Killa_Hertz
2215 posts
Feb 13, 2017
6:01 AM
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Based on other threads and comments I notice quite a few people have taken singing lessons. Who has taken singing lessons (or any other "nonharmonica" musical related lessons) and how specifically have they helped your playing? What specific excersises helped your harp playing the most?
I can imagine anything related to breathing more efficiently and increasing your breath control abilities would help with your harp playing.... But i was interested in specifics. And how good your playing was before and after.
Thanks
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Owen Evans
211 posts
Feb 13, 2017
6:28 AM
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Let me be first and say that my earliest singing lessons were in grade school for choir. I learned a lot of theory and how to read music which has stayed with me all my life.
My sister was choir director at our church & everyone in our extended family sang (trained & otherwise). My godmother was a trained opera singer. Yes, the lessons were plenty & often unwanted but absorbed nevertheless.
The musical theory was augmented throughout my life and the last singing lessons I took were relevant to playing the harmonica with a singer.
A duo at 2016 SPAH held a class to help us really understand the do's & don't's of playing the harp with a singer. Thankyou Michael D'Eath and Brenda Freed for these most valuable lessons. Oh and by the way, my exercise for breath control is swimming laps in the pool every day! Compared to 3 years ago, I can't say I have run out of gas for a long time now!
Last Edited by Owen Evans on Feb 13, 2017 6:29 AM
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RyanMortos
1615 posts
Feb 13, 2017
7:27 AM
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I take both harmonica and a few non harmonica lessons. I think there's a plethora of ways they indirectly aid my learning and understanding of each other and music in general. I think the obvious direct things for singing is the breathing, maybe posture, phrasing. Also all the reinforcing of what different intervals sound like, what chords exist, what notes work with those chords, my time & rhythm. How I practice has also been influenced by each for the better.
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~Ryan
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nacoran
9369 posts
Feb 13, 2017
11:42 AM
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I took voice lessons in high school as part of choir. They helped a lot. (Also played baritone).
There is a lot of overlap with harmonica, the one big difference being that us harp players need to manage our breath a little different since we play a blow/draw instrument, but all the stuff about posture, breath support, etc. transfers very well.
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Nate
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outdoor joe
36 posts
Feb 13, 2017
1:02 PM
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I took drum lessons for a few months & in turn that has helped me learn how to read music - basic music haha.
joe
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Komuso
683 posts
Feb 13, 2017
5:30 PM
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This is great. Throga
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Paul Cohen aka Komuso Tokugawa
HarpNinja - Learn Harmonica Faster
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jpmcbride
141 posts
Feb 13, 2017
5:39 PM
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Learning to play bass helped my harp playing be forcing me to learn lots of chord progressions and making me a better listener. I think its a good idea for all harp players to at least play around at a guitar, bass, or keyboard to get a better idea of whats going on with the rest of the band.
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Jim McBride
www.bottleoblues.com
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Killa_Hertz
2217 posts
Feb 13, 2017
7:30 PM
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Wow. That Throga is very interesting. Theres Alot of info on there. Ive glazed over it ... I cant wait to really dig into it.
It also seems like learning another instrument would help understand theory much easier. But its a bit of a double edged sword. In learning another instrument ... Your obviously taking time away from learning harmonica. Ive been dabbling here and there with keyboard and slide guitar. But havent really put too much time into it at all. I try to put as much time as possible into diatonic harp.
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johan d
50 posts
Feb 13, 2017
10:35 PM
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3-4 years ago I started learning to play the piano. I had 0 musical background. My teacher started me with some note reading, but most important start to sing notes and try to match with the piano as reference. First Do, then Do-Mi, then Do-Mi-Sol-Do, Re-Fa#-La-Re, Mi-Sol#-Si-Re,... over and over and over... I also had to join a choir, at least for a year. It was not what I expected from learning piano and it was not my favourite thing, but it must have helped me. Now still quitly sing/hum melody lines along when at the piano. It's also good for improvising, knowing what the melody line is going to sound like before even played it (not that I can do that already).
Last Edited by johan d on Feb 13, 2017 10:35 PM
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BronzeWailer
1957 posts
Feb 13, 2017
11:12 PM
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I resisted for a while because I wanted to concentrate on the harmonica, but I was doing regular gigs and one of my guitar guys said I should learn to sing better. I could sing okay but I knew I had shortcomings, just as I knew I had (and have) shortcomings on the harmonica.
I decided I wasn’t going to be the world’s best harp player, or the world’s best singer, but I might make a reasonable combination of the two from an entertainment perspective.
I have taken a bit over three years of singing lessons with a live teacher and watched numerous YouTube videos. My teacher made me to a lot of jazz stuff such as Ella Fitzgerald and Chet Baker, not something I would normally do. I think it helped me pick up melodies quickly, which is good for harmonica, especially when you are sitting in.
The breathing exercises are vital in learning how to open the throat, not run out of breath, take in a breath quickly when needed, etc.
My teacher told me to imagine I was a whale shark when taking a breath and hold that position to keep the throat open, for example.
My playing was okay before, good enough to get regular paid gigs and busking to help defray the costs of being interested in music. I think my tone has improved thanks to singing.
And singing is fun on its own. I’m very glad I have had a decent stab at it.
BronzeWailer's YouTube
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jbone
2235 posts
Feb 14, 2017
4:17 AM
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I got a little ways with a voice coach, pretty much learning to breathe from my diaphragm rather than higher up. In turn this gave me more to work with when singing and also when drawing a blowing air across reeds. It was enough to get me on the path.
