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| Moderated by: Tony Provencher, Richard Hefner |
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| Gettin Serious About Harp | Rate Topic |
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| Posted: Thu Nov 3rd, 2005 11:14 pm |
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1st Post |
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banjo brad Super Moderator 
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I guess the bug finally got too big to ignore. Besides, it was on sale for $8. I bought David Harp's "Play the Harmonica Today!" starter set at Borders Books on Tuesday. Came in a set with a C harp, a book, and a companion CD. Starts with the basics, "in/out," don't worry about single notes, chords work good to start. Gives basic blues, rock and folk rythmns. I have found that I have gotten farther with this simple set than I ever did on my own by just blowin'  If you have an interest in harp, even with no music background, check this out.  Keep on pickin'Brad
____________________ ezFolk Help Brad Prickly Pear Music Banjo Brad's ezFolk page TOTMC |
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| Posted: Fri Nov 4th, 2005 11:57 am |
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2nd Post |
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James Connolly Approved 
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Heya Brad, here is a good website for Harmonicas, learning, playing, advice, etc. Hope this helps  . Oscar Lee or Hohner Special 20 are good reliable models and priced pretty decent.Good Luck http://coast2coastmusic.com/ James C 
____________________ James (Seamus) Connolly http://ezfolk.com/audio/jamesconnolly http://ezfolk.com/audio/bands/422/popmp3.php http://www.myspace.com/celticseamus |
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| Posted: Fri Nov 4th, 2005 06:45 pm |
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3rd Post |
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banjo brad Super Moderator
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James- The set came with a Swan C harp. I have had Marine Band G, D, and A harps since the 60's, and don't expect to buy any soon (maybe an E harp). All told I probably have about, oh, including the $8 set, less than $15 tied up in harps. The going prices, it looks like, now-a-days, are more that that for one inexpensive harp!  Keep on pickin'Brad
____________________ ezFolk Help Brad Prickly Pear Music Banjo Brad's ezFolk page TOTMC |
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| Posted: Fri Nov 4th, 2005 07:32 pm |
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4th Post |
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Philj200 Approved 
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My oldest harp is a C that I got when I was 13. I'm in my 60's now and still using it. These things do not wear out! The others all date from the folkmusic bubble of the 60's. (About seven or eight in various keys). Are you sure you want an E-harmonica? In a blues-harpist hands you would be playing in the key of B. If you want to play in E, get an A harp. I once shared an office with a guy who studied harp seriously. Took courses, practiced, went to seminars, read everything on line and in print and he never could do more than repeat phrases someone else made up. Sounded competently mechanical at best. Kind of sad. Sonny Terry once said that to "play harp, you had to sing harp." I take that to mean you have to become one with the instrument and let the music out as if you were lead singing.
____________________ My MP3 Section: http://ezfolk.com/audio/bands/1143/ My Myspace area: http://myspace.com/philj200 |
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| Posted: Sat Nov 5th, 2005 01:37 am |
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5th Post |
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banjo brad Super Moderator
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PhilJ- I got the A harp. The E was one of the "5 harps you should have" on some site I browsed thru yesterday - got it off of a thread here in the harmonica section. Not really looking at any more than the ones I have, which turn out to be the ones that are listed as important. I picked them up when I was trying to do Dylan stuff in the 60's. To show you what I knew then, the songs I wanted to do were in D, A, and G! What I miss is the rack I had - I hope I don't wind up trying to buy one of them (I keep thinking in 50's-60's prices, that one was maybe a buck 'n a half!) Mine are about 8 years younger than yours, so I should be fine!  Keep on pickin'Brad Last edited on Sat Nov 5th, 2005 01:39 am by banjo brad ____________________ ezFolk Help Brad Prickly Pear Music Banjo Brad's ezFolk page TOTMC |
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| Posted: Sun Nov 6th, 2005 11:52 pm |
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6th Post |
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Rex Approved
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Harps do wear out. Faster if you bend notes. Trying to be heard in a loud jam also wears them out. Play them at normal levels and use a mic if you are playing with a loud band. I play Special 20s and Lee Oskars. I like plastic combs and recessed reed plates. They are smoother and play faster, for me at least, and I can rinse them out once in a while so they stay clean. Mostly I play fiddle tunes and Gospel music. I like to use the Melody Maker tuning for some tunes. It gives you two full octaves with all the notes. I have some fiddle tune tabs at http://www.geocities.com/beads_59 A lot of those are for melody maker but some are for standard harps. I really don't think $20 for a good harmonica is too much. I spend more than that a year on guitar strings. Coast to Coast sells a good Hohner rack for $10. I have one of those $3 Marine Bands I got when I was a kid in the 60s. I like my new harps better. Peace, Rex
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| Posted: Mon Nov 7th, 2005 02:04 pm |
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7th Post |
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MountainBanjo Approved
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I got a Hohner rack from Elderly, its less than 15 bucks and worth every cent. Now I practice while driving, or just working around the house.
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| Posted: Mon Nov 7th, 2005 02:17 pm |
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8th Post |
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Philj200 Approved
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Harmonicas may wear out if you pust them too far. Never been a problem in acoustic sets for me and I do play very much upfront. When I do open mikes or play with amped instruments, I stay within a few inches of the mike. I also have an old AKG mike I hook between the fourth and fifth finger and that lets me rove around the stage a lot more. The hand-held mike takes some practice to avoid loud clicks when the mike and mouthharp contact each other. I have the same rack I purchased in the 60's. It's still in good order because I never liked it much and haven't touched it in decades. I have a photograph of someone called The Kentucky Wonder Beam, a country musician from the 30's-40's playing a different type of rack. His was clipped to the side of his guitar. Look terribly uncomfortable. Last edited on Mon Nov 7th, 2005 02:19 pm by Philj200 ____________________ My MP3 Section: http://ezfolk.com/audio/bands/1143/ My Myspace area: http://myspace.com/philj200 |
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| Posted: Wed Nov 9th, 2005 02:17 am |
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9th Post |
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banjo brad Super Moderator
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MountainBanjo wrote:I got a Hohner rack from Elderly, its less than 15 bucks and worth every cent. Now I practice while driving, or just working around the house. As a retired ff/emt who cut more than a couple of folks out of cars, I can see it now: ff1:"Where did this wire contraption around his neck come from?" emt:"This is strange, every time I ventilate him, I get this 'G' triad coming back at me!"  (Sorry, I couldn't resist! May you never have ocassion to rue practicing while driving.) Keep on pickin'Brad
____________________ ezFolk Help Brad Prickly Pear Music Banjo Brad's ezFolk page TOTMC |
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