Re: [Harp-L] sorry - and harmonica books" Im an idiot"

["Abner Galdos" <cdgaldos@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I am so very sorry, I'm am a complete "IDIOT"... 
It was not your book, Harmonica For Dummies that I have.. 
please except my sincere open apology. 
For this grand mistake I will be buying the book today. 

abner (blueyes, a 48 yr old freshman to the blues)


  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Winslow Yerxa 
  To: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx ; Abner Galdos 
  Sent: Thursday, January 22, 2009 1:35 PM
  Subject: Re: [Harp-L] sorry - and harmonica books


        The Dummies book (Harmonica For Dummies) does have tracks on the CD where you can turn off the harmonica and play along with the band. You just turn off the right channel to turn off the harmonica, and listen to the band in the left channel.

        It's true that in the early part of the book tunes are simple. They have to be, otherwise nobody could learn them. But the tunes (and some of the exploration exercises) in the later part of the book are more challenging. And they're designed to teach you important things about how the harmonica notes interact with each other and how harmonica fits in with a musical background. Also, I use them to demonstrate many of the techniques that are taught in the rest of the book.

        When you're teaching a complicated set of skills, you try to make them easy to understand and easy to start to use. That doesn't mean it's too simple. I'm just making it look simple so you can get started with it.

        I do have a chapter on amplification that is designed to help people who have never used amplifiers or PA systems before. This is for anyone who plays harmonica through any kind of amplification, even pure acoustic playing in front of a microphone. It's not designed to go into the specifics of amplified blues playing becuase that's one style with very specific concerns that apply to some styles (like Rock and blues) but not to others (like folk or bluegrass or classical). On the CD I demonstrate some of the most important effects that can enhance you sound, whether you're going for an amplified sound or just amplifying an acoustic sound.

        A DVD would be nice, but with harmonica most of what's important is stuff you can't see anyway because it happens inside your body. I guess you can see how to hold the harmonica and harmonica with a mic, but in Harmonica For Dummies I show this with photographs (no need for a DVD player), and I also have anatomical drawings to show what goes on inside your mouth.

        I know it's hard to cover everything in a single book (my excellent colleague David Barrett has many book for that reason), but I did my best within the available space and what the publisher thought was relevant. If you check the book (and CD) out more carefully, I think you'll find more than you noticed at first.

        Winslow

        Winslow Yerxa
        Author, Harmonica For Dummies ISBN 978-0-470-33729-5

        --- On Thu, 1/22/09, Abner Galdos <cdgaldos@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

        <snip>


I have a few but Barrett seems over my head. and the dummies book seem tosimple and don't have a DVD that show you the how's and good songs toplay that don't have the harmonica (play along).as with anything else such as the amps or which harmonica to get is explain inmost of the books. its what the books don't explain that's hard...that's for us freshman to go out wondering in the woods to learn.. thank you ( and trust me I will never stop learning, enjoying or just plainhaving fun with the harmonica)abner (blueyes, freshman to the blues)