This was critical to saving both harps and voice. To that point I would often go hoarse by the end of a gig. I blew out a lot of 4 draw and 5 draw reeds as well.
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barbequebob
3384 posts
Feb 14, 2017
11:30 AM
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Taking vocal lessons was probably the single smartest thing I've ever done and it made me understand my vocal range, it helped me with better breathing and relaxation, which improved EVERYTHING about my harp playing, but also taught me how to take proper care of my voice and it also forced me to pay much more attention to details as well.
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Sincerely,
Barbeque Bob Maglinte
Boston, MA
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groyster1
2911 posts
Feb 16, 2017
7:18 AM
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considering voice lessons...
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Bruce S
43 posts
Feb 16, 2017
9:02 AM
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I would definitely recommend having singing lessons.
I started singing lessons at the beginning of this year. I wish I'd done it earlier. Learning to sing properly has been a truly liberating experience for me. I've only had 6 sessions so far, but I'm learning breath control, posture and relaxing my larynx, how to shape sounds, and increasing my volume and projection without straining. I'm enjoying singing and I have increased my upper vocal range by 4 whole notes.
My wife started to learn flute last year, and when I found that her teacher also taught singing and had experience of a variety of styles, I asked about lessons.
Although I had been singing out for a few years, I knew that my range was limited and although I could hold a tune, I had trouble making accurate leaps between certain notes and didn't articulate certain sounds well. I'm working on all those things and can hear the improvement that I've made. It's already given me a wider range of things that I can sing and I'm sure that my tongue blocked bends are getting better as a consequence.
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snowman
242 posts
Feb 16, 2017
9:48 AM
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--I took singing lessons from this guy
[ http://appellvoicestudio.com/ ]—
maybe over 20 yrs ago ---9 months worth—
It taught me how to practice-it taught me VIBRATO-VS PULSING-It taught what I knew and didn’t know---Taught that the throat is a muscle—or muscles and they can be strengthened---
Im learning a cheesy song right now “Thinking Outloud”---He has several parts where his voice pitch goes up n down before landing on the pitch he wants-
Ie: the word ‘hands’ in the song----specifically the sound ‘ha’ or the phonetic sound ‘ah” like in
‘ah whats up dock”—
What I do--- is practice ‘ah’ following his notes-slower and build speed slowly---- I also do it starting at a pitch lower- A full step lower to ½ step lower –to his pitch-to ½ step higher-to full step higher---up n down, always following the same note pattern he had-
I follow the same up n down for vibrato on tuff parts--
1] how many vibratos
2] the phonetic sound [whatever it is] could be: ooh ah etc
3] start below pitch and work to pitch and then go above it
4] mess with speed till I get it
As far as harp
1] record the passage
2] slow it down
3] burn part to cd ---- at all different speeds and sometimes change pitch
4] figure notes and write my own deal
Ie: 2b -------3db2 ------- 4b =
[2blow]----- [ 3draw bend -2nd bend or middle bend]---- [4blow]
5] I personally write what the note is below it –to help me memorize
An example in crossharp
IE:
2b-----3db2-----4b
1-------2/9------4
[ 1=root note] [ 2/9 is the 2 or 9th] [4 is the 4]
6] personally I like to know over what chord it was used
Ie: I chord //// //// //// ////
IV chord //// ////
I chord //// /////
Turn
V chord ////
IV chord ////
I chord //// [////maybe IV chord]
So if my lick was in the turn--- say over the V and IV chord-- I can now use it in ANY KEY on the turn
I f over the I chord etc etc
7} try the same lick over schuffle –straight 4/4---- etc
8] try it different songs
9] WHEN PLAYING LIVE—
GO BLANK, TRY NOT TO THINK—RELY ON MUSCLE MEMORY AND WHAT I FEEL-
I know this is a lot bull --but I learn from u guys, all the time—if it helps anyone great—then it’s a payback for stuff I learn from u
If not I apologize for my pseudo intellectual bs lov ya man
Last Edited by snowman on Feb 16, 2017 9:56 AM
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WinslowYerxa
1259 posts
Feb 16, 2017
10:02 AM
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I took singing lessons in my late teens and early 20s (and also sang in choirs). The support and openness of throat that support vocal tone are the same as for harmonica. The one big difference is that closing the nasal passages for harmonica is usually preferred so as to avoid leakage, while opening the nasal passages in singing is part of normal phonation.
I also studied music theory, arranging, and composition in university. It all helps. Learning to follow a conductor also helped me on theater gigs playing harmonica.
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Winslow
Check out my blog and other goodies at winslowyerxa.com
Harmonica For Dummies, Second Edition with tons of new stuff
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Last Edited by WinslowYerxa on Feb 16, 2017 10:03 AM
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nowmon
111 posts
Feb 20, 2017
5:44 AM
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I was in a Doo wop group when I was 14,and in the n-hood there was a Black Baptist Church.This church had a fantastic choir and the had touring gospel groups come and play once a month.We were friends with the kids who went there,so we attended the gatherings.This was my lessons,also next thing I knew I was blowin`harp and playing slide guitar.This started in 1964,I haven't stopped yet.
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bluemoose
1153 posts
Feb 20, 2017
12:58 PM
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I took some doowop classes as well. Really fun. Makes you listen, but not too much, on stage to others around you, especially if you get the first third part. Good skills for harp playing with others
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