Subject: [Harp-L] The Magician, not the Wand

[EGS1217@xxxxxxx]

Rick writes:
 
"By the way, just scrolling through my emails while I let this  one
'cool' (don't like to send without a pause for reflection -  especially
if I think I might be upsetting anyone) I see this from regular  poster
Elizabeth (hope you don't mind the quote, Elizabeth): "the 'norm' is  for

feeling and emotion.....just look at SmoJoe's YouTube videos (among  so
many  
other fabulous chromatic players, including yourself!) and  not the
oldstyle  'mechanical' style of playing"
Anyway, to quote  from an old gospel record: "Now I wasn't talking about
anybody, I was just  singing my song"
Regards,
RD

..oh, not at all, Rick...just as long as you quote me accurately....which  
would be making it clear my post wasn't addressed to you, but to Chris 'Hammer'  
Smith, so the "yourself" was about HIS fabulous chromatic playing  ;)   It'd 
certainly be worth your while to check out his  myspace link...that piece of 
music I mentioned is really gorgeous (and  beautifully played by Chris and his 
band).
 
 It'd probably have been better to have included my entire quote:  "Chris:  
Couldn't agree more...among today's chromatic players, the  'norm' is for 
feeling and emotion.....just look at SmoJoe's YouTube videos  (among so many other 
fabulous chromatic players, including yourself!) and not  the oldstyle 
'mechanical' style of playing, and it truly is dependent on  who's behind the axe. 
Actually you prove that with your playing of  "Pass the Test of Time"...a 
gorgeously played chromatic piece of music on your  own MySpace page.  Beautiful! "
 
Rick you've made it seem as though my post was written as an "upset"  with 
you. Not so, if that's how you took it.  It was written  directly to Chris 
merely in agreement with his take on the matter, and I want to  clear that up, 
since my original post sent in at 7p.m. NY time hasn't  yet made it onto Harp-L. 
 
 I'm quite in agreement with Winslow too in this area...the idea of a  
chromatic as a machine is an old (and kind of tired (to my mind))  perception, and 
actually those players who still might play mechanically  are nowadays the 
exceptions to the rule, if all the players I've been  fortunate enough to be 
exposed to for the last few years are any example.   Though I do agree that there 
are some who might tend to hold onto the "old ways"  of doing things (just as 
there are in the diatonic world), they aren't in the  majority of those putting 
their music out for the public to hear.  
 
Stevie Wonder is a step above, and plays his chromatic in  a particularly 
expressive voice than most other chromatic players, but  because he does play the 
instrument in such an innovative and  unique style, doesn't mean other 
chromatic players of today aren't expressive  and 'speaking/singing' through their 
instruments as well.  We can't  all 'speak' the same language.
 
When I began playing harmonica at age 4, I didn't know there was such a  
thing as a difference between diatonics and chromatics. They were all  
mouth-organs (in Scotland, anyway).  I only learned/heard about the huge  cultural divide 
after joining Harp-l in 2004, later Slidemeister...and  would have been 
blissfully unaware that some see them as different instruments  altogether had I 
not joined this community.  I own both, play both and also  some Echos.  They're 
all harmonicas, as are Bass and Chord  harmonicas.  What really is the 
difference? As Chris says:  it's  not the axe, but all in what you do with it. 
 
I quite agree that Stevie does wonders with the particular one he uses.  Just 
singing my song too. <G> 
 
Elizabeth



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