[Harp-L] Re: Need encouragement



Hello, Dark Gallows

I too played trumpet at one time. I played all through my school years and even did some pro stuff locally back when dinosaurs roamed the earth.(Mostly Motown/Soul music type stuff)
When I first picked up the harmonica, I tried TB(tongue blocking).
I got pretty discouraged. Then somebody showed me the pucker method.
I did OK with that but wasn't happy with the tone(that's a big thing with us trumpet players)
Next, I moved on to the "U-Tongue" method that Norton Buffalo teaches in his tapes/CDs that he did for Homespun Tapes(Homespuntapes.com).
Bingo! It was like playing the trumpet all over again, except I found that my embouchure was quite a bit more relaxed than the visual depictions in the lesson.
It made learning to "bend" a WHOLE bunch easier.
Now I use whichever one of the three happens to fit the situation( but primarily use the u-block for single notes.)
Remember how your trumpet teacher told you what an awful thing it was that Dizzy Gillespie didn't follow convention when he puffed his cheeks out? HaHaHaHa!
It's the same way with harmonica.
You gotta find what works for YOU!
Don't throw in the towel.
Puff out those cheeks!!!( if it feels right) and figure out what it takes for YOU to have some fun with it.
Like Red Green says, "Keep your stick on the ice. We're all pullin' for you."






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