[Harp-L] How Disturbed Are We?

[David Fertig <drfertig@xxxxxxxxx>]

 Martin Oldsberg posed a good q: "What can your friends with an ear
for music stand in terms of harmonica? "Candlelight, wine and Charlie"?
"Peg of my heart" for the umpteenth time? Or does it have to be blues
-- where the harmonica seems to have a sort of natural habitat -- for
it to go down?    How disturbed are we?"

Martin, I can only speak for myself: I do not like most "harmonica music."  Nor do I like any one instrument in all it's (allegedly) musical manifestations.  Why?  Because of tone and taste.

Just 'cause one can get the "correct" note on a particular instrument doesn't mean one should, I mean if you can't get a tasteful tone, why bother?   Simply put, while notes may make the song, for me it's the tone that makes it soulful, and the taste that makes it worthwhile.  

Consider, a correct string of notes can still sound awful, but one note, any note,  with good tone can transport you.  Me, anyway...  

Dave "wish I could do as I say" Fertig

--- On Mon, 11/30/09, harp-l-request@xxxxxxxxxx <harp-l-request@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Re: [Harp-L] is your partner in the crowd?
        	 Monday, November 30, 2009 11:35 AM 
        	
            
            
            From:  "martin oldsberg" <martinoldsberg@xxxxxxxxx>
            	
            	
            	
To
put a slightly off topic spin the above question I think it would be
interesting to know what kind of tolerance you find in friends and such
for what may be called "harmonica music". (Harmonica music, loosely
defined as music with a prominent, center stage, harmonica in it.)
  
 
The harmonica geek (an illness of which I have a tempered affliction)
has an enormous openminded-ness towards things harmonical (sometimes
almost literally so: you can practically see the hole in the head) and
thinks that another version of whatever burned out old chestnut you can
rake out of the scrapheap is just fine as long as it features a ... --
you guess.
  
  To reintroduce spouses: My wife screams -- and
not with delight -- when I, once a year or so, play any of my Charlie
Mccoy records, no matter that I point to the sometimes palpably
apparent harmonica qualities in the work.
  Being the tender loving
caring hubby that I am I of course immediatly reach out for the volume
knob, and turn it ... up, to drown out the screams. But some resentment
lingers.
 
  I shall not even mention what happened when I once
put on a find from the bargain bin, by a theretofore to me unknown
supergroup by the name of "The Hotcha Trio". (This record will, by the
way, be donated to anyone who cares to make a visit to my home.)
 
On the other hand, when I played one of JJ Milteau´s albums that has a
slight elevator music touch to it, a friend who was visiting
spontaneously commented: "Hey, great stuff!", and he has never played a
harmonica, nor expressed any particular kind of interest in harmonica
music.
 
  So the question is: what can your friends with an ear
for music stand in terms of harmonica? "Candlelight, wine and Charlie"?
"Peg of my heart" for the umpteenth time? Or does it have to be blues
-- where the harmonica seems to have a sort of natural habitat -- for
it to go down? 
  How disturbed are we?
 
Cheers,
Martin