Re: [Harp-L] Questions I Got Questions

["Tim Moyer" <wmharps@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

After reading this post, there are a lot more questions: what kind 
of harmonica are you playing?  Standard tuned diatonic?  Chromatic?  
The two models you mention?  You probably know more about music 
theory than I do, so you probably already understand how to 
construct chords.  But just saying "chords" doesn't give any 
information about key or mode, or the key of harmonica you are 
playing, which, despite the fact that it might be chromatic, is 
certainly diatonic with respect to the chords that are available.  

If you look at the note layout(s) of the harmonica(s) you are 
playing, you should be able to see what notes you can sound 
simultaneously.  It's simple enough to sound 2, 3, 4 or more 
adjacent notes at the same time, which, depending on where you are 
on which harmonica, will give you different chords, but unlike, say, 
a piano, you can't just randomly select several notes.  You can't, 
for example, play draw notes and blow notes together in a chord.  

If you're playing a standard tuned diatonic in the key in which it's 
marked (e.g., playing in C on a C harmonica), the you can sound a I-
III-V Cmaj chord in three octaves on the 1-2-3, 4-5-6, and 7-8-9 
blow holes.  You can also sound a Gmaj chord by sounding the 2-3-4 
draw notes at the same time, or a Dmin chord by playing the 4-5-6 
draws simultaneously.  

Unfortunately, the standard tuned diatonic does not use regular 
patterns, so just "playing the channel next to the one you are 
aiming for" doesn't always give you the same interval.  Sometimes 
you might get a nice interval for the song your playing, another 
time you might not.  This is complicated by the fact that you might 
NOT be playing the harmonica in the key in which it's marked, in 
which case you might get intervals out of the intended mode.  In 
addition, there are techniques that involve using your tongue to 
block some of the holes in-between ones you are sounding in order to 
get octaves and other interval splits.  

This is a complicated topic, and I don't think there's a systematic 
answer, other than get to know your instrument and what it can do!

-tim


Daniel Bernard wrote:
> Let me start by telling you where I'm at.  I've been
> playing for about 7 months.  I can read music.  I
> understand all the positions.  [Thanks to Mox Gowland]
> I play single note harmonies out of fake books, and
> tabs, as well as tabs that I have created.  In fact, I
> like to switch things around with the find and replace
> function on Microsoft Word.  I have a pretty good
> command of the theory needed to play the harmonica any
> way I want to, including chords.
> 
> Problem is, I can't hear them.  They sound like dual
> reed harmonicas to me.  I'm not an extemporanious kind
> of guy who plays by ear anyhow.  Incidentally I have
> the Seydel Octave in G and the Huang solo tuned
> tremelos in C and C#.  I recommend them highly.  I
> also have a number of other cheap chinese harps that
> are exactly the same as some of the more expensive
> models.  Under no cercumstances should you buy one of
> these.
> 
> Is there some sort of system, such as playing the
> channel next to the one you are aiming for in order to
> get good chords?  That is to say, If I was reading C,
> would I be playing chords well if I just hit two
> channels at the same time including the channel with
> the note I was reading?  Does somebody out there have
> a system of adding chords into their music
> systematically, rather than relying on their ear and
> insticts.  [Which I can't do}