Re: [Harp-L] limited instrument?

[Adam Sampson <ats@xxxxxxxxx>]

william price <promultis33@xxxxxxxxx> writes:

> The diatonic harmonica with it's truncated scales has more limitations
> than any other instrument on the market.

That's not true for all genres -- for example, in the traditional music
world, the diatonic harmonica is a more flexible instrument than many
others that are widely played and composed for.

There's an enormous body of music written, in a wide range of styles and
modes, for highland bagpipes and Scottish smallpipes, despite a standard
instrument having only nine melody notes (G-A in the D scale) plus a
fixed drone (A), and very limited opportunities for bending. The tin
whistle has a similar range to the diatonic harmonica, but you can't
play chords on it (unless you play two whistles at once!). Several
designs of diatonic button accordion (e.g. the Cajun accordion) have a
comparable range to the 10-hole harmonica, but don't allow bending.

-- 
Adam Sampson <ats@xxxxxxxxx>                         <http://offog.org/>