[Harp-L] Four New Harmonicas for Indian Music

["Brendan Power" <bren@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Recently I have been getting interested in trying to play Indian music on
the harmonica - not easy!! The traditional singers and instrumentalists bend
everywhere, all of the time! After a lot of brain storming and trying
different approaches, I came up with 6 new tunings and 4 different types of
harmonica for playing one common raga, raag Bhairav. It has a particular
scale with a flat 2nd and flat 6th. I've made short explanatory music clips
of them for your interest.

Here's an alternately tuned 10 hole diatonic harmonica:

BRENDAN'S BHAIRAV DIATONIC No 1
http://www.brendan-power.com/Music%20Clips/Brendan's%20Bhairav%20Tuning%201%
20-%20Scales.mp3

It is an expressive tuning, and hints at that Indian flavour with nice juicy
bends in some of the right places of the scale. But it doesn't get all the
bends (or meends) on every note. As far as I can see that is a requirement
for playing authentically - certainly if you want to play in the same way as
the traditional Indian instruments.

If you're a chromatic player you might have a different opinion! It's
certainly true the chromatic does give a lot more ease with achieving the
characteristic trills and decorations of Indian music, and that's why it's
currently the harmonica of choice for most serious Indian players. However
existing standard chromatics have all slide notes rising a semitone, which
does not always give the appropriate ornaments. For example between Re and
Ga, Ma and Pa, Dha and Ni; these have intervals of 2-3 semitones in raag
Bhairav. Therefore I have created a new chromatic that does give the correct
slide pushes for Bhairav, and has a few more tricks up its sleeve too! 

BRENDAN'S BHAIRAV CHROMATIC No. 1
http://www.brendan-power.com/Music%20Clips/Brendan's%20Bhairav%20Chromatic%2
01.mp3

But I was still after all those exotic Indian slides and swoops, which are
often big bends but full of microtonal subtlety. After lots of trial and
error I think I've created the ultimate Indian bending machine. It is a
customised Hohner XB-40 tuned to the Bhairav scale, and it can get ALL the
meends on every note, up and down, using blow and draw bends. I think it has
a lot of potential; hopefully you can hear that in the playing sections of
this clip, especially towards the end:

BRENDAN'S BHAIRAV XB-40
http://www.brendan-power.com/Music%20Clips/Brendan's%20Bhairav%20XB-40.mp3

Finally I've made a new type of chromatic that has two different ways of
playing the Bhairav scale, using draw bends alone. There is one way with the
slide-out and another with slide-in. It gives the same full bending
expression as the XB-40 but you have to use the slider to get the different
optional bends, depending on which choice you want to make. It also has
plenty of potential for Indian music, but requires lots of serious study to
learn how to apply it with the correct stylistic embellishments. See you in
a few years!

BRENDAN'S BHAIRAV CHROMATIC No. 2
http://www.brendan-power.com/Music%20Clips/Brendan's%20Bhairav%20Chromatic%2
02.mp3

I hope you enjoy listening to the clips and welcome any comments. 

(If anyone wants me to make them one of these instruments, get in touch:
bren@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx).

Brendan Power
WEBSITE: http://www.brendan-power.com
YOUTUBE: http://www.youtube.com/BrendanPowerMusic