[Harp-L] Re: Harp-L] Minor keys and tunings



"Ian Chadwick" wrote:

<I've purchased a couple of Lee Oskar minor keys - Am natural and Gm
<harmonic. Very intriguing sounds, and very different tunings. Reminds <me a
<bit of Parisian accordion sounds. Edith Piaf.
<Can anyone recommend some music that might suit these tunings? Are <there any
<recordings using minor keys worth noting?
<If you play them, which minor keys would you recommend as being most <useful?
<And do you prefer natural or harmonic tuning?


I have recorded a lot of material on the natural minor, both solo acoustic and electric in various styles. You can hear a number of examples at http://broadjam.com/rhunter. "Widow's Walk" is solo acoustic in first and second position. Check out "When Johnny Comes Marching Home"--1st position on a natural minor. That's music that suits the tuning for sure--the chords in 1st position on that harp are very powerful.

I recommend that you get minor keys in the keys your accompanists like to play in. If you're accompanied by horns, those are probably flat keys like F or Bb. If you're accompanied by guitar, it's probably keys like D, G, A, or E. Remember that the Lee Oskar natural minors are named for the key in 2nd position. So a D natural minor is the equivalent of a standard G harp--both play in D in 2nd position.

Natural minors are lots better than harmonica minors. Harmonic minors aren't very useful--it'll be remarkable if you use it on more than two tunes in your repertoire. I only use it on one. Natural minors sound great on everything, in first or second position. I use them on lots of pieces, including blues.

Regards, Richard Hunter
hunterharp.com
harmonica blog at http://myspace.com/richardhunterharp
Latest mp3s always at http://broadjam.com/rhunter







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