[Harp-L] Playing Left Handed (was Rick Estrin, is he left handed?)

[Glenn and Debbie Woodhouse <gwoodhouse40@xxxxxxx>]

Like Mr. D'Aurizio, in my sheltered self taught formative years I naturally gravitated to holding the harmonica with my right hand.  More recently I have forced myself to switch.  My understanding and belief of the benefit of holding the instrument with the left hand with the low registers to the left is that the sound chamber created by the right hand cupping over the left is larger and deeper adjacent to the lower notes thus enhancing resonance effects while cupping/fanning.  When dersired, for electrified tight cupped blues tone this also allows you to seal the higher register holes with your thumb, which I now heavily exploit.  You can achieve these things with a right hand technique by flipping the harp and playing the low registers to the right (as Paul Butterfield did).
 
Glenn.
> > Message: 10> Date: Tue, 23 Dec 2008 18:42:17 -0500> From: "Michael D'Aurizio" <mdaurizio@xxxxxxxx>> Subject: RE: R: [Harp-L] Rick Estrin, is he left handed?> > I too am right handed and hold the diatonic in my right hand. I was self taught for the beginning years, so I diddn't realize that the "correct way" for a righty was to hold the harp in the left hand. I've tried to hold the harp in my left hand, and it's very unconfortable for me. I do hold the chromo in my left hand, it feels comfortable and it's alot easier to hit the slide! I really can't see any drawbacks to this technique with the diatonic, I can still get the hand effects I want, work the cup, and i've got pretty decent tone so "if it ain't broke don't fix it".> > > From: riccardogrosso@xxxxxxxxx> To: michaelrubinharmonica@xxxxxxxxx; harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx> Subject: R: [Harp-L] Rick Estrin, is he left handed?> Date: Tue, 23 Dec 2008 18:43:58 +0100> CC: > > Well I think that it depends on which side of harp you are working...You> hold the harp with right hand, playing on the left side on the lower> notes...you do the wah wah with the left hand...in my mind the wah wah thing> get more powerful, because you are doing that exactly in front of the part> of the harp you are playing, so the wah wah get stronger, more defined. But> that's only my little idea about that. > > -----Messaggio originale-----> Da: harp-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxx [mailto:harp-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxx] Per conto> di michael rubin> Inviato: Tuesday, December 23, 2008 4:57 PM> A: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx> Oggetto: [Harp-L] Rick Estrin, is he left handed?> > I was watching a RIck Utube where he was playing into a vocal mic and> he held his harp in a strange way, the low notes appeared to be !> on his> left but he was gripping the harp with his right hand while wah-wahing> with his left. I have seen Rick play a million times yet never> noticed this before. Is he left handed? Anyone here play that way?> DOes it create a dinstinctive tone?> Michael Rubin> Michaelrubinharmonica.com>