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Jari_95
5 posts
Oct 03, 2013
11:17 AM
Hey guys, in this thread I asked for some feedback on my playing, so I thought I'd make a new thread to keep things clear. I'm a new member of the site and very excited to finally meet some harp players like myself. Thanks Adam Gussow, for bringing us all in contact like this, I'm sure it means a lot for most of you to be able to talk about harp with some fellow harp geeks (for me it does).

In the recording I just did a few standard riffs I stole partly from Adam Gussow. The rest is improvisation (only improvise, I think it's the most fun way to use this instrument)

Here is the link: http://vocaroo.com/i/s0dV5njjUZSn

Please give me any and all feedback, especially things YOU might've done better.

Thanks!
ridge
457 posts
Oct 03, 2013
11:41 AM
Don't really hear the Gussow, but that's okay. It sounded pretty good to me. I definitely lol'd when you didn't like what you did and said "awwww f*#K".
tookatooka
3519 posts
Oct 03, 2013
12:02 PM
What I heard was pretty darned good Jari_95. You seem to have a nice sound going there. I can't give a critique because I still consider myself as being a novice but I'm sure the guys on here will give some pointers.
Rick Davis
2494 posts
Oct 03, 2013
12:06 PM
Sounds good to me

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JInx
556 posts
Oct 03, 2013
1:19 PM
sounds good to me too. Maybe I'd add a front porch... a couple of country girls and some moonshine to sip on.
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Sarge
349 posts
Oct 03, 2013
2:00 PM
Oh yeah, you're doing quite well.
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Jari_95
7 posts
Oct 04, 2013
1:11 AM
Thanks alot guys! Seriously nothing to critisize? Come on I know there has to be something :p
tookatooka
3521 posts
Oct 04, 2013
2:17 AM
OK I'll bite. It's relatively easy to put a few licks together which you've copied from past masters, the test would be can you carry it through a complete piece without the oh Fuck it! in the middle? You want a proper critique then give us a proper whole tune and a bit of your own improvisation to work with. Only then can your skill levels be ascertained. For all we know, what you played so far could be all you are capable of :)
Jari_95
8 posts
Oct 04, 2013
2:28 AM
Ah now were getting somewhere. I'll do an improv with some back music, be right back!
kudzurunner
4288 posts
Oct 04, 2013
4:00 AM
Jari: I hear the influence of my playing (mostly my lick-choices) on what you're doing--and thanks for that. You actually sound very much the way I sounded back in 1885 when I had just learned those patterns and was beginning to make them my own. Your playing is full of nervous energy but also a little stiff. Your vibrato is fast, but it will slow down over time. Truth is, if you played gigs for a year, or jammed with friends, and used and worked these same patterns, became familiar with them in all weathers and tempos, they'd slowly "burn in" and you'd own them in a way you don't quite own them now. It's just a question of....mileage, as Joe Seneca tells Ralph Macchio in CROSSROADS. But you're very much on the right track.

One concrete recommendation I'd make is to use a metronome. Your tempo is unstable and tends to speed up. That's a function of your nervous energy. Find a way of disciplining that.

But good work, overall.

Last Edited by kudzurunner on Oct 04, 2013 4:00 AM
jbone
1381 posts
Oct 04, 2013
4:18 AM
Adam- are you older than you look??? (1885) I certainly second Jari's motion on this forum and we may not say it much, but I also appreciate one of the very best harp forums I've been a part of.

Jari, you do some very good work there. My compliments young sir!
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undertheradar
49 posts
Oct 04, 2013
5:50 AM
I think you have excellent tone, and you dont overbend the 3draw. Nice tongue blocking sound. Keep it up, because it sounded great.
nacoran
7191 posts
Oct 04, 2013
11:27 AM
Jbone, drat, you beat me to the punch! That would have made Adam one of the earliest known Hohner endorsers!

Jari, it sounded good. At about 22 seconds you did a warble that dropped in volume a little precipitously. At about 50 seconds your warble faded a little quickly too. It's fine to fade, but it sounded a little too quick and strong to my ear.

1:23- how did that old ad go, 'Never let them see (or hear) you sweat?' I had a music teacher, years ago, who said one of the worst habits you could get into, and an easy one, because you'll spend more time practicing than playing live, is to pause (or swear under your breath, or whatever) because you screwed up. It doesn't hurt anything when you are just practicing, but if it becomes a habit, sometimes you do it live and it carries over into a live show. Most of the time, the audience will only know you screwed up if you let them know (or if you twerk, then they'll let you know you screwed up.) :)




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Frank
2898 posts
Oct 04, 2013
11:39 AM
Nate did you just say Twerk - is that legal :)
tookatooka
3523 posts
Oct 04, 2013
11:55 AM
Very nice Jari_95. No complaints or suggestions for improvement from me. Just in case others didn't see your second submission, I tried to embed it here but it's a bit troublesome and doesn't work every time.

Here it is again. http://vocaroo.com/i/s1yuQp8gXUBL

Last Edited by tookatooka on Oct 04, 2013 12:02 PM
Frank
2912 posts
Oct 05, 2013
4:18 AM
Here is an idea for the the whoopin type rhythm you had going then said "ah F!$#%"

I would use that ideal...call the song "ah F!#@$" and make it a novelty song and keep it in your repertoire to entertain certain groups of people "who would get the humor" to take the edge off and get some laughs...

