Jack Ely Request item!!

[Douglas Tate <100576.3265@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Couple of days ago Jim Koryta asked a general and I sent him a privatish answer
to save a bit of bandwidth for you mad, road huggin, harp playin', knee
tremblin' buddies.  However, Jack Ely asked if I would do it in public.  There
is a negative to that.  Instead, and I hope you don't mind Jim as this doesn't
give away any secrets, I'll chuck most of what I said at the general screen. 

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I am not quite sure what it is you want to end up doing on the harmonica, I will
approach it as though you were going to 'do it my way', ie sort of classical.
This has a lot of advantages.  It provides you with a stable background from
which to start and allows a number of wind saving and volume ploys to come in.

First, excess saliva. (unquote ... this is a common problem)   Make certain you
don't eat or drink while playing, if you have just eaten, swill your mouth out.
If you still have excess after a few minutes ... (playing) ...then you have a
bit of a problem.  You need a certain amount of dampness to make the harmonica
slip, too much and the flaps stick!  This is where the metal cover plates
(especially silver) come in, slipping is easier ....(than on the CX12 which Jim
had mentioned) ....  If you are a damp player then the only thing you can do
about it is to keep your head upright, this way the harmonica doesn't act as a
collecting bowl.  Tap the instrument in your palm a few times occasionally to
remove excess from the instrument itself.  

The reason you salivate is because the stupid mouth thinks its got something to
eat. Usually, just as...(in the same way that) ...  you get tired of doing the
same thing over and over again, ..(so).. the salivary glands give up the ghost
and things get a little drier.  Try to do a few days on the chromatic and that
will also build up a film of 'debris' on the front of the CX12, this will also
fool the glands.   

I take it that you are firm in the idea of how to do the tongue blocking???  If
not I will explain it to you, or you could even buy my book on the subject!!
...(this is a blatant ad, but you did ask to see the private made public!!)

The CX12 is rather wide top to bottom and this is another factor which does not
help you as the mouthpiece goes rather far into the mouth.

Hope this is a little help to start off with. be in touch and ask questions

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I have only copied this private to the list 'cos it contains nothing personal,
if any of you who write to me want an assurance, I wouldn't, under any
circumstances post anything which was personal to you. (I've too many of my own
skeletons to hide.)

Actually, on that subject, I think I must be the only person ever to have been
arrested by the Police for playing a mouthorgan whilst going to work on my
motorised roller skates (roller boots now I suppose). 

 They had me on 21 charges, some of which were 'Causing alarm and despondency to
Her Majesty's subjects, riding on the pavement (sidewalk), fouling the Queens
Highways (drops of oil), No brakes, no lights, No tax, no insurance etc ad
nauseam.   I ended up doing a small concert in the prison after spending a
couple of hours in the cells. AND I got my pay docked by my employers.  Why do
we musicians put up with it???

Douglas T