[Harp-L] Stevie Wonder's sound

[Winslow Yerxa]

Except that it isn't passive at all. Try actually sounding like Tommy Reilly and recording yourself. Compare your sound to his and you'll start to see what I mean. There's considerable artistry in how he brings the music to life through the harmonica. Just because he isn't bending notes doesn't mean he's playing passively.
I have heard the truly passive sound, and it was something of a revelation. 
After Henry Mancini died, I happened to see a TV show where a military band played a tribute medley to him. When it came to "Moon River," someone in the band pulled out a chromatic harmonica to play that part. He played it competently - the notes were there, played cleanly. But it sounded mechanical - the player wasn't breathing life into the reeds, only air. He may have been a trumpet or flute player who was tasked with figuring out how to play chromatic enough to cover this specific requirement. He made the notes come out, but that's all he did - he didn't really inhabit the sound of the instrument. That, to me, is the passive sound.
Winslow Winslow Yerxa
Producer, the Harmonica Collective
Author, Harmonica For Dummies, Second Edition: ISBN 978-1-118-88076-0
            Harmonica Basics For Dummies, ASIN B005KIYPFS
            Blues Harmonica For Dummies, ISBN 978-1-1182-5269-7
Resident Expert, bluesharmonica.comInstructor, Jazzschool Community Music SchoolPresident emeritus, SPAH, the Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica

      From: Rick Dempster <rickdempster33 at gmail.com>
 To: Winslow Yerxa <winslowyerxa at yahoo.com> 
Cc: Sheltraw <macaroni9999 at gmail.com>; "harp-l at harp-l.com" <harp-l at harp-l.com>
 Sent: Sunday, May 22, 2016 8:25 PM
 Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Stevie Wonder's sound
   
'Passive' wasn't meant to sound critical Winslow, though I know what you mean.Compared to 'jazz' or some pop players, a 'classical' player like Tommy Reilly has, to my ears,what I would call a 'passive' sound. More like a keyboard instrument.I actually prefer Tommy's sound for 'classical' (I use the term loosely)to Larry Adler's much more active attack on the reeds.RD
On 23 May 2016 at 11:44, Winslow Yerxa <winslowyerxa at yahoo.com> wrote:

The chromatic only sounds passive in the hands of those who fail to inhabit its sound. Like the best players, Stevie does inhabit it - with his own tone, attack, and vibrato. He also has a distinctive melodic vocabulary and a distinctive way of deploying it. Winslow Yerxa
Producer, the Harmonica Collective
Author, Harmonica For Dummies, Second Edition: ISBN 978-1-118-88076-0
            Harmonica Basics For Dummies, ASIN B005KIYPFS
            Blues Harmonica For Dummies, ISBN 978-1-1182-5269-7
Resident Expert, bluesharmonica.comInstructor, Jazzschool Community Music SchoolPresident emeritus, SPAH, the Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica

      From: Rick Dempster <rickdempster33 at gmail.com>
 To: Sheltraw <macaroni9999 at gmail.com> 
Cc: "harp-l at harp-l.com" <harp-l at harp-l.com>
 Sent: Sunday, May 22, 2016 4:48 PM
 Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Stevie Wonder's sound
  
He shapes every note. The chromatic usually sounds passive. Stevie makes
every reed bend to his conception of sound.
RD

On 23 May 2016 at 08:20, Sheltraw <macaroni9999 at gmail.com> wrote:

> Compared to other chromatic harmonica players I can easily recognize
> Stevie Wonder's playing. What elements of technique do you think define his
> recognizable sound?
>
> Daniel
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>