[Harp-L] teach position playing

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

Robert,

I'm not an instructor, but I'm self taught and I play proficiently in  
5 positions and use them regularly when performing. i have no formal  
music training. I learned 3d, 4th and 5th by first learning the minor  
pentatonic scale in each of those positions.  That scale is  
relatively easy to play in each of those positions (and in 2d  
position, which provided a frame of reference) and that was my  
starting point. FWIW,  that's how i learned.  But another effective  
approach would be to have the student  learn to play the same 2 or 3  
simple recognizable tunes in each of these positions which would not  
necessarily require the player to learn scales.

Here's an excerpt from post i put up a couple of months ago about my  
thoughts on this subject (i realize i focus on scales and that's what  
you are asking about, but here it is anyway):

FWIW, I've always been puzzled about why harmonica instructional  
materials usually teach first and second position, and then treat  
third position as something more advanced and fourth and fifth  
positions as really advanced if dealt with at all.

I'm self taught. But it would seem to me more effective to teach/  
learn these 5 positions more or less simultaneously so the player  
learns what to do with the instrument in order understand how its  
tonal layout works and how it can be used to play different types of  
material. Trying to teach/learn the blues scale? It's technically  
much easier for a beginner to play it in third position than in  
second. But almost all instructional materials start with teaching  
blues in second.

The same bending techniques apply to all positions equally.  
Struggling to learn to bend? Struggle in fifth for a while as well as  
in second as you are learning. In certain positions there are not as  
many available chords, but scales are scales. Learn the blues, minor  
pentatonic or major pentatonic (country) scale in each position as  
you learn them for the first time. It's not difficult to do.

Harmonica players as a group would be more musical if they learned or  
were taught multiple positions more or less simultaneously. They'd  
also play better because they would be able to select the harmonica  
that best works for the material being played instead of being  
limited by the tones available in the couple of positions that they  
know about, or looking like a deer caught in the headlights if the  
band calls a minor key.

It's not very difficult if each position is approached from the  
beginning instead of some of them being thought of a something more  
advanced. For example if a player can play in second, fifth should be  
no problem. But i haven't seen any instructional material that  
approaches harmonica pedagogy in this manner. i certainly can't  
figure out why not.

Just an opinion.

JP