Re: [Harp-L] Making the Move to Chromatic

["Rob Paparozzi" <chromboy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

These are some terrific posts here about Diatonic Players "Making the Move 
to Chromatic" and some terrific advice is being offered so I'm enjoying the 
read!

I started out on Diatonic in 1966 and then added Chromatic to my arsenal by 
the 70's. I quickly realized that the transition wouldn't be as EZ as I 
anticipated as the Chromatic required me to learn Music Theory. That worked 
out fine as I was also teaching myself Guitar and Piano at the time and all 
the theory I could get under my belt would only make me a better Musician.

I was able to at first bang out the melodies to standards like "Wave" "What 
are you doing the Rest of your Life?" "Days of Wine and Roses" etc...but I 
could not improvise on these songs. Being in the NY area, I took out the 
Union book and called Toots Thielemans who was living in Yonkers at the 
time. I told Toots that I was a huge fan and would love to study with him. 
He told me he didn't teach but that I could call him anytime and 'pick his 
brain' and that I did! He told me to stop listened to so much TOOTS and got 
and spend time with the improv masters like Miles, Rollins and Parker. He 
also said take a song like Duke's "Sophisticated Lady" and pull it apart 
because if you were able to improv over that song you'd be ready to play 
Jazz! I learned a lot just from our frequent phone conversations and really 
owe much to his generosity.

By the mid 70's I was SO immersed in 'everything' harmonica I wanted to try 
and play all styles but realized that my reading skills were pretty much 
zilch to say the least. When I was in college in NJ my Mom told me one 
morning that she read in the paper that Larry Adler was appearing at The 
Rainbow Grill in NYC and they'd also have a meet and great b4 the show so I 
went. I nearly fell off my seat when I heard his tone and technique. I 
sought out Cham-Ber Huang in NYC as he was working for Hohner in NYC at the 
time and teaching and doing some sessions. I took classes with him at The 
Turtle Bay Music school and that led me to his number one student Robert 
Bonfiglio.

The tools I acquired during these years prepped me for more session work 
than I could handle in NYC from artist sessions to Jingles and Filmdates. 
But I also was able to bring these tools out on the bandstand when sitting 
in with bands or just working with my own group.
At first I must say I was terrified to tackle the Chromatic, it was so 
foreign to me and after all what did I need it for, I was very comfortable 
on my Diatonic. Once you get past the initial fear and put in some time, 
trust me, there is no turning back. IMO The Chromatic is the perfect 
compliment and essential tool for the serious player to add to their tool 
kit.

I studied weekly with Bonfiglio and learned how to read and play scales and 
how to navigate around on the Chromatic with a logical technique that made 
musical sense but I still wanted to play in my own style so continued to my 
Blues & Jazz studies at home too. I went on to teach at Turtle Bay Music 
School and more recently take of students privately at my home or on Skype

In the past few years I have teamed up with my old teacher and we have come 
with a pretty effective 2 day workshop that can give you the tools you'll 
need to be both a better Chromatic & Diatonic better. We only have a few 
slots left for our CT seminar in October. Here is a link if your interested 
in more info on the Paparozzi-Bonfiglio Workshop:
http://jplpagan.com/workshop/workshop.html


all the best,
Rob Paparozzi
www.robpaparozzi.com