Hello Harp Friends!
Dennis Gruenling here now as we start a new study song called “Minor 2nd”. This is a song in 2nd position on a C harmonica, in the key of G minor. Sticking only to Blues Scale notes for the entire piece. This is a good way to really practice your discipline with what notes you are playing since venturing out of the Blues Scale much will not work well in a minor blues piece. For now, listen to it, absorb it, and take in the whole vibe of the notes and the phrasing..and work on that scale to prepare to dissect this song starting next week.
Happy Holidays to you all!!
Dennis
Topics and/or subjects covered in this lesson:
Chicago Blues
Print Chords & Tab
C Harp in the Key of G.
Loop 1:16 Introduction to Minor 2nd Series
Loop 2:23 Whole Song
Loop 2:23 First Verse
Loop 3:05 2nd Verse
Loop 3:35 3rd Verse
Comments
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Yes! Hopefully all this work in the woodshed shows up positively on the stage when I'm focused on responding to my bandmates! That's the goal anyway!
Thanks for your response Dennis. The 3-hole bends are so essential to playing blues and I have been working hard on this, both puckered and tongue blocked. This is helpful. I've found that focusing on drawing deeply into my belly really helps and thinking deliberately about moving the bend further up or down in your mouth/throat is a new idea. I feel like I've been doing that somewhat instinctively, but probably not enough. It helps to have a focus when working on things that are hard.
That's what I'm here for...some of this will be more detailed on a book I'm working on (in my spare time haha!!) but that should help a lot. Thinking can help during practice, just not so much on the bandstand haha!
Ah, that 3-hole half-step bend...Why does it get harder to hold and control on the higher pitched harmonica? Is there something that shifts in the technique? I have much better control and vibrato playing it puckered but articulation of the phrasing would be so much better if I had that control tongue-blocking. Anything particular you would recommend focusing on?
Thank you once again!
The technique of bending changes with every note you want to bend, as it is a pitch-specific technique. The lower the note, the deeper it is done. The higher the note, the furtehr front it is done. It's all about finding the sweet spot for each pitch you want to bend, puckered or tongue-blcoked. You are just likely more comfortable at it puckered because perhaps you have more time practicing and playing that way with bends compared to TB.
Quick 4-chord on measure 2?
Yes, Quick IV (bar 2 of every chorus).
Love it !!