[Harp-L] switching blows to draws

[Rishi Oswal (Rishió)]

Hey Michelle,
I'm not clear that you are following what I am asking. If you physically flip the reeds, you can no longer bend the draw notes in holes 1-6. You can only bend the blow notes. You will be able to bend the draw notes on 7-10 (on richter tuning.. I use powerbender). So second position doesn't change, it just becomes inverted so you blow bend instead of draw bend in second position. Does that make sense?

It just seems more natural to me to blow versus draw in a harmonica so I'm curious why no one has flipped the reeds to change the bias to blowing instead of drawing to get the expressive notes? As we've discovered, it requires no modification of the harp except unscrewing it and flipping the reeds.

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 Two things here, Rishi. 1) You ~want~ all the draw notes so you can bend. This is the major attraction for the diatonic harmonica, IMO. This is what enables the harmonica's voice-like quality and inflection. 2) What about half-valving? Then you can bend the blow notes as well. If you play all blow notes, you're missing half the boat. By avoiding bending you are "tying one lung behind your back" in the world of diatonic harmonicas. Best to learn how to draw ~and~ blow bend. Soon. Before this mental block manifests itself permanently. Otherwise, get a chromatic harmonica. At least that's the way I see it. Michelle
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