Re: [Harp-L] Trio Polifonic Harmonica Trio

Gautam Choudhury <caug5@xxxxxxxxx> · Wed, 30 Apr 2008 05:20:37 -0700 (PDT)

As far as I could see the soloist is using a 4-Octave Chromatic harmonica. These 4-Octave models come only in the key of C. Although one can play a song in any key in this harmonica. As we all know, a chromatic harmonica (unlike a diatonic harp) is nicely split in the groups of 4-holes. Each set of 4-holes makes an octave. So, 5th hole blow is the root ("do") and what I can hear and interpret is that the soloist is playing in the key of Bb major. That is the 7th hole draw with the slide in and this is your root note (Bb). If you play the octave starting with this note you will quickly notice that the use of the slide makes it possible to play this melody quite fast.

The melody is typical Rumanian. I have attended several European Harmonica meets over many years and in the old days the Rumanian Trios use to come regularly and often played very fast tunes similar to what these guys are playing in a rapid 7/8 rhythm. IMHO it has Gypsy roots and this rhythm is quite common there.You can listen to numerous similar tunes in the Net and in YouTube. 

Gautam

--- On Wed, 4/30/08, Rick Dempster <rick.dempster@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> From: Rick Dempster <rick.dempster@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Trio Polifonic Harmonica Trio
> To: "Ken Deifik" <kenneth.d@xxxxxxxxxxxx>, "G. E. Popenoe" <gpopenoe@xxxxxxxxx>
> Cc: "Harp-L" <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
> Date: Wednesday, April 30, 2008, 8:02 AM
> Ah but I did mean 'position'. To say what mode he
> was playing in would explain the musical aspect,
> independent of what instrument was being used.
> You could play any mode in any key on any chromatic harp,
> but the breathing patterns (which is what interested me)
> would be different.
> What I wanted to know was: 'What key and on what
> particular keyed harmonica is he playing?'. That
> translates to 'position', as far as I can see.
> RD
> 
> >>> "G. E. Popenoe"
> <gpopenoe@xxxxxxxxx> 30/04/2008 15:50 >>>
> Sounds like it is 6/8 or 12/8 time. Something in threes for
> sure.
> 
> When playing chromatic, I don't know if
> "position" is the best word to  
> use as mentioned earlier in the thread. "Mode" 
> as in "minor mode"  
> might be a little more appropriate term even if you change
> modes by  
> playing a scale starting from a different
> "position"....
> 
> Oh hell, use "position" of you want with harp
> players. With anyone  
> else you might want to use "mode."
> 
> 
> 
> Gary Popenoe
> 
> On Apr 29, 2008, at 7:27 PM, Ken Deifik
> <kenneth.d@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> 
> > Rick wrote:
> >> That's wonderful! I'll have to wait till
> I'm at home to work out  
> >> what key/position he's in. That's really
> fluid and rhythmic  
> >> simultaneously. Is that a known melody they are
> playing? I'm  
> >> assuming it falls into the Klezmer bag, no?
> >
> > It doesn't sound very much like any Klezmer
> I've ever heard.  If we  
> > were all specialists in eastern European music I'm
> sure we'd hear  
> > some connection.  Since it's a Romanian group,
> perhaps it's some  
> > form of Romainian folk music or dance music.
> >
> > The famous Klezmer song is "Romania Romania"
> but the Klezmer cats I  
> > know make fun of the old people that request it. 
> It's the "When the  
> > Saint's Go Marching In" of Klezmer -- the one
> Klezmer song the  
> > civilians know.  And that song sounds nothing like
> this wonderful  
> > harmonica band.
> >
> > However, Klezmer is absolutely expected to grow and
> change, so maybe  
> > this is what it sounds like in Romanian now.
> >
> > Before he actually became a Klezmer musician himself,
> Andy Statman  
> > studied with a bunch of Eastern European music masters
> who were all  
> > living in dire poverty in NYC.  Communism was still
> the law of the  
> > land in their countries, and cultural anhilation was
> the order of  
> > the day, so they'd all blown their homes.  Each
> master represented a  
> > completely different form of Eastern European music,
> and confusing  
> > one with any other would have been as weird to them as
> confusing  
> > Bluegrass with 70's Funk.  One afternoon Andy took
> me on a musical  
> > tour of Eastern Europe with his amazing record
> collection, and he  
> > kind of opened my eyes, if only for that day.
> >
> > At one point he played me several different kinds of
> music that were  
> > native JUST to Istanbul, which I realize is not in
> Europe.  Each one  
> > sounded really different from the others.  Amazingly,
> he had 78's of  
> > music that was only played in Istanbul gay bars.
> >
> > Has anyone counted the time signature of this tune of
> Trio Polifonic?
> >
> > K
> >
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