well is a necessity at some point if you want to play some of the same licks of the fathers of blues harmonica... there are an abundance of sounds that can only be accomplished in a tongue block. If you really love post war chicago blues and earlier (Little Walter, Big Walter, the Sonny Boys, George Smith, James Cotton, etc.) then you want to tongue block as much as possible... all of those players were essentially 100% tongue blockers.
Hope this makes sense for you. You're ahead of the game the more tongue blocking you learn now (again, if classic blues is your thing)... there are no disadvantages to tongue blocking 100% now (for any style), only time savings.