Fwd: [Harp-L] Harmonica Positions

[Chesper Nevins <chespernevins@xxxxxxxxx>]

 Whoops, meant to send this to the list, not privately.
 Winslow,

 You are awesome. Nice description.

 Being rather new to the various alternate tuning schemes on diatonic, I've
always been confused about the Melody Maker and Natural Minor tunings. It
would definitely mean more to me to call them "The Lydian Tuning" or "The
Dorian Tuning" (but then, I am not familiar with the common practice
regarding these tunings).

 In fact, someone referred to a dorian tuned harmonica and I couldn't find
it anywhere. Now I know why.

 I remember (maybe you were there) on another group where we tried to figure
out what the positions were on a diminished tuned harmonica.

 I think we pretty much agreed that the definition of positions didn't
stretch that far.

 Or else we just arbitrarily said that position simply meant the relation
between key of the harp to the key of the music as you say in your post, e.g.,
C dimi harp played in EM being 5th pos.

 You ask how you figure out the key of the harp (rightfully so).

 In addition, how do you figure out the key of the music once it gets beyond
an obvious major/minor? Some jazz players would say that an EM chord is most
related to an E Maj scale, and some would say it is most related to an
E Lydscale, so we can't even be sure of the mode of the piece based on
its
nominal key center. (Maybe the person that bases his EM chord on the E
Lydian scale would appreciate a B melody maker).

 I guess the idea of "positions" is really a traditional "modal / diatonic /
common practice" concept – or a floating cultural artifact, as you started
out.