Re: [Harp-L] Tongue blocking and circular tuning

[David Payne <dmatthew@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Thanks Arthur for clearning up, for the general public, what I was trying to say. The point I was making was there were no tongue-block octaves in circular tuning. 

Dave
_____________________________
www.elkriverharmonicas.com




________________________________
From: Arthur Jennings <timeistight@xxxxxxxxx>
To: David Payne <dmatthew@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Cc: Harp L Harp L <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Tue, October 27, 2009 12:51:51 PM
Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Tongue blocking and circular tuning

I'll apologize in advance for being pedantic, but "octave" means

the interval between one musical pitch and another with half or double its frequency. 
>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octave
>

C to Bb, E to D and G to F are minor sevenths, not octaves.

I blame David Barrett for spreading this confusing and erroneous usage of "octave" throughout the harmonica community.
 
On Tue, Oct 27, 2009 at 6:57 AM, David Payne <dmatthew@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Just a note, that tuning would on the spiral schemes, be laid out in an F scale, not a C. Thus it would be:
> the blow notes would go    C E G Bb D F  A   C   E G
>    the draw notes would go D F A C   E G  Bb D   F A
>
>On tongue blocking itself, I see it as a primarily an octave technique. You can get that chordal backing with a pucker embouchure. Or at least that's the way I learned. I had no clue what tongue blocking was when I was a kid, so I got that sound with a pucker and making my lips wider.
>So, in the Dave Payne world, your octaves would be C and Bb, E and D, G and F, Bb and A, etc., which might give you a nice 7th once in a while.
>
>Dave
>__________________________
>www.elkriverharmonicas.com
>
>
>
>
>
>----- Original Message ----
>From: Winslow Yerxa <winslowyerxa@xxxxxxxxx>
>To: Harp L Harp L <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
>Sent: Mon, October 26, 2009 1:45:47 PM
>Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Tongue blocking and circular tuning
>
>Tongue blocking can benefit circular tuning greatly.
>
>If by circular you mean a tuning where, for instance,
>    the blow notes would go C E G B D F A C E G
>    the draw notes would go D F A C E G B D F A
>
>In this tuning, you can't play octaves with tongue blocking, but you can get all seven three-note chords chords that belong to the major scale (along with their four and five note extensions). That's a lot of intriguing choices. You can play a melody note, then lift your tongue to create a variety of chords. You can also alternate blow melody with draw chord  (or vice versa) as diatonic accordion players do. Nad you can play splits, with a melody note on one side of your tongue and a chord or bass note on the other side.
>
>True, you can't rely on the blow chord always being C and the draw chord being some kind of G7. The chords constantly - but quite predictably - shift as you move up and down the harp, so you have to actually think and make choices.
>
>But then, Sam Hinton showed us that tongue blocking and thinking are not mutually exclusive.
>
>Winslow Yerxa
>
>Author, Harmonica For Dummies ISBN 978-0-470-33729-5
>
>--- On Sun, 10/25/09, David Payne <dmatthew@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> circular is in no way shape or form a tongue block tuning.
>
>
>   
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-- 
Arthur Jennings
http://www.timeistight.com