Re: [Harp-L] Allegedly rubbish?

[Steve Baker <steve@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On 08.03.2009, at 11:48, Richard Hammersley wrote:

> I agree about the basic quality Steve;

I'm relieved

> but from the gripes and complaints on harp-l you would think  
> otherwise.

The popular sport of Hohner bashing never seems to go out of style ....

> In the 1970s and 80s I used to be able to get a harmonica out of  
> tune in a few weeks and went through them quickly (Marine Bands or  
> Blues Harps) nowadays, they last ages (mind you I play better).

This is largely a consequence of the new reed profiles, which have  
definitely extended reed life. I'm sure your playing helps too.

> Not all of them overblow easily, but overblows are not the  
> beginning and end of everything. Moreover, the airtight set up for  
> overblows affects other aspect of tone in my (limited) personal  
> experience and, listening to the great overblowers, I can hear that  
> their tone is limited in certain ways too, because of the  
> constraints of playing. Overblow is sort of like traditional jazz  
> guitar - even flowing tone and technique, horn like sound. A less  
> 'tight' harp can give wilder tonality, more like rock guitar.

I'm of the same opinion and always set up my harps to rock rather  
than to overblow perfectly
> Yes, despite his often wild playing, I think this applies even to  
> Jason Ricci, yes and to Howard Levy also. Excommunicate me now guys.
>
> As for the drive to customise - if one is sufficiently expert and  
> has the time, then great. But in my view less advanced players do  
> not necessarily need to go there. Perhaps it may even be a bad idea.

I understand what you mean and of course all harps should be playable  
out of the box, but playability is rather like beauty, namely in the  
eye of the beholder. It's difficult to manufacture tens of thousands  
of perfectly set up instruments in today's industrial harmonica  
production and I therefore see learning to tune and offset as not  
basically dissimilar to learning to tune a guitar and adjust the  
action  -  something which from a certain point onwards you really do  
need to learn. This has little to do with what is generally  
understood by "customising" and falls more under "basic maintenance"  
as far as I'm concerned. Tedious but necessary.

> Is it better to begin to learn keyboards on a concert grand piano,  
> or on a basic electronic keyboard? It is far easier to get  
> something out of the latter to begin with.

Dunno, most beginning musicians who have the good fortune to start on  
a good instrument don't regret it and often progress more quickly.  
See the animated discussion on Harp-L about the merits of custom  
harps for players of all levels of ability.
> Moreover, another thing in my experience with the generally  
> wonderful modern harps is that I actively enjoy the different feel  
> of different instruments. But I do not seek that 'one perfect sound'.

Enjoy!

Steve

> Richard
>
> On 8 Mar 2009, at 03:46, Steve Baker wrote:
>
> > Richard wrote:
> >
> > <I am also simply puzzled why people who buy the
> > allegedly rubbish and unplayable modern Golden Melodies, Special 20s
> > and Marine Bands don't complain and send them back?>
> >
> > I'm not sure if I understand what you're getting at here. Who  
> > exactly alleges that modern GMs, Sp.20s & MBs are rubbish and  
> > unplayable? I find the quality of these Hohner Classic models to  
> > be generally pretty good at the present time. I wouldn't play them  
> > otherwise. Of course out of the box harmonicas from all  
> > manufacturers may have fine tuning problems, some examples of any  
> > given model will be better than others and you might have the  
> > misfortune to get a lemon, but to imply that the above harps are  
> > of generally poor quality is misleading at best. My experience of  
> > playing them for nearly 40 years leads me to believe that the  
> > overall quality of the current Hohner Classic reed plates is the  
> > best it's been since the 1960s.
> >
> > All Hohner harmonicas are sold under a warranty which covers  
> > manufacturing defects, and if you purchase an instrument which is  
> > genuinely defective then you certainly shouldn't hesitate to send  
> > it back. It will certainly be replaced. However, what constitutes  
> > such a defect is not always easily recognizable for the layman and  
> > I've seen a lot of perfectly good harps sent back without due  
> > reason. We usually replace them anyway.
> >
> > I have yet to find a harmonica from any manufacturer (and I've  
> > tested them all in the course of my work for Hohner) which I would  
> > want to play out of the box. Factory settings need to be a  
> > compromise aimed at satisfying the broad customer base. Personally  
> > I tune and offset all my harps to my own preferences before  
> > playing them. I realize this doesn't exonerate manufacturers from  
> > the obligation to deliver the best possible quality from the  
> > factory, but I can only recommend players to learn the basics of  
> > tuning and offsetting. It will empower you to make the best out of  
> > your instruments so why not give it a try?
> >
> > Steve_______________________________________________
> > Harp-L is sponsored by SPAH, http://www.spah.org
> > Harp-L@xxxxxxxxxx
> > http://harp-l.org/mailman/listinfo/harp-l
>
> Richard Hammersley
> Grantshouse, Scottish Borders
> http://www.last.fm/music/Richard+Hammersley
> http://www.myspace.com/rhammersley
> http://www.myspace.com/magpiesittingdown

Steve Baker
steve@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
www.stevebaker.de
www.bluesculture.com
www.youtube.com/stevebakerbluesharp
www.myspace.com/stevebakerbluesharp