[Harp-L] Question re: blue notes and micro-tonality

["John F. Potts" <hvyj@xxxxxxx>]

Jon:
	Certainly, blue notes are  ranges of pitches. Whether, when and how  
much or little the blue note in question is flatted,  if  and when  
the bend is released and in what direction the bend goes and to what  
extent is so essential to the aesthetic of blues and a so much a part  
of each player's individual style.  But there are serious blues  
players (guitarists as well as harmonica players) who place  
importance upon playing the blue (quarter tone flat) third.   
Musicians who use it claim that this note really "sings."  Rick  
Estrin talked about it in a television interview, and mentioned that  
he got it from Little Walter recordings,  Clearly, it is a non- 
Western (African or African-American) tonality.
	I have played with an older black keyboard player who was originally  
from the deep south (U.S.) who would the play third of a major chord  
by first hitting the minor third and then very very quickly sliding  
off that key to the major third,  which seems to approximate a blue  
third.
	There is a post somewhere in the harp-L archives where the author  
said something to the effect that you can tell an amateur blues  
harmonica player if he plays the third a quarter tone flat on the I  
chord but does not play the same note a full half step flat when the  
same note is played as a 7 on the IV chord.  I'm not saying I  
necessarily agree with this, but it gave me the idea that some people  
on this list may know a great deal more about this whole blue note  
thing than I do.
	I've played enough blues to understand what Steve Baker was talking  
about in the post he was kind enough to share and i certainly agree  
with everything he said.  I'm not always careful about playing a  
precise blue third BUT I consider it generally important not to bend  
the draw 3 too far down on the I chord when playing blues material in  
second position.  That's not really a theoretical point--it just  
sounds better.
	 But, yes the blue  notes are certainly ranges of pitches.  I'm  
curious if there was a tradition of playing  these  pitches in a  
certain manner in relation to particular other aspects of what was  
going on in the tune.  I'm just curious about the origins and if  
there is some theoretical or stylistic aspect to this that is not  
shrouded in the mists of history.  I'm not into playing "just like  
the record" but we can all  a lot from listening to what great  
performers have recorded.
	JP