RE: [Harp-L] Harp preparation for studio recording?

["John Balding" <John.Balding@xxxxxxxxx>]

Eric Garcia touched on this in his reply when he advised: "don't try to
play anything that you can't play again smoothly."

I love seeing big harp players like Primich, Piazza, Hummel, etc. play
live because they do things on stage which they don't do in the studio.
Most tend to play more reserved when recording for the reason Eric
stated above. The song may require a couple of takes in the studio. If
you play something different each take, it affects the flow of the
piece. 
Imagine what it would be like if the drummer used a different beat style
each time you performed the same song. (Using the same rhythm, but a
different style.) What you do should be, as Eric stated, duplicable. In
other words, unless the piece requires otherwise, keep your playing in
the "safe zone" and save the hot-doggin' for the gigs. An album (CD) is
about a complete sound. Gigs are the place to showcase individual
talents.
To use the drummer analogy again, I would much rather have a
"boom-chuck-boom" drummer with perfect rhythm in the studio than a Buddy
Rich wannabe who screws up five times during each tune.
Remember, McDonald's does not owe their success to producing the world's
best hamburger. Their ultimate success comes from making a product
easily duplicable. 
One final thought: Jerry Portnoy is a bad mofo on a harp. Yet, Clapton
chose Portnoy to play with him on three albums, and tour with him due to
his flawless ability to execute fills and insert subtleties in the songs
which would not overpower or detract from the essence of the pieces.
Portnoy is capable of amazing feats of fancy, yet it was his consistency
and feel for the music which one him the slot.

John Balding

-----Original Message-----
From: harp-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxx [mailto:harp-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of b2becom@xxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Friday, September 22, 2006 12:10 AM
To: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [Harp-L] Harp preparation for studio recording?

Hey List - I'm about to go into the studio with the band for the first
time and am curious what you all do in preparing your harps for an
upcoming recording session?  Is there a protocol when preparing to
record. And how do you explain different harp model tunings to an anal
sound eng. who may ask. I use an eclectic mix of harps including: SP20s,
GMs, and LOs, Delta Frosts, Meisterclasse, Tim Moyer's Journeyman, a
Meehan Custom and now a new Suzuki FireBreath - yikes I'm a harpoholic! 

I will admit that this upcoming recording session is beginning to freak
me out a little - any advice? I do plan to get a working digital
recording of the sessions with everyone but me to work on b/4 I go in so
I can be prepared.

Also - I tend to like different harmonica mfgs. and models depending on
the key of the song I'm playing to - is that weird? 

Thanks in advance for any help! 
--
Ross Macdonald
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