Re: [Harp-L] why can't I bend?

[BiscuitBoy714@xxxxxxx]

Never say die my brutha.  I've seen people who eventually got good at harp 
struggle a long time to get  bends down. I gotta ask you a couple of questions. 
Do you have single notes down  real good. You have to be able to control all 
of the air coming into, or going  out of your mouth through that one hole, with 
no air escaping around the sides,  to be able to bend correctly. When you can 
do that think of trying to get a real  think milkshake up through a straw, 
what your tongue does, and do it without  tightening up your lips on the outside 
of the harp. Let your lips be  relaxed and do all of the sucking of the straw 
(so to speak) with your tongue.  When you tighten up your lips too much 
trying to bend you lose the concentrated  air thing and it's almost impossible to 
bend. 
       I don't know if that is of any help  and I probably was redundant (I 
heard the milkshake analogy here)  but  maybe if you try that this time, and 
add to it anything else that helps you can  pull it off. Maybe doing that and 
tilting the harp a little. Everybody has to  find their own combination of 
things to play harp anyway.
     Stay focused grasshopper..........breathe  in.....breathe 
out........very important breathe.
         You'll get it dude, stay  with it.
          
                Randy
     BiscuitBoy Blues
          
 
In a message dated 8/11/2007 11:18:18 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
aber@xxxxxxxxx writes:


I  think some air is traveling around my tongue instead of over it. This 
might be  the reason I only get a baby bend. With the excpetion of a tongue 
transplant,  anybody have any gems i can try or similar experience that has not 
already  been shared? Should I surrender or dig in for the long  battle?

Steve







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