[Harp-L] Ode to Joy revisited

Michael Rubin michaelrubinharmonica@xxxxx
Wed Apr 11 08:02:15 EDT 2018


If I want consistency of tone, I play a chromatic.

Personally, the inconsistency of tone is one of the main things I love
about the diatonic.

Michael Rubin
michaelrubiharmonica.com

On Wed, Apr 11, 2018 at 6:56 AM, Richard Hunter <rhunter377 at xxxxx>
wrote:

>   "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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>
> Author, "Jazz Harp" (Oak Publications, NYC)
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