[Harp-L] Potato Potahtoe/Cherrypicking

[George Brooks <gbrooks1@xxxxxxxxx>]

I wrote my "no one but Howard" post in response to a post of David 
Fairweather's, in which he voiced his suspicion that "overblow" players 
"cherrypick" the tunes they call at jazz jams.  I replied that Howard 
doesn't have to, but that everybody else does.  I then expressed the 
opinion that the only person who can play "no-excuses jazz" on the 
short harp is Howard.  My post stated what I mean by  "no-excuses 
jazz":  the ability to play whatever tune someone else calls at any 
tempo in any key.

Pierre responded, in part:

>Seems to me that if someone wants
>to play  no-excuses jazz, he would
>be best to follow Richard's advice
>[get a button chromatic and learn
>how to play it] unless he is willing
>to dedicate every waking moment
>of his life to his instrument.

I have some better advice: get a saxophone.  Or a trumpet, piano, or 
guitar.  "No-excuses jazz," as I have defined it, sets a very high 
mark.  While there are probably over a thousand saxophone players (and 
trumpet, piano, and guitar players) who meet this mark worldwide, the 
same cannot be said of harmonica players.  If we're talking about 
people who can play the more complex and demanding jazz tunes 
convincingly at tempo, we have a short list headed by people like 
William Galison and Mike Turk.  I doubt if the list totals fifty names 
worldwide.  I'm not talking about people who can play well or play some 
jazz tunes well, but who can really play "no-excuses jazz" as I have 
defined it.  That's a lot more button chromatic players than short harp 
players, but it's still not very many in absolute terms.

It is true that playing chromatically on the "diatonic" presents 
intonation challenges that the button chromatic does not share.  But 
the button chromatic is still an awkward instrument for jazz because of 
its mechanics.  There are the in-out breath direction changes, the fact 
that you have to move the whole instrument as opposed to just your 
fingers, and the need to coordinate the slide movements with the 
movements of the instrument and the breath direction changes.  Cherokee 
at tempo in a non-standard key?  Good luck to Mr. Hunter and his CX-12. 
 Yet I have no doubt that if Richard, with the degree of talent and 
musicality and discipline that he possesses, had applied himself to the 
alto saxophone rather than the harmonica, this would easily be within 
his ability today.

Pierre continues:

>Getting back to what Richard said:

	>Richard is viewing as limitations are
	>merely issues that can and will be overcome.
	>[quoting from my earlier post]

>I don't understand how you can say that.
>There's no magic here each diatonic harp
>no excuse jazz player wannabee has to figure
>it all out by himself. Seems to me the issues
>are very real. If you want the expressiveness
>of the diatonic or to break new ground, the
>diatonic is the way to go.  Otherwise to me the
>choice is simple.

The issues are indeed real, and I think most people who want to play 
chromatically on the short harp (or even to simply incorporate 
overblows selectively in their playing) need to pay closer attention to 
issues of articulation and intonation.  But these are issues of 
technique, serious though they may be, and not limitations of the 
instrument.  I *do* want the expressiveness of the diatonic, and, 
though I have no desire to be a jazz player, I do intend to play it 
chromatically.

If you want to play difficult jazz on the harmonica and you are not 
Howard Levy, my advice is congruent with Richard Hunter's and with 
Pierre's simple choice: buy a button chromatic and learn how to play 
it.  If you aspire to play *no-excuses jazz* as I have defined it, for 
real, my advice is to pick up some other instrument more readily suited 
to the music unless you have an unusual combination of talent and 
determination.

George