[Harp-L] Fwd: Stevie Wonder FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE

Michael Rubin michaelrubinharmonica@xxxxx
Sun Sep 20 13:12:36 EDT 2020


Robert,
The button remains in on both notes.  Stevie is playing the A# as 7 draw
button (physically the 11th hole on a C 16 hole chromatic).  Stevie is
playing the lower note as 7 draw button bent down.  It is possible to bend
any note on a chromatic by 3 half steps.  To me, the note sounds in between
G# and A, so a quartertone, so it could easily be argued that you are
correct, it is a whole step lower, G# or argued that it is a half step
lower, A.

Personally I hear him start on the lower pitched bent note and release to
the higher notes for a two note phrase, repeated 4 times for a total of 8
notes.  It is all done in a legato fashion with one breath.

That's my take.
Michael Rubin

On Sun, Sep 20, 2020 at 11:09 AM Robert Hale <ynfdwas at xxxxx> wrote:

>
> Hi Michael,
> Which do you hear?
>
> https://youtu.be/l3qi3E40aWE
>
> 1:54
>
>
>
>
> On Sun, Sep 20, 2020 at 8:51 AM Michael Rubin <
> michaelrubinharmonica at xxxxx> wrote:
>
>> Please send a video or MP3 and designate the exact time the notes in
>> question appear.
>> Thanks
>>
>>
>> On Sun, Sep 20, 2020 at 10:28 AM Robert Hale <ynfdwas at xxxxx> wrote:
>>
>>> Thanks to each of you pitching in here!
>>>
>>> <grin>  Coming out of the weeds, I want to address that I hear a
>>> repeated whole step move in measure 12 of the solo, Stevie Wonder, FOR ONCE
>>> IN MY LIFE.
>>> I used Gold Wave to slow it down, isolate, and loop it. It's a whole
>>> step. Anyone else hear it that way?
>>>
>>>
>>>    1. How does Stevie produce that phrase on a C standard 64 chrome
>>>    played in F#, which would only offer a 1/2 step move with the slide?
>>>    2. If the recording is confirmed to be a whole step, why do several
>>>    pros transcribe and play it as a half-step?
>>>
>>>
>>> It's a small issue in the high musical value of this marvelous solo. But
>>> you know musicians can get fanatic about stuff. <grin> Even the definition
>>> of terms.
>>>
>>> Robert Hale
>>> Mesa AZ USA
>>>
>>>
>>> On Sat, Sep 19, 2020 at 7:41 AM Michael Rubin <
>>> michaelrubinharmonica at xxxxx> wrote:
>>>
>>>> George,
>>>> Does the word diatonic refer to only major scales or can it be applied
>>>> to any type of scale?
>>>> Michael
>>>>
>>>> On Sat, Sep 19, 2020 at 9:39 AM Michael Rubin <
>>>> michaelrubinharmonica at xxxxx> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Thanks George!  I wonder why I was taught otherwise.
>>>>> Michael
>>>>>
>>>>> On Sat, Sep 19, 2020 at 9:37 AM Slim Heilpern <slim at xxxxx> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> OK, seems like we're getting into the weeds here.  I'll just mention
>>>>>> that the only thing that is at all trill-like in that solo is the riff over
>>>>>> the C#9(#11) chord, where both "trill" notes (G and G#) are in the scale
>>>>>> one would normally play over that chord. I think you can call it a trill,
>>>>>> but if not, I stand corrected.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> - Slim
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On Sep 19, 2020, at 7:23 AM, George Miklas <harmonicat at xxxxx>
>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> George Miklas
>>>>>> 10:22 AM (0 minutes ago)
>>>>>> to Michael
>>>>>> Michael and others... RE: trills,  namely, Baroque trills in the
>>>>>> traditional sense.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Lets set some ground rules.....
>>>>>> 1.) a trill is diatonic
>>>>>> 2.) trills are approached from above the note - this creates the
>>>>>> musical effect of "dissonance and consonance" or "dissonance and release."
