SmokeJS
81 posts
Apr 19, 2013
3:24 PM
|
Hi, my name is SmokeJS and I'm a blues harmonica instruction material 'aholic. I'm particularly addicted to books, CD's and DVD's written by David Barrett. In the early stages of my harp learning I jumped straight into soloing but recently found Get Chugging by Ben Hewlett and it's been very helpful with breathing techniques. The world is moving towards downloads so I've purchased books for the future as I prefer hard copy books and CD's work best in my home theater as my amplifier is older and doesn't have Air Play.
So in my quest for good instruction material I'm wondering if you've got suggestions?
Note that as a guitar teacher I'm aware there's no substitute for personal teaching. But here it's not close and where available the cost is $40 per hour. That soon buys an incredible amount of written material. Skype works okay, and can be less expensive by eliminating travel, but in many ways I find books et/al can be just as good and often better as they are infinitely repeatable.
Last Edited by SmokeJS on Apr 19, 2013 3:24 PM
|
timeistight
1196 posts
Apr 19, 2013
4:00 PM
|
I like Winslow Yerxa's two For Dummies books.
My favorite of David Barrett's 85,467 books is Blues Harmonica Accompaniment Playing, which has the feel of a labor-of-love on Mr. Barrett's part.
If you're interested in the Chromatic, Max De Aloe's Method for Chromatic Harmonica is very thorough. It doesn't cover blues playing at all, however.
|
SmokeJS
82 posts
Apr 20, 2013
4:30 AM
|
Thanks for your help timeistight. Mr. Barrett really does have a large number of books out there. There's some repetition of material so the books can stand on their own but I'd say overall the relatively low cost makes the new material in each book generally worth having.
Do you feel there's enough difference between the two Dummies books to make both worth having?
|
jodanchudan
834 posts
Apr 20, 2013
4:51 AM
|
You can't go wrong with a combination of Adam's lessons and David Barrett's website and books. I haven't checked out Jerry Portnoy's stuff, but it looks good from the previews I saw. I found the Dummies book useful for information about the harmonica and fact-checking, but less useful for actually learning to play it. If you can already play it reasonably well and are more into learning how to improvise, I'd also definitely recommend Rick Estrin's DVD.
EDIT: generally, it looks like everything you need to know is on YouTube but - and you'll know this from teaching guitar - it takes a lot longer to internalise info from a video than it does to watch it. I'm always getting frustrated with progress and I have to remind myself that to internalise all the lessons from a video is going to take a couple of years of working on it.
Last Edited by jodanchudan on Apr 20, 2013 4:55 AM
|
Kingley
2539 posts
Apr 20, 2013
5:19 AM
|
For anyone starting out today there is such a wealth of material available to them. Here's just a few I've picked that stand out from the crowd.
Steve Bakers Harp Handbook is a must have for anyone serious about learning harmonica.
Dave Barrett's stuff is all good. His website in particular is superb.
Rick Estrin's DVD has a lot of very useful stuff in it.
Ronnie Shellist and Adam Gussow both give great free lessons on YouTube.
If Jerry Portnoy's web based lessons are as good as his CD lessons, then it's very good stuff.
Lee Sankey's video lessons are the best free lessons on YouTube in my opinion.
Then of course don't forget the two most important learning methods watching players live and listening to their music
Last Edited by Kingley on Apr 20, 2013 5:20 AM
|
timeistight
1197 posts
Apr 21, 2013
9:00 AM
|
"Do you feel there's enough difference between the two Dummies books to make both worth having?"
If you're only interested in blues, you could get by with just that one. They're pretty different, though, so if you have a more eclectic interest, I'd get both.
Last Edited by timeistight on Apr 21, 2013 2:49 PM
|
groyster1
2213 posts
Apr 21, 2013
9:24 AM
|
when I bought my first marine band I bought tony glovers blues harp book...taught about bending and 1 2 and 3rd positions....very helpful but a book is not something you should depend on to teach yourself how to blow harp
|
RyanMortos
1459 posts
Apr 21, 2013
10:16 AM
|
I've used most every source available within the last 5 years for different lengths of time including taking one or more 1 on 1 lessons with multiple teachers (some of which nationally & world re-known).
