"If everyone knows the arguments, then those who claim that
comb materials perceptibly affect tone must do so
deliberately, disregarding both acoustic theory and
empirical evidence to the contrary...
I was corrected on my statement, in passing, that diatonic
harps have 'Richter tuning...' I assume that
newbies look to Harp-l for correct information. Should we
not do our best to avoid misleading them?”
Well, yeah. I suppose I did not call you on that. The way I go about
it, is I try to say “Richter note placement,” even thought that
itself isn't technically accurate, but meanings of words change and
when people think of Richter, they think of the note placement, not
construction. Anymore, I just try to describe it that way, to set
that example. In retrospect, I might have written you off list had I
noticed it, because people do look up to you and respect you as they
do, I do see where you feel a burden of personal accuracy.
On the other hand, I've a similar crusade of sorts about sealed
wood. My chromatics do not crack, regardless of what weather changes
I put them through. My diatonics do not swell from playing. There
was a time when somebody said “wood combs suck. They crack, etc.”
I'd chip in something about the benefits of a good sealing, but
eventually I figured out that I can't change the world and I backed
off and went with a more “here's how to seal wood” approach. You
can't change everybody's mind, regardless of how much evidence
you've got. You should check out the flat earth society forum,
theflatearthsociety.org it's hilarious and, with a billion times
more research and facts confirming a round earth than difference in
comb materials, it serves as the ultimate example of no matter how
much is out there, you can't change every mind. They invite people
to come in and argue round earth, people say "how come hurricanes
rotate in a different direction south
of the Equator." Ans: "It's a conspiracy." "Home come somebody can't
just go to the edge of the earth and take a picture of the flat
earth. This is an actual quote from the FAQ page: "The government
prevents people from getting close enough to the Ice Wall to take a
picture." I offer the society as an example only to illustrate how
hard it is to change minds once they're made up.
As for me, I don't know. I truly do not know and don't consider it
of monumental importance, just an interest. There's numerous
variables at work, I notice differences in different harmonicas of
the same model and construction. Why? I don't know.
“I cannot initiate a bend without constricting the air flow
at or near the mouthpiece and drawing much harder. However,
I'm not going to state that as a fact because I have only my
own subjective experience with no hard evidence or theory to
support it.
Very true and it is not fact for every diatonic. When I evaluate a
harp, a main difference to be between a good custom and stock is the
ability to initiate a deep bend at minimal breath, actually at the
minimal amount of breath it takes for the reed to vibrate. The
reason it takes a harder draw is breath is wasted, whether by an
imperfect mate of comb and reedplate, or via around the reeds
themselves.
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