RE: [Harp-L] slide chrom v short harp



Firstly, let me thank everybody for their answers and their dissent from some of those answers. This includes those who wrote me privately as well. I can't thank everyone individually, so I hope this blanket "Thanks" will suffice. I am going to like it here.

At 09:39 AM 12/04/2005, Chris Michalek wrote:

If you want to keep your sanity, ego, confidence level in check and
be serious about what you are doing MUSICALLY then stay away from the
harmonica altogether.  Learn the guitar or keyboard first.  After a
few years, then pick up both concurrently.

Way back when I was a teenager, before the earth cooled, I wanted to play guitar like so many others of my generation, so I started taking lessons. After about 3 or 4 lessons my guitar teacher took me aside and told me to give it up. As anyone who has taken private lessons knows, I must have been pretty bad for him to say that. Most music teachers will endure anything to get the fee.


He said words to the effect of, "It's best not to give you any false hope. I have seen this before. You cannot seem to control your left hand in any way, shape or form. You can practice all you like, but your left hand will never improve. Give up now before you frustrate yourself."

I refused to believe him, for another 2 months, but eventually I realized that those 2 hours of practice a day were not improving my left hand's responses at all. I had a stupid left hand and I finally gave up.

Which is why, to this day, I am a frustrated musician.

Over the years I have realized how right (no pun intended) he was. I can barely make my left hand do anything, even the most rudimentary things. When I smoked cigarettes, I couldn't even smoke using my left hand. I'd either burn myself or drop the stupid thing. And just how hard is it to hold a cigarette?

However, I figure I can push and pull a harmonica across my lips with a stupid left hand. Especially if it's aided by my good, right one.

Sorry to keep going off topic.





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