[Harp-L] Fwd: Strange discovery (diminished chords)

[Jonathan Hill <jonathan.f.hill@xxxxxxxxx>]

This is something I posted last week (I think).
Maybe it just got missed by most of the list.
Anyhow, I was hoping some of the heavies could weigh in on this one
(Winslow, Richard Hunter, Chris Michalek, Nicolas Fouqet, et. al)
the above list is not exclusive :-) I'm guessing most of ya are at least
3 or 4 times the player I am.



---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Jonathan Hill <jonathan.f.hill@xxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sat, 25 Sep 2004 12:56:25 -0500
Subject: Strange discovery (diminished chords)
To: harp-l <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>

I just noticed that draw holes on a regularly tuned diatonic are
exactly the same for 3 thru 6 and 7 thru 10. And there's a nice
diminished chord on 3 thru 5 and 7 thru 9. I don't know why I've never
noticed this before, but its there. So based on this symmetry how do
some of you develop melodic ideas by taking advantage of this setup?
Beyond that, lets say that you're playing non-blues changes (or even
exotic blues changes), how can I use this setup to easily determine
what harp to play and/or what position I should use? I'm gradually
learning to read the guitar chords as they're being played, but its a
struggle. Man do I love being a harp player, though. :-)
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On an unrelated note, I"ve managed to get a few of my harps to OB and
OD on every hole. The trouble is, I've noticed its affected how
quickly I can play. I can't seem to play a regular glissando anymore,
for instance, because invariably one of those holes won't sound. I
guess I'm going to HAVE to get a custom harp if I wish to pursue this
path.

Finally, now that I've learned to play OB and OD in context, how do
you go about being able to *know* where those notes are intuitively? I
find myself trying to overblow when I really just need to shift up a
hole which can make me as much as a semitone to a major 3rd away from
the pitch I intended. :-( Once again, I feel like I'm a beginner on a
brand new instrument...