Re: [Harp-L] more on other instruments

[Richard Hunter <turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Jim Alciere (I think) wrote:
<I just found out the boogie woogie pianists use the sharp 9th in their
<playing. So maybe I should play the flatted third and play the third regular
<the next octave up.. Also jazzers use a sharp 11th and sharp 13th. How do I
<put that in a Sonny Boy Williamson riff? I will have fun practicing this
<afternoon.

Sharp 11th in second position = draw 1 or 4 with a half step bend.  In first position, it's draw 2 with a half step bend, or blow 9 with a half step bend.  

Sharp 13th is the same note as the minor 7th (i.e. draw 5 in second position). I've never actually heard anyone refer to a sharp 13th--how is a sharp 13th chord spelled in terms of root, 3rd, 5th, etc?  Is it a sharp 11th chord with the natural 13th added above it?

There are two ways to get a sharp 9th chord on the diatonic that I know of, and both involve non standard tunings.  On a country tuned harp, the sharp 9th for the V chord (D chord on a C country-tuned harp) is played on the notes draw 5-6-8-9 (i.e. play 5 holes starting on draw 5 and block out the 7 hole).  It's really very nice to have the sharp 9 on the V chord, because that's where you need it most.  On the other hand, the chord is positioned in the top octave of the harp, which isn't necessarily ideal.

The second way is to tune the draw 7 reed down 1/2 step, which will give you a sharp 9 chord on the tonic chord in 2nd position (i.e. G sharp 9 on a C harp).  This chord is played as draw 3-4-5-7, i.e. block out hole 6.  This isn't a tuning I've used much, but I think it could be very useful. It allows you to get the flatted 3rd in 2nd position int he middle register without overblowing, and you can still bend the blow 7 reed down a half step to get the natural 3rd when you want it.

Regards, Richard Hunter


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