[Harp-L] Another two cents on Harmonica Tunings

[Tony Eyers <tony@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Many great threads on this. My two cents worth follows.

I've been using alternate tunings for around 15 years. I was inspired by 
button accordion players, Brendan Power's "New Irish Harmonica", and 
above all, a burning desire to play bluegrass fiddle tunes as well as 
the best Australian players. Why? So I could join with them in the jams 
at Bluegrass Festivals.

In short, I was on a mission. I had a Eureka moment at the 1998 National 
Folk Festival, while watching the button accordion players. They were 
essentially playing hand operated harmonicas, without worrying about 
bends for particular notes. Why not try the same for real harmonicas?

The result was Major Cross tuning. The idea is to tune a harmonica so 
that second position plays major scale notes only. No bends, meaning 
that you can move MUCH faster. Seven notes are changed in all, the idea 
is closely related to the Lee Oskar Melody Maker tuning. The result has 
defined my style, you can hear it at 
http://www.harmonicatunes.com/retuned Along with more details on Major 
Cross.

I should add that I practiced my b#!@m off with Major Cross until I 
could play the tunes the way I wanted. This included a decade of weekly 
3 hour busking sessions, with Band in a Box backings, cranked up as each 
year passed.

So. After a longish introduction (ahem), my two cents worth is:

- alternate tunings make sense when they ease the path to music which 
you deeply yearn to play
- nothing replaces standard Richter tuning. I always carry a set of high 
quality Richter harmonicas, they are my first choice in many situations
- the Major Cross harmonicas are truly excellent for tunes, and truly 
ordinary for blues
- alternate tunings (Major Cross in my case) fit specific purposes, 
standard Richter tuning fills the rest.

Hence I carry two sets of diatonics. Richter tuned and Major Cross.

PS the good bluegrass players now let me join in

Tony Eyers
Australia
www.HarmonicaAcademy.com
...everyone plays