Re: [Harp-L] 4th position, a blues overview

["Rob Paparozzi" <Chromboy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Martin,

I agree 100%...Toots solo on this Scandanavian folk tune is absolutely 
amazing!!!!!

Yes, he "Bluesifys" it so Sweetly,-)

If you picked up a Lee Oskar Fm (N) Natural Minor Harp the whole melody is 
there, you gotta dig into the 2 hole draw bend at the very end of the melody 
but that should be no problem....here is the tab for THAT harp:....TERRIFIC 
tune..thanx for remiding us!


Who Can Sail w/o the Wind on a Natural Minor harp in (2nd) Cross Position

'=1st bend
''=2nd bend

3B,3D'',3D,3D'',2D.4D, 4D------

5B,5D,6B,5D,5B,4D,4D----

4B,4D,5B,4D,4B,3D,2D---

3D'',3D',1D,2D'',2D',3B-----//


*Your Last note can also be the 2D, but I'm sure you'll want to BREATHE by 
then,-)...after all "Who can Sail w/o the Wind,-)"

I'll try and remember to bring one in a few weeks when I invade Sweden w/ 
BS&T!!,-)

Best,
Rob Paparozzi

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "martin oldsberg" <martinoldsberg@xxxxxxxxx>
To: <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>; <turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Sunday, May 02, 2010 4:56 PM
Subject: Re: [Harp-L] 4th position, a blues overview


But if you move slightly outside of blues territory, for melodic minor 
tunes, then there you are with the Paddy tuning: no raised 7th. (OB on 2 is 
kinda tough.)
Occasionally when the mood comes over me I go for some of those 
Swedish/Nordic folk tunes -- melodic minor all of them. Hell to play on the 
diatonic: in 4th you have to triple bend 3D for the raised 7th; in 3d pos 
you can expect to have to lean on the 6 OB for the minor IV chord.
Bad all over.
And every time I hear Toots play "Vem kan segla förutan vind" ("Who can sail 
without wind") on the Toots & Svend LP from the mid 70s, and hear him really 
ripping the blues out of that sentimental tune, one is tempted to say, 
"Would be absolutely great on a diatonic!" (F minor, 4th pos on an Ab) but 
it never really comes off, because that damned tonic note and the raised 7th 
are so elusive. (Toots solo, BTW, is one of the pinnacles of the history of 
harmonica playing. Can be found on Spotify.)
Maybe Lee Oskar has an alternative that´s better, dunno.

cheers,
Martin
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Date: Sun, 2 May 2010 09:46:55 -0400 (GMT-04:00)
From: Richard Hunter <>

Thanks very much for this thoughtful discussion of the ins and outs of 4th 
position. I agree that the full step bend on draw 3 is a problem, especially 
since the note is so important. Hard to live without the tonic note for any 
key...

We're talking about 4th position on a standard harp, so this is slightly 
off-topic, but I think it must be said: if you use a Paddy Richter-tuned 
harp, with the blow 3 reed tuned up a full step, the problem with the bend 
on draw 3 just goes away. And as recordings by many harp players--Brendan 
Power comes immediately to mind--have showed, there are a lot of other cool 
things you can do with a Paddy Richter-tuned harp. Third position is a whole 
'nother game on a Paddy Richter harp--in third position that note is the 
5th, which is as hard to live without as the tonic. Although then you miss 
out on that big twisting bend that Charlie Musslewhite likes to put on the 
draw 3 reed in 3rd position. You give something up for everything you get, 
in harps as in life. Fortunately, it's not against the law to own two harps 
in the same key with different tunings...

Regards, Richard Hunter