If you seriously want to learn the instrument quickly you'll sign up for one on one lessons. If you have no one local or don't want to spend extra money on gas or just want a great teacher I'd suggest Skype lessons with Michael Rubin, he can guide you to intermediate level in under 2 years time, I'd say, as long as you put in the practice time.
____________________________
If you want to try other slower routes some I'd suggest & tried:
YouTube:
-Adam Gussow's lessons
-Michael Rubin's lessons
DVDs & Books:
-David Barrett's series 2 (seemed worthwhile to me for a summer.)
-Hal Leonards Blues Harmonica Collection can get you playing close enough versions of your favorite blues tunes.
-Mel Bay's Complete Chromatic Harmonica Method (for chrome!)
Websites:
-David Barrett's bluesharmonica.com seemed okay to me for the few months I used it between teachers (or just about any Barrett learning tool seems okay).
-Howard Levy's harmonica school (though you'll might need a teacher to help you with his lessons)
-Any of Adam Gussow's paid lessons from the store.
Other:
-You'll also want to start going to open mic jams as soon as you feel you're ready.
-You'll want to attend workshops and conventions (like SPAH)
Though, I'd say any media source that isn't 1 on 1 with a teacher can only take you so far. A number of the above sources became pointless once I took a number of 1 on 1 lessons which ingrained all that information and more. My thought is the best mix is a 1 on 1 teacher (in person or Skype) and any mix of other sources.
----------
~Ryan
See My Profile for contact info, etc.
Last Edited by RyanMortos on Apr 21, 2013 10:33 AM
|
Jaybird
289 posts
Apr 21, 2013
10:19 AM
|
I am also a harmonica instruction materials 'aholic. I have an extensive collection from many different authors.
I think David Barrett's books are the best of them all, and his book, (not the DVD), "Building Harmonica Technique" is my favorite.
I learned harmonica playing technique all by myself with books and CD's. I also studied all of Adam's YouTube videos, which was helpful in many other ways.
-------------------------
Watch Jaybird play harp!
|
Michael Rubin
752 posts
Apr 21, 2013
11:21 AM
|
Thanks Ryan! Personally, my favorites are Dave Barrett and Lee Sankey for videos, although I like Adam's and Ronnie's and Jason's as well. I think Gindick's are perfect for the absolute beginner. I have only really liked a few books and I liked them at different times in my development. Gindick at the beginning, Tony Glover after a couple of years. There was a book with a picture of a harp half way out of a blue jeans pocket that I loved. I think Field's Harmonica Harps and Heavy Breathers is a great history book and understanding history has a lot to do with your personal sound in my opinion. Although I love Winslow and go to him for answers often, I haven't read the dummies books.
By the way, my newly updated website has an in order index of my Youtubes with links to all.
Over the years I have taken a couple of lessons from various people and attended seminars. I am most impressed with the teaching skills of Estrin, Filisko, Barrett, Gussow and Ricci. But a lot of learning is about who you personally connect with.
Last Edited by Michael Rubin on Apr 21, 2013 11:22 AM
|
SmokeJS
84 posts
Apr 21, 2013
2:25 PM
|
Question for Jaybird. What is it about Barrett's Building Harmonica Technique book that you prefer over the DVD's? Is there anything in that book that you find more helpful than the other Barrett books? To date I've avoided it as I thought being older perhaps the newer material would have been an improvement.
|
Rick Davis
1648 posts
Apr 21, 2013
2:27 PM
|
Adam and Ronnie. They speak the language.
----------
-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
Tip Jar
|
The Iceman
834 posts
Apr 21, 2013
5:34 PM
|
If you want to become a better musician that plays the harmonica, sometimes it is fruitful to look beyond harmonica instruction books.
Effortless Mastery by Kenny Werner....
----------
The Iceman
|
2plankr
35 posts
Apr 21, 2013
6:37 PM
|
Jerry Portnoy Masterclass.
|
Komuso
148 posts
Apr 21, 2013
7:10 PM
|
Those are all great resource/learning links posted above, so I'd just reinforce Iceman's point of "sometimes it is fruitful to look beyond harmonica instruction books" with a link to Bill Evans' - The Language of Improvisation
----------
Paul Cohen aka Komuso Tokugawa
HarpNinja - Your harmonica Mojo Dojo
Bringing the Boogie to the Bitstream
|
