[Harp-L] 2nd and Third position backing rhythm

[Richard Hunter]

Rick Dempster <rickdempster33 at xxxxx> wrote:

> I don't think third position is any more limited, in terms of chords, than
> second.
> In second, you have the root chord, with the 7th and 9th, and the simple
> IV triad.
> The V is missing the major 3rd, but you can blow the 7th and 9th (ie the C
> and E
> on a C harp being the 7th and 9th of the D)
> In third, you have a minor root chord, and a major IV chord (with 7th &
> 9th available too of course)
> As with 2nd, the V chord is missing (A7 on a C harp) but you can get the
> 5th and 7th - E and G -
> as a blow. Bit weak without the 3rd, however.
> Third position is sometimes played with the naturally occurring flat 3rd
> as a blue note, against an accompanying
> major chord, rather than the whole band playing a minor on the I chord.
> Can't give you a recorded example of this, but I know it happens.
>

All true, I reckon.  However, the absence of anything but the root note for
the I chord in the bottom octave takes a lot of power out of the chording
in 3rd position.  I use 10ths in third position with a split on 1-5, which
adds some weight, but it's still not as punchy a a close-voiced chord in
the bottom octave, which is where most harmonica rhythm stuff lives. For
good reason: the middle octave collides with singers and soloists, meaning
that chords there compete with lead elements and aren't heard clearly as
rhythmic accompaniment.

Since we're talking relative limits, worth noting that the least limited
tuning I know of in terms of chords is the Natural Minor, followed by the
Melody Maker.  Both of them offer triads galore, major and minor 7ths, and
a 9th or two.  If I had to do rhythm work on a minor tune, I'd much rather
have a Natural Minor than a standard harp in 3rd position.

Richard Hunter

Check out Richard Hunter's 21st Century rock harmonica masterpiece "The
Lucky One" at https://www.cdbaby.com/cd/richardhunter

Author, "Jazz Harp" (Oak Publications, NYC)
Latest mp3s and harmonica blog at http://hunterharp.com
Vids at http://www.youtube.com/user/lightninrick
Twitter: @lightninrick­­­‪­‪­­­‪‪­­‪­‪­‪­­­­‪­­‪‪‪­‪‪­­­‪­‪­­­­‪‪­­‪­‪­­­­