[Harp-L] Defending Philharp [long]

[robert mcgraw <harpbob@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Richard, much as I respect you and usually agree with you, this time I gotta say I think maybe you misinterpteted Phil's point, perhaps due to some less than precise language in his post. When he said that Little Walter played "by rote" I read that as Phil's way of saying LW played by ear ...I don't know, maybe Phil's comments about LW were a bit over the line, but I think his larger point is dead on the money.
 
I see the harmonica as a kind of horn...and most competent horn players have some formal training, even if it was only in their high school band...most of us don't. Does that mean that we can't create good music? Of course not...that's really tangential to the issue Phil was addressing, I think, which is the very real lack of respect we--in general-often get.  It has been my experiance that, among trained musicians, our instrument is often condescended to...do many of them like harmonica ? Yes...do many of them accept the harmonica as an instrument? Yes...but the point is no sax trumpet, etc player would ever write the words I just wrote. EVERYBODY accepts these instruments as they are. No trumpet player impresses other trained musicians simply because he can read music [and not even very well at that]or knows what a diminished scale is...
 
So yes, I agree with Phil...what the harmonica needs to gain respect is more Howard Levys...or Richard Hunters, for that matter. [if I'm not mistaken you have a music degree from Harvard?]
I don't think Phil was saying the harmonica doesn't need more Little Walters...a transcendant genius who also gains commercial success would be very nice :-)   But we need to raise the general level of technical and formal competence on our instrument...
 
A few years ago I heard a very good high school stage band...very good,but still high school..as I listened to the music, I was struck by the thought that  there were very few harmonica players who could do what those kids were doing...but almost ANY decent sax player could...which doesn't mean that King Curtis or Jr Walker weren't bad mo'fos, by the way.
WVa Bob
 
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