So the schtick would be...You say to the audience - now I would like to play a cool tune that I'm working on presently ( but really you have it down packed) and I would like to play it for you guys for the first time in public.

So now everyone is like wow, we're special, 1st time and he is doing it for us, this is cool,we love this guy, awesome, anticipation abounds...

So you start good and strong blastin away an incredible whoppin rhythm and when you see the audience is diggin it - you purposely screw up and stare dead at the audience then say directly into the mic, "ahhhhhhh F!$#@"...

After the laughter dies a little - you blast back into it strong and steady - until you feel the time to screw up intentionally and go through the "ahhhhh f!$@#" part of the song.

Soon enough you will have them singing along with you. on cue :)










3

Last Edited by Frank on Oct 05, 2013 4:19 AM
Pistolcat
530 posts
Oct 05, 2013
10:26 AM
Good playing, man! Great tongue-technique. Nice rhythm stuff. You could work a bit more on your articulation, I guess. But the basics are there. In the track with out backing track you had a tendency too speed up the tempo. I don't know if that was intentional? It also sounded as you went out of breath in a few places but at others you were solid so I assume you have your breathing locked down? On the track with the backing track you had a few places were you lingered on a gliding bend on hole four and one I think. That sounded a bit, well, like 'what do I do now? Wail!?' This is all nitpicking and we all do that when playing over a several minute backing track with out a riff or melody line to return to. You wrote you liked improvising best but a few songs could be nice to know, do you know what I mean?

Great sounding stuff and technique and good tone! Keep it coming!
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Georgia Blues
96 posts
Oct 05, 2013
4:15 PM
I like it. Do more.
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Alex
sonny3
48 posts
Oct 05, 2013
5:02 PM
Hold your microphone real close to your amp! :)
Jari_95
10 posts
Oct 06, 2013
3:01 AM
Thanks for all the compliments and great feedback!

@kudzurunner I know what you mean by nervous energy. Normally I don't have this problem but somehow with the idea of uploading my playing like this, I didn't relax my throat and jaw etc. anymore. How do you prevent this nervous energy? Normally I do some breathing exercises, by just breathing in and out on the chords, trying to keep it steady.

Good thing I'm getting the looping pedal, as it has inbuilt drumtracks!

@jbone Thank you for your kind words, sir

@undertheradar Thanks! I'm finally properly getting the half step bends on 3draw, after alot of cursing I might add

@Nacoran Your right, I still have got to practice alot on the warble, making it my own. I actually was going for the fading effect, but I agree it would have been more subtle if I didn't fade as fast as I did.

Right again, will watch for it not becoming a habit.
Should've just kept on playing, but it did give it some humor ;p

@tookatooka Thanks man :)

@Frank Make it a running gag, great idea! Great way to cover up a first mistake by saying ''what? nah this was part of the plan aaalll alongg'' haha

@Pistolcat Thanks!! You say some very useful stuff here man, food for thought. Sometimes I do speed up the tempo, and as Adam put it, a function of my ''nervous energy'', which I beleive to be true. And no, my breathing is still a bit shabby sometimes... But the breathing usually improves after doing some breathing exercises and relaxing my throat a bit. Have you got any tips/exercises on improving breathing and relaxation of throat/tongue muscles?

Will indeed learn a few songs. You mean if you improve your arsenal of licks you know blindly (by knowing a few songs), you have a bigger territory to improvise in? Makes a lot of sense.

@Georgia Blues Haha sure, I'll upload some more if you want.

@sonny3 why? what effect does this give?

Thanks again guys!
Pistolcat
531 posts
Oct 06, 2013
11:29 AM
@Jari - No good breathing tips, sorry. Try getting your lowest key harp and just get chugging.. Try mixing it up and keep it interesting and just go at it for 10 minutes or so. You just have to breath right then.

About learning songs. I used to think I just wanted to improvise to everything but I started to notice it just became the same thing over and over. We all can make it sound "right", improvising over a song but if you get a riff going or a theme then we can keeping interesting. Going out to improvise in our solos though... Learning and analysing songs is a great way to expand your practical knowledge of theory, too. "Ok, he actually goes for a major sixth and the a flat seventh. Sounds kinda cool even though the sixth isn't part of the blues scale..."

I believe we are about the same proficiency in harp playing. I just hear stuff that I know I need to work on myself :)

... oh and sonny3 is just trying to be funny punning on your thread title. "What do you get if you keep your mic close to your amp? Feedback!"
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Martin
470 posts
Oct 06, 2013
11:46 AM
Just running by here and listened to the first cut while checking other things. Immediate impression: you increase in tempo. (If that´s already been said, pardon.) Otherwise, you appear to be really well on your way -- even if I don´t now how long you´ve played (so that can sound slightly condescending if you been playing for 20 years ...).
Esp. like the vibrato.
sonny3
49 posts
Oct 06, 2013
12:05 PM
@jarri just kidding. Actually quite liked it.Just keep tapping your foot to keep time.I dug the Sonny Terry style vamping.Listen to sonny ,He had all the riffs just copy him.
sami
18 posts
Oct 07, 2013
9:04 AM
I liked your sound and your tone, nice TB control, but in my opinion you force too much the slaps in the beginning and they sound a little bit unnatural, but i really liked in general. Well done!


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