Christelle Berthon couldn't get along with her stock SUB30, so sent it to us for the X-Reed treatment: Embossing, OverValve Plate and a new comb. Here's the result, after one day's playing:
The diatonic harmonica of the future. Seems like any serious (new?) professional player who isn't playing only basic blues would want to learn this instrument. I suppose if you're already an adept chromatic player this would be less/non relevant though. Is this instrument then an alternative to the chromatic? And if so, why would one prefer this harp to a chromatic? And what's the relationship of this harp to position playing? Just makes the overbends unnecessary? (Don't get too technical on me. I'm basically a simpleton with this stuff).
I always admire her playing -Interesting tho from a lady asking for travel money 'cause she was so broke a while back touting a harp thats 4 times the price of other decent harps and then requires additional work to make it play well I guess it has its market but don't see it changing the blues harp world.
Just my 2 cents and again I love Christelle's playing
Last Edited by Goldbrick on Apr 16, 2013 9:30 AM
As far as position-- This model enables "regular" bends where they aren't normally available (and makes overbends impossible). So you would do the same things you do with a standard harmonica, except the notes occur in different places, and sound more robust. And as far as chromatic--I like a button! I have the Vern Smith Hands Free Chromatic, and it is great for what it is--but the button gives you a mechanical switch, and that gives the chromatic a distinctive sound, the same way that bends give diatonic a distinctive sound. This model extends the bends, but not so much that the average listener (or the rest of them, who are trying to ignore the harmonica player) can spot a difference in the sound. Contrast that, then, with the average overblow player, who scatters their playing with wild animal calls. Hey, don't get me wrong, I use overbends--but if it sounds like a duck . . .
Last Edited by Gnarly on Apr 16, 2013 12:39 PM
i think it's best to get your Richter playing absolutely DOWN before jumping off the deep end w/ different tunings. then you will have to relearn everything you know. essentially, you are playing a different instrument. Chromatics taught me a huge lesson. different animal, and i don't mean third pos. on a chro either. i mean pulling that trigger.
if you start w/ a new modern tuning you will have to fight to get your blues harp playing on a Richter harp proficiently. cart before the horse. ---------- MP affordable reed replacement and repairs.
"making the world a better place, one harmonica at a time"
click user name [MP] for info- repair videos on YouTube. you can reach me via Facebook. Mark Prados
Here's what Christelle has to say in answer to my questions above:
Is this instrument then an alternative to the chromatic?
"No for me they're complete different instruments.."
And if so, why would one prefer this harp to a chromatic?
"I prefer the X reed because of the "bendabiliy" of ALL the notes, it gives really the feel of a violin or a saxophone, on a chromatic is really difficult to get those things, besides Stevie Wonder and Toots Thielmans I don't know anyone who has really succeed to give that feel to the chromatic...It's too "cold" for me."
And what's the relationship of this harp to position playing? Just makes the overbends unnecessary?
"It makes a HUGE difference, you don't have to "think" as position since all the notes are there and steady therefore there's no need to think as overbends but just available notes, with keeping the true feel, the organic type of sound of the richter tuning."
Hopefully this might be of interest to, and informative for others. I find that her answers make total sense, and if I was a serious broad spectrum professional harmonica musician I'd be interested in experiencing this x-reed thing myself. I don't know who else would want to, or need to spend +/-$300 for one of them.
Damn, my pc broke, i finally get 5 minutes to came back here checking few month old post but here it is, another topic i just can't understand.
"It makes a HUGE difference, you don't have to "think" as position since all the notes are there and steady therefore there's no need to think as overbends but just available notes,"
Allright, that makes no sense at all to me. Thinking overbends opposed to what thinking "normal" bends ? If you got the right technique (puckering), overbends are done the exacts same way as regular bends and all of them can be bend as much halfstep as you can so the richter feeling is still there with them.
We just need better machinery to make reed and reed plates that don't need to be reworked that much to get perfect overbends. I may be saying that but i just had to remove a screw and put some nail polish on an olive to gets all overnotes playing correctly (weel all but the 10°° anyway). I am not sure if the x-reed is really the next step for diatonic when we are that close of "out the box" OB ready blues harp since it seems to feel so much like a completly new instrument. I wouldn't have minded a test with a really high velocity song to ear if it's really that much closer to a richter feeling for the performer too.
