Fwd: [Harp-L] explain positions to beginner

[Joseph Leone <3n037@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Joseph Leone <3n037@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> Date: June 28, 2014 12:03:17 PM EDT
> To: "Harmonicology [Neil Ashby]" <harmonicology@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Subject: Re: [Harp-L] explain positions to beginner
> 
> 
> On Jun 28, 2014, at 9:38 AM, Harmonicology [Neil Ashby] wrote:
> 
>> Whenever explaining of positions and modes to the beginner then it would be useful to distinguish between the role of the Performer and the role of the Composer.
>> 
>> The Performer should not really have any need to know the position or mode and just plays the notes as written by the Composer.
> 
> Just playing the notes would be fine if one is indexing off OF the key of C with a key of C instrument. The dichotomy comes in where a person is switching harps. So, is a body supposed to learn where all the notes live on a particular keyed instrument even though there are 1... 12 majors, 12 natural minors, 12 harmonic minors, and yada yada?
> 
> jus axing   smo-joe (who once told Snow White: "Stay away from those guys")   
>> 
>> Of course then most users of harmonica eventually become both Performer and Composer but the beginner should start with just Performing and-then move onto Composing.
>> 
>> An artist of painting chooses to load some set of colors for his palette based on the type of artwork desired; the palette would be full of dark colors for some artwork and light colors for other artwork; similarly then the Composer of music chooses his "modes" and "positions" based on the desired tone for the final composition.
>> 
>> Thus the "modes" and "positions" are tools for the Composer and the beginner should generally work on basic harmonica technique well before learning the advanced tools of "modes" and "positions".
>> 
>> /Neil (" http://thebuskingproject.com/busker/2025/ ") 
>> 
>