bigd
542 posts
Jul 22, 2014
9:42 AM
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I love great big diatonic octaves ala W. Clarke as well as scary inventive ones ala C. del Junco. Mine are always "untight" for lack of a better description. They are also more shrill than I would like but that is a I think disadvantage of generic Golden Melody tunings (Joe Spiers customizes my tunings so that they are less shrill). I am primarily a u-blocker but (too loosely or something?) tongue block the octaves. I live in 3rd position often where some good crescendo octaves can really galvanize an audience!! Thx.
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bigd
543 posts
Jul 22, 2014
9:44 AM
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p.s. Lee Sankey has some killer octaves too!!
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barbequebob
2652 posts
Jul 22, 2014
9:50 AM
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It has very little to do with the harmonica itself but mainly how you manipulate your embouchure as well as the inside shape of your mouth. The average player will often try to bend the octave using much more breath force, but that's NOT what you want to do. Try varying the embouchure as well as the inside shape of your mouth, but do it in an EXTREMELY subtle way as most harp players I can guarantee you that when they first do them, the changes will be anything BUT subtle. It not only works with a diatonic but also works quite well with chromatics as well.
On good custom diatonics or diatonics as well as chromatics using a slightly thicker reed plate it's really easy to do this with. It can be done on harps tuned to ET, JI or compromise tunings as well.
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Sincerely,
Barbeque Bob Maglinte
Boston, MA
http://www.barbequebob.com
CD available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bbmaglinte
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dougharps
686 posts
Jul 22, 2014
9:54 AM
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I think that octaves are easier on chromatic because the intervals you block stay the same. Also, you have to put the chromatic deep in your mouth, which helps tone.
I think working on it on chromatic will help you improve accuracy and tone. Then work on transferring it to diatonic. The switching on a diatonic from a blow octave to the wider block needed on draw octaves on the high notes is challenging to master without messy notes slipping in.
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Doug S.
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Kingley
3639 posts
Jul 22, 2014
9:56 AM
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Octaves sound great and are one of my favourite things to play. Don't if i can really help you improve on them or not D, but I do have some suggestions, which may help. My suggestions for tightening them up would be to try blocking them more tightly and when playing them and cut them short. What I mean by that is as you play them, try cutting them off just that fraction of a second earlier than you think you need too. That may help you to tighten them up a little. Another thing I'd suggest trying is playing them in groups alternating blow and draw octaves rapidly, with as little vibrato as possible to try and get them sound clean and separated. Once you get the hang of that, then try using them in slow numbers with huge vibrato on them and letting them hang. Hope that helps in some small way. I'm sure that others will have much better advice than mine that will help.
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walterharp
1470 posts
Jul 22, 2014
10:27 AM
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interesting question.. do you mean not tight enough as sounds from other notes creeping in, or that they sound dissonant? This is sort of follow up on what Bob said and is not as much an issue on chromatic, it seems because the valving makes every note sort of bend the same, but on diatonic the notes on the octave often require different approach to get a good bend out of, so it is easier to unintentionally bend one and not the other.
I have gone about this a different way (with only moderate success) in trying to bend one of two notes with a TB in isolation from another. Somebody somewhere mentioned that Ricci showed them it could be done.
just spitballing here..
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1847
1975 posts
Jul 22, 2014
10:28 AM
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i think the trick is too relax,
and just breathe thru the harp.
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i get a lot of request when i play my harmonica
"but i play it anyway"
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