[Harp-L] Re: How we learn Blues Harp

[David Fertig <drfertig@xxxxxxxxx>]

My late mother-in-law, a high school english teacher for 40 years said, "you don't teach a 
subject, you teach students." Figure out how each student learns, then 
you can teach them - and yourself.


For any discipline, but perhaps especially in musical matters, which involve every part of the brain, there is no "best" or right way to teach or learn, except whatever works for the individual.  The individual has to experiment with different learning approaches to find what works for him or her.  

And when someone feels an approach to learning is easy - for them - it may be difficult for them to see how it ain't for others.  Reading musical notation, transposing and correlating notes on harps of different keys is terribly difficult for me, almost painful.  For others, it's not.

Vive la difference!   Since 1970 I've learned by ear and sometimes work out riffs on a piano, but I'm just a hack who loves to play 2d position blues harp.  Took very few lessons (recent years), read fewer books (part of Dummies), and I don't claim to be a competent musician, but I can play the blues.

-Didactic Dave

--- On Wed, 7/21/10, harp-l-request@xxxxxxxxxx <harp-l-request@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:e: [Harp-L] How we learn Blues Harp
        	Wednesday, July 
21, 2010 12:33 AM
        	
            
            
            From: 
            MundHarp@xxxxxxx
            	
            	
            	
        	To: 
        	jevern@xxxxxxx
        	Cc: 
        	harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx 
In
 a message dated 21/07/2010 12:23:34 Malay Peninsula Standard Time, 
Vern  
Smith writes:
 
<< I posit that about 60% of the 
value of standard notation is to  display 
timing>>
 
Vern
 is 100% right!
 
In my opinion, a regular score is far more 
useful than any "tab"... If you  
are not yet a "music reader" 
concentrate on learning "the dots" before even 
 thinking about 
tablature! 
 
Most songs and tunes, indeed music in general, is 
available printed as a  
regular music score. This music has LOADS of
 information that simply isn't  
available from tablature. 
 
Again,
 I tend to use a score simply as a guide to what I'm going to play,  
this
 sometimes does not go down too well with music directors, and orchestra
 
 conductors! I also mostly play my music with my eyes tight closed,
 which  
makes sight reading difficult in any event.
 
I'm a 
truly terrible "sight reader", I am dyslexic which doesn't help, and  
in
 any event I have no idea which "hole number" I'm blowing or drawing  
while
 I'm playing my harp. I simply hear the note in my head, and play it.  
That's
 not being "clever", it's simply the way I have always played  
harmonica.
 
Best wishes,
 
John"Whiteboy" Walden
English
 harmonica player,
Cebu City,
Philippines.