On Oct 2, 2008, at 10:01 PM, Rick Dempster wrote:
Yes; the 'Spoonful' example is a good one. I'm trying to build up a list of these. One I use is for what I call the 'Danny boy note' ie semi-tone bend on draw 2; the start note for 'Danny Boy' in second pos.
RD
My approach on bends started when I first discovered them. I would work on a bend or series of bends and later, when I tried to do the same series, I had forgotten the series. Soooo, I started writing this stuff down. Then what I would do was try for the strangest or hardest combinations of bends.
Since this was during the doo-wop era, there were plenty of slow dance tunes that, frankly, weren't always diatonic friendly. But then, I compiled a list of tunes where bending practice would take place. The other day, I mentioned the tune 'Ruby Gentry'. That was one of my first tunes on chromo. But when I tried it on diatonic, I had trouble with it. Meanwhile playing it in FIRST position is possible but it requires some control in various steps of the lower holes where the notes have to be hit solid spot on. The bend has to already BE there when you hit the hole.
Sure, there are a lot of times when you can slur INTO a bend, glissando into a bend, blow bend a note from a natural starting note, draw bend down on a natural note. But it usually sounds better if you hit the note crisp instead of muddy.
Danny Boy (Londonderry Aire) is a good one. Crazy is tricky. Meanwhile I compiled a list of tunes I keep in a modified address book. The letters of the alphabet have been split and there are more pages than usual. Each page has tunes beginning with that letter. I had the book up to 590 tunes when I all of a sudden got an idea and threw the old pages away and started all over again. Btw, an entry doesn't mean that I can do the tune CONVINCINGLY. Most are for practice. So don't get the idea that I'm bragging.
I am back up to 393 tunes. What I do is draw several columns on the sheets. First goes the tunes name. Next goes the 'normal' key. Followed by WHAT harp I will use. This will either be CH (for chromo), DI (straight diatonic), S (smo-Joe tuned), CW (country tuned). CH (cross harp) Last of all I will jot notes. Here's are typical entries:
Daddys Home Eb SJ
As Time Goes By D SJ (2nd harp for bridge-UP 4 steps)
D.Y.K.W.I.M.T.M.N.O. C, Eb, D SJ/CH/CH (use harps in that order)
Nightlife Eb, Bb CH (2nd harp is across scale from first)
Smoke Gets in Your Eyes C, Eb SJ/CH (2nd harp is UP 3 steps)
Last but not least. For those who weren't around in 2000, I said "Every tune has certain HOOK notes. They may be as few as 2, as average as 6, or even more. You MUST his these notes true. To do otherwise is a non sequeter. If you can't hit those notes, don't do the tune."
Ok, while it IS possible to work around notes that you can't get, OR substitute notes, it is (generally) better to leave the note out entirely. Don't go waltzing around the mulberry bush and muddy up the tune.
just my opinion Smokey-Joe
_______________________________________________ Harp-L is sponsored by SPAH, http://www.spah.org Harp-L@xxxxxxxxxx http://harp-l.org/mailman/listinfo/harp-l