Re: [Harp-L] Harp on Cheek (was sealing front)

[Jon Vaughan <jon-harpl@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I agree with what Steve, Greg and others have written about this - the
seal at the front of the harp does make a big difference to amplified
sound.

It is also possible to seal against the left cheek (with right thumb
wrapped around the front of the harp to seal the right side).  I find
this much more comfortable and easier to move around although I would
probably get used to sealing against the right cheek eventually.

I don't seem to be alone in this: At least Kim Wilson and Walter
Horton appear to do it this way:

Walter Horton: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fv-S6Aza2p8
Kim Wilson: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1nELTY6I5s

Jon

On Tue, Apr 7, 2009 at 11:02 AM, Steve Baker <steve@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> I suspect that most accomplished blues style tongue blockers on the 10-hole
> lay the upper channel openings against the cheek on the opposite side of the
> face to the one they block on when playing the lower holes. There is some
> great film material from the 1960s American Folk Blues Festivals showing
> Walter Horton, Rice Miller and other players, all of whom appear to do this.
> When playing this style I block left and seal off the front of the harp
> against the right cheek, as I'm playing out of the right hand side of my
> mouth. The right thumb works like a stopper that closes the chamber when you
> hook it around the front right hand end of the harp where it comes away from
> your cheek.
>
> Total enclosure allows the player to create much more powerful hand effects.
> It can't easily be done with a pucker, because the harp is then in the
> middle of your mouth instead of at one side. This means you'd have to seal
> off both sides, which is much more difficult. As mentioned by other
> respondents on this theme, the technique also works brilliantly when playing
> with a bullet mic and allows the player to drive the mic element to produce
> a more dynamic distortion than can be achieved by turning up the gain on the
> amp. It's the reason why most of the great electric blues players use
> relatively clean amp settings and build the distortion through how they
> hold, as this gives you much more control over tonal variation than a
> distorted amp sound can do,
>
> Steve
>
> www.stevebaker.de
> www.bluesculture.com
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