>>>>>> 3.) there are both whole and half steps in all diatonic scales.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> So in the key of C...
>>>>>> C trill will be a whole step (trill starts on D)
>>>>>> D trill will be a whole step (trill starts on E)
>>>>>> E trill will be a half step (trill starts on F)
>>>>>> F trill will be a whole step (trill starts on G)
>>>>>> G trill will be a whole step (trill starts on A)
>>>>>> A trill will be a whole step (trill starts on B)
>>>>>> B trill will be a half step  (trill starts on C)
>>>>>>
>>>>>> The slide on a slide chromatic acts to raise all pitches 1/2 step.
>>>>>> Most "button crazy" chromatic harmonica players call "randomly
>>>>>> pushing the button rapidly" a "trill" when 5/7 of the time, it is not a
>>>>>> "trill," but instead it is "randomly pushing the button rapidly."
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Does that make sense?
>>>>>> *--------------------------*
>>>>>> *George Miklas <http://www.georgemiklas.com/>, M.A., M.Ed., B.M. in
>>>>>> Ed.,* *and **Candidate for DME (2021)*
>>>>>> *Harmonica and Tuba Performing Artist www.GeorgeMiklas.com
>>>>>> <http://www.georgemiklas.com/> *
>>>>>> *Harmonica Gallery www.HarmonicaGallery.com
>>>>>> <http://www.harmonicagallery.com/>  Click here for **Sales
>>>>>> <http://sales.harmonicagallery.com/> or **Repair
>>>>>> <http://repair.harmonicagallery.com/>*
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On Sat, Sep 19, 2020 at 9:54 AM Michael Rubin <
>>>>>> michaelrubinharmonica at xxxxx> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Not 4 and 5 draw, I meant 3nad 4 draw.  No coffee yet.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On Sat, Sep 19, 2020 at 8:52 AM Michael Rubin <
>>>>>>> michaelrubinharmonica at xxxxx> wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> > It's cool with me to call something a half step trill, but isn't a
>>>>>>> whole
>>>>>>> > step distance implied within the word trill?  As far as I know you
>>>>>>> can only
>>>>>>> > trill by shaking between 4 and 5 draw (and their higher octave
>>>>>>> repeats) on
>>>>>>> > a chrome and 6 and 7 draw on a diatonic.  "Trilling" a half step
>>>>>>> isn't
>>>>>>> > really trilling, it's something else.  I call moving between 2
>>>>>>> notes
>>>>>>> > rapidly by repeatedly pushing the button in and out a "flourish",
>>>>>>> but
>>>>>>> > that's my own term and has no basis in classical music terminology.
>>>>>>> >
>>>>>>> > On Sat, Sep 19, 2020 at 8:40 AM Slim Heilpern <slim at xxxxx>
>>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>> >
>>>>>>> >> I know this solo well, not sure what trill you're talking about.
>>>>>>> The solo
>>>>>>> >> is definitely in F#, lays out perfectly in that key, no whole
>>>>>>> step trills.
>>>>>>> >> There is definitely a half step G to G# trill.
>>>>>>> >>
>>>>>>> >> - Slim
>>>>>>> >>
>>>>>>> >>
>>>>>>> >> > On Sep 19, 2020, at 3:31 AM, Robert Hale <ynfdwas at xxxxx>
>>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>> >> >
>>>>>>> >> > Stevie Wonder FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE many pros play it and tab it
>>>>>>> as a
>>>>>>> >> > half-step slide, but I hear a whole step trill.
>>>>>>> >> > Slowing it down and isolating it, I am sure of it.
>>>>>>> >> > The recording is in F#, but that whole step trill can only
>>>>>>> occur between
>>>>>>> >> > Draw holes 3 and 4, putting it in the Key of G, or G# with
>>>>>>> slide in.
>>>>>>> >> > What's your call?
>>>>>>> >> >
>>>>>>> >> > Thank you, from Mesa, Arizona USA
>>>>>>> >> >
>>>>>>> >> > Robert Hale
>>>>>>> >> > RobertHaleMusic.com
>>>>>>> >> > Robert at xxxxx
>>>>>>> >> > 480-720-8897
>>>>>>> >>
>>>>>>> >>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>


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