Anyway i am not that much into new multi valves and reed instrument and more into ways to makes perfect diatonic harps (let's just dream of a harps as good as a stradivarius) but keep up with your work Brendan, we need as much "answer" as we can about what's the next step in harmonica history if we want to get closer to one or more "perfect" ones.
wow. sparked my interest in this harmonica...what is involved w/getting one like this?
Christelle sounds pretty good. Just needs a little work on her 2 hole second inhale bend pitch stabilization. Everything else is stellar. ---------- The Iceman
Why didn't Christelle post up directly? Is she still throwing a hissy fit with this place?
I love the idea and want to get a full on embossed one. I got a Power Draw harp last year and I love the draw bending in the upper register. I'm just holding out for funds to be available.
She says she no longer posts on any forums. Didn't provide details, and I didn't ask. Her answers to my questions came to me in a private email, and she gave me permission to quote her here after I asked.
Ah, OK. Fair enough. She got upset a while ago and I thought her beef was only with this place. Shame, she used to post some great stuff. Thanks for replying.
She quit this forum 3 different times and is currently not a member. I've had a tussle with her on Facebook and still like her music, but I'm done with trying to be her Facebook friend. She kept posting homophobic remarks (she is anti-bisexual) that I found offensive. I'm a live and let live kind of guy and the cognitive dissonance in her posts was giving me a headache.
yes, valved harps, all notes bend down to note or notes below.. technique not too much different than ob and od in some ways, but learning where the notes are, that is.
Isn't Christelle gay? Without delving too far adrift from the forum creed, I've gone from being a Bible thumping bigot to an extremely liberal and tolerant person. The Staples Singers were largely responsible for my 'conversion'.
If you disrespect anybody that you run in to How in the world do you think anybody's s'posed to respect you If you don't give a heck 'bout the man with the bible in his hand Just get out the way, and let the gentleman do his thing You the kind of gentleman that want everything your way Take the sheet off your face, boy, it's a brand new day
i'm just giving a heads up to folks so they know what they are getting into before buying a new harp.
in 40+ years i've seen LO NMs, LO MM, LO HMs, Suzuki Valved Pros,Country tuning, blind owl tuning, Todd Parrott tuning, Xtreme Benders, and what have you come down the pike and a lot of players don't have the patience to learn the note configuations. that is all i meant. so many players have complained, "what do i do with this?!"
i've even taught OBs to folks and they say., "now what?!"
i applaud B. Powers innovations. it will make you a better player to experiment. just make sure you are very very interested in learning unframiliar territory.
i'd like to try one of these X-reed jobs myself. ---------- MP affordable reed replacement and repairs.
"making the world a better place, one harmonica at a time"
click user name [MP] for info- repair videos on YouTube. you can reach me via Facebook. Mark Prados
Last Edited by MP on Apr 17, 2013 12:11 PM
@Gnarly : It doesn't matter if you lift your feet up or you stomp your leg down when you take a step.
A step is a step.
Overbend are bends and you do them the same way (or at least you should). What happens physically in the harp is an engineer problem. Overbends can be bent too. They are notes like any other and you can't spot them if you don't know which pitch is supposed to be an overbend when a player play them right.
As for Christelle and forums... well, in any forum where everybody is anonymous, she would just be tough as just another "emo-kid" that makes a lot of noise. It was kind of fun to watch in all those french forum she was in while she wasn't famous at all in the harp community. It was like everybody thought "who the hell does she think she is talking to everybody like that ?" Then i missed a few heated discussion and she erased all of her posts an decided not to engage in forums.
It seems your "tolerance" of others is limited to those that subscribe to your beliefs. Don't get me wrong...as a Christian I'm not offended by your "biggot" remark because God's Word (the Bible) says that we will be persecuted so I've come to expect it. I would be more concerned about offending the very God that created you and I and be thankful His version of tolerance isn't limited....for He saved a wretch like me.
