[Harp-L] Ode to Joy revisited

[Richard Hunter]

  "Harping On" wrote:
<I was looking back in the archives at the Ode to Joy challenge but can't
seem to find any of the <related sound files. I very much enjoy playing
melodies on the diatonic but the challenge of not <only trying to get the
bent notes in pitch but also trying to mask the timbre differences between
a <bent and a straight note is troublesome to say the least.

<I don't know if anyone has a solution to this other than using an altered
tuning (say Paddy Richter) <to avoid the 2 step bend on hole 3 which is
difficult to mask when exposed at the end of a phrase <or you have to play
two -3** consecutively.

I don't know of anyone who can reliably do a 2-half-step bend in tune on
the draw 3 reed on a standard Richter harp, and at the same time avoid
noticeable changes in timbre.  The problem is especially acute when the
note is exposed--out in the open and played at length--where the
differences in pitch and tone are unavoidably obvious. Not one of the Ode
to Joy submissions solved that problem.

The only reliable solution I know of is to use a harp that has the note
built-in, e.g. a Paddy Richter or Melody Maker.  A workable solution is to
avoid playing the double bend on exposed notes, as opposed to playing it in
a moving line where the listener won't have time to detect the pitch and
timbre differences.

Regards, Richard Hunter
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