Re: Playing by Ear

["d.m.fairweather" <dmf273@xxxxxxxxx>]

- --- W8BEZ@xxxxxxx wrote:
> Hi that is quite a question... Lets see now, someone comes up to you and says 
> can you play...
> Say "Frankie and Johnny".. for instance.... You probably have heard the tune, 
> but you never played it on your ten hole harp, yes you should be able to 
> handle that.  Perhaps I have misunderstood, what you are getting at.. Hopefully 
> not, but it can be done.. Take care and keep harpin'
> AL playing for 70 years . Yep, I first started playing after a few pointers 
> from one of my Uncles..
> t
> 

Well yes that's exactly what I'm getting at.  But let's say the tune is a little more
complex than "Frankie and Johnny" -- let's say it's "Hava Nagilah" -- (everybody knows
that one right? ;> )  So lets say you're a chromatic player and you've never played
that tune before in your life.   And somebody at a jam says "Ok, now we're going to
play Hava Nagilah in Eb."  And he whistles an Eb for you to set the key.   Now if you
wanted to whistle the whole song you'd have no problem because you know the tune well. 
You could whistle all the way through it the first time with no mistakes and it
wouldn't matter if it was in Eb, B or F#.

But how good of a chromatic player do you have to be before you can PLAY the tune with
no mistakes the very first time you attempt it?   I would guess that some of the
chromatic players on the list would have no problem.   Am I right?  Raise your hand!