[Harp-L] Dual reed action?

[Bertram Becher <becher95@xxxxxx>]

Hi JP,

what came into my mind reading your description is the fact, that if you bend a (draw-) note on the diatonic, in the initial phase both reeds ar envolved in lowering the pitch...if you bend a note extremely (lowering the tone to 1 1/2 steps down in 3d for example) only the blow reed contributes to the tone while the draw reeds's action is completely stopped. You can test this by covering the draw reed with one finger. All notes "in between" only can be produced by dual reed action.

Greetings 

Bertram Becher


> -----Ursprüngliche Nachricht-----
> Von: "Vern Smith" <jevern@xxxxxxx>
> Gesendet: 04.05.06 05:56:47
> An: "Harp-l" <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
> Betreff: Re: [Harp-L] Bending and Stiff Reeds (was: Norton Buffalo Question)


> My thoughts are that you have made a 100% correct and articulate analysis of 
> chromatic bending.
> 
> Vern
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Jp Pagan" <jpl_pagan@xxxxxxxxx>
> To: "harp-l harp-l" <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Wednesday, May 03, 2006 9:39 AM
> Subject: [Harp-L] Bending and Stiff Reeds (was: Norton Buffalo Question)
> 
> 
> > In speaking of Norton's chromatic playing, James Leo
> > recently said:
> >
> >>
> >> On Mercury Blues (with Roy Rogers) there is some
> > incredible playing... >he has the most incredible pair
> > of lungs - as he is bending notes on its >stiff reeds.
> >
> >
> > i'm not one of those select few physicist or
> > metallurgists who happen to play harmonica, but i
> > think there's a misconception here. if i'm wrong,
> > please correct me (that means you, Winslow ;).
> >
> > "stiff" reeds, as far as i know, have nothing to do
> > with whether or not one can bend a note on a
> > harmonica. when one bends a note, one does
> > not.bend.the.reed.
> >
> > forgive me for getting pedantic here for a second, but
> > i want to be sure i'm understanding/describing this
> > clearly: reeds produce sound by vibrating at a certain
> > speed (frequency) which chops up our airstream and
> > produces a certain pitch (a note).
> >
> > the concept of "bending" a note refers to making it
> > change pitch either slightly, so that it is just a
> > little flat or sharp, or alot, so that it becomes
> > another note. i can't be sure, but the term "bend" may
> > have come from the guitar, where one literally bends a
> > guitar string in order to alter the pitch of the note
> > (bending the string changes its tension, and it's the
> > tension, length and mass of a vibrating string that
> > determines the frequency it vibrates at, and therefore
> > the pitch of the note it makes. change one of the
> > three and you change the pitch).
> >
> > but that's a coincidence. other instruments, like just
> > about all the brass and woodwinds i can think of, can
> > bend notes. obviously, no one is bending the horn
> > itself (ok, Dizzie did, but that was different ;)
> >
> > on a harmonica, what you "bend" is note, not the reed.
> > the reed simply vibrates at a different frequency,
> > creating a different pitch. it does so because we
> > essentially force it too by creating a cavity in our
> > bodies that resonates at some frequency other than the
> > fundamental pitch (horn players do something very
> > similar, as i understand it, to create pitches that
> > "aren't on" the instrument - sound familiar?).
> >
> > since a reed vibrates whether it is playing the
> > "regular" note or a bent note, the literal stiffness
> > of a reed shouldn't have anything to do with how hard
> > the note is to bend.
> >
> > what does make a difference is that bending on a
> > chromatic is a single-reed action, whereas on a
> > diatonic it is generally a dual-reed action. for
> > whatever reason, it seems to be easier to do dual-reed
> > bends. for me anyway. at the very least, they tend to
> > sound alot better. also, because of the fact that
> > chromatics can be very leaky, it may be difficult to
> > create the proper resonant chamber for a bend on a
> > chromatic. of course, now i'm just speculating.
> >
> > so... stiff reeds? bends? thoughts?
> >
> >  --Jp
> >
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