RE: [Harp-L] What key harp for Country and for Minor?



From: "Paul F. Sehorne" <paul@xxxxxxxxxxx>

* What key in Natural Minor tuning would I get the most use from? It is my understanding that 2nd position minor is the primary targeted usage of this tuning; so let's refer to the minor key that would be considered 2nd position.

I find that most minor keyed blues/rock/pop tunes tend to be in A, C & D minors.
Jazz: C, F, Bb minors


* Should I invest in Country tuning or Melody Maker tuning? I understand that these name of these tunings and how the key is specified may vary from manufacturer to manufacturer. The County tuning I am referring to is different from a standard major diatonic only in that the 5 and 9 draw are a semi-tone sharper, proving a Major 7 instead of Dominant 7th in 2nd position. The Melody Maker tuning I am referring to is the same as Country tuning in that it had blow 3 one full step higher.

Try everything. I admire your knowledge and attention to music and theory.


On a C harp, for example, blow 3 would be A instead of G. This has the disadvantage that you could only get the Ab by overblowing. Overblowing is not something that I plan on getting into at this early stage - not so much because of the challenge of the technique, but because I understand it is likely that I would have little success with out-of-the box harps.

I think that this is a myth. Howard Levy, Adam Gussow, Mike Turk, me and a few others were successfully incorporating OB's on OOTB harps for years before becoming custum harp addicts. (My name is Michael and I have a Filisko problem!)


* What key in Country tuning or Melody Maker (depending upon the concensus to the question above) would I get the most use from? Again, it is my understanding that they primary usage of this tuning is 2nd position; so let's once again refer to the 2nd position tuning in referring to the key of the harp.
C, G, A, D, E (key of songs)


Michael Peloquin http://tinyurl.com/5tpjg http://www.harpsax.com






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