Re: [Harp-L] tilting the harp

[The Iceman <icemanle@xxxxxxx>]

It would be nice to somehow remove the word "pucker" from harmonica pedagogy.


The word suggests to the student to purse the lips and tighten muscles.



-----Original Message-----
From: Steve Baker <steve@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: harp-l <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wed, Oct 9, 2013 10:54 am
Subject: Re: [Harp-L] tilting the harp


There are a couple of good reasons to tilt the back of the harp upwards when 
puckering: 

In order to get a full tone with a pucker, the active element (the reed) needs 
to be in close proximity to the passive element (air column in vocal tract). The 
only way to do this is to take the harp well inside the mouth. As Boris rightly 
pointed out, to get the tone on lower notes, the upper lip needs to enclose the 
top cover to about 2/3 of the distance towards the back. The corners of the 
mouth need to be in contact with the harp to prevent air loss. If you do this, 
how do you ensure that the lip opening is still small enough to enable a single 
note?

To obtain a single puckered note with this degree of lip enclosure, the player 
extends the lower jaw forwards, in the process enlarging the resonance chamber 
in the vocal tract. If you then place the harp between your lips, the extended 
lower jaw automatically means it will tend to be tilted up. In fact, if you 
don't tilt, you'll most likely be unable to play a single note with this lip and 
jaw position. The tilt effectively reduces the size of the lip opening while 
allowing the player to take the harp deep inside the mouth.

Steve Baker
www.stevebaker.de
www.european-music-workshops.com
www.harmonica-masters.de