[Harp-L] Bluegrass

[JWilliam Thompson <landcommentary@xxxxxxxxx>]

I play bluegrass harmonica at jams in my area and have been following
the recent bluegrass thread. I agree with almost everything that has
been said so far.

True, the harmonica has failed to make any significant inroads into
bluegrass. Why is that? Someone said that the harmonica can't play
bluegrass with the same expressiveness as the fiddle. While true, that
is not the main problem. The main problem is that only a tiny handful
of harmonica players have taken the trouble to figure out what makes
bluegrass music unique and to undertake the long learning curve of
playing fiddle tunes and other bluegrass music in first, second, or
third position as needed.

Bluegrass musicians often don't like harmonica players, as someone
pointed out. One reason for that is that over the years harmonica
players have wandered into bluegrass jams and tried to "wing it"
without bothering to learn the melodies of bluegrass songs and all the
other nuances of bluegrass. That is the total experience of harmonica
to most bluegrassers. Can you blame them for being aversive?

As to whether harmonica "sounds right" in a bluegrass context, I would
suggest that you listen to the Maine band Evergreen, in which
harmonica has been gracefully integrated into the mix. Bluegrass is a
tremendous opportunity for harmonica players who are willing to spend
the necessary time in the woodshed to learn this challenging art form.

Bill in DC