[Harp-L] Playing in majors/minors

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

Todd,

The "trick" to playing harp in minor keys is knowing whether the  
minor key is a DORIAN minor (major 6th) or a NATURAL minor (flat 6th)  
as this effects what harp to use.  There are other types of minors,  
but for practical purposes the major 6th/flat 6th distinction is  
important for selecting the right harp.

For DORIAN minor (major 6th) , use THIRD position and it works  
perfectly. For example C minor=Bb harp.

For NATURAL minor (flat 6th), use FIFTH position (C minor=Ab harp) or  
FOURTH position (C minor=Eb harp).

In a minor key, the 3rd degree of the scale is ALWAYS played minor  
(flat 3rd).  The 3rd of the IV chord is the 6th of the scale of the  
key you are in. In dorian minor, the 3rd of the IV chord (the 6th)   
is played major.  In natural minor (and harmonic minor), the 3rd of  
the IV chord (the 6th) i played minor (flat 6th).  If you hit a major  
6th on a natural minor tune, it will sound REALLY BAD.

These days, I do quite a bit of playing in minor keys on a regular  
basis.  But before i figured out that different types of minors  
require different harps, i experienced the same extreme frustration  
that you are describing.

Now, if you use FIFTH position, you get the flat 3rd, flat 6th and  
flat 7th without having to bend, BUT, you should generally try to  
avoid draw 5 and draw 9. If you use FOURTH position you also get the  
flat 3rd, flat 6th and flat 7th, without having to bend and there are  
no avoid notes but you must bend draw 3 a whole step to get root in  
the lower register.

If you are playing minor in FOURTH or FIFTH positions, you need to be  
very careful about bending notes because it can take you out of minor  
tonality, although  in FIFTH position you can bend draw 3 very freely.

Playing minor in FIFTH position is a lot like playing in SECOND  
position.  The breath pattern for the minor pentatonic scale in FIFTH  
is the same as the breath pattern for the major pentatonic scale in  
SECOND--same notes, different starting point.

Playing minor in FOURTH position is a lot like playing in FIRST  
position.  The breath pattern for the minor pentatonic scale in  
FOURTH  is the same as the breath pattern for the major pentatonic  
scale in FIRST--same notes, different staring point.

Hope this helps.

Best regards,

JP