Re: [Harp-L] What I'm Listening to Right now--includes Harmonica, or do

[Richard Hunter <turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

EGS1217@xxxxxxx wrote:
<Kept thinking I heard 'something' different in the harmonica playing, but  
<couldn't put my finger on it--I still did think it was a harmonica,  though. 
<My assumption was that he was just a far better player than me  - but isn't 
<everyone?<G>

Last year I posted to this list about the harmonica I heard on the score of one of the now-numerous "Pumpkinhead" movies.  The composer eventually told me that he played the part on a sampler (i.e., a synthesizer).  When I told him that the part fooled me, he said something to the effect of "Well, I put some distortion on it, and that really helped."  Right. Distortion. Sure.  Put enough distortion on it, and anything will sound like a harmonica...

The fact is that it's not all that easy now to tell when something is happening in software, as opposed to for real, especially when you're listening to a recording. Players in future will really need to ask themselves whether they want to behave in a  19th-century way, for example by mastering a musical instrument, or in a  21st-century way, for example by realizing the sound without having to spend 5-10 years learning to play the instrument half-decently. 

I decided to do the 19th century thing.  But I was born in the mid-20th century--lotta old attitudes still in the air.  By the end of this century it's possible that a musician will be able to hear a sound in her head and translate it directly to a sound in the real world without touching an instrument.  When that happens, musical instruments will seem like butter churns--they do the job, but why bother with all that work? 

In the meantime, you can be sure that when you hear something that sounds like a harmonica, it's an actual harmonica most of the time.  But not always.  (And when you hear something that doesn't sound like a harmonica, it's not.  Mostly.)

Regards, Richard Hunter

author, "Jazz Harp" 
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