mikiek
2 posts
Aug 20, 2012
12:21 PM
|
Picked up a few additional harps recently. On some of the higher pitched ones (F,D and even my C) I'm having a tough time getting any sound at all out of the 9 & 10 holes - blow or draw.
I know the 2 is supposed to be a problem for newbies but how about the high notes? These are Seydel harps so I'd like to think they should be useable straight from the box.
It's just me, right?
|
Frank
1030 posts
Aug 20, 2012
12:26 PM
|
Don't "hit" them breathe them...
|
AlexArkansas
21 posts
Aug 20, 2012
12:43 PM
|
It's you. Do you tongue block or pucker? In either case, I might try hitting the 8 draw with as relaxed an embouchure and little breath as you can, then moving to the 9 draw without changing what your mouth is doing. Try getting as much of your lips as possible over the harp while playing, and stay relaxed.
|
Pistolcat
270 posts
Aug 20, 2012
12:42 PM
|
It's probably you. High key harps have stiffer reeds and need a softer attack. What Frank said is right. When I started exploring the high end on my crossover in c I ended up busting the gap on my draw 7 wide open because I couldn't get it to sound properly. Took my some time to adjust emboucheur and attack. (then I had to re-gap, obviously)
Spend some times with your new harps and just "feel" the notes. I'm a big fan of "keep-it-in-your-mouth" way of learning to play.
----------
Pistolkatt - Pistolkatts youtube
|
mikiek
3 posts
Aug 20, 2012
7:32 PM
|
Thanks to all - I was definately blowing too hard. Interesting point Pistolkatts, I would have expected a stiffer reed to need more air to move it.
|
Pistolcat
272 posts
Aug 20, 2012
11:40 PM
|
Well, the softer the reed the further it will swing in the slot, with a lower frequency, producing a lower pitch and letting more air escape!
You can try draw one on your lowest keyed harp and compare it with your highest key. You can keep the note goin a lot longer on the high key than low. But I think that you are right also. You CAN get the sound at equal or lesser airpressure on the lower key but it also chokes at a higher pressure. Varies from harp to harp too, though.
A major point is to make sure that you are relaxed and doesn't resonate the wrong note. It could be that your mouth is resonating a note a lot lower than the blow reed and your obedient harp does everything it can to bend down to that and thus choke... Well anyway, high key harps are a lot of fun, they respond super fast and can be played at high speed.
----------
Pistolkatt - Pistolkatts youtube
|
Baker
239 posts
Aug 21, 2012
1:32 AM
|
I had a similar problem when I had just started. The best advice I got was to drop your jaw as low as you can (open up the mouth and throat cavity) – to the point where it's uncomfortable, it will get more comfortable, after a while you get used to it – and, as has been stated already, stay relaxed and don't use too much breath force.
|
Pistolcat
276 posts
Aug 22, 2012
12:51 AM
|
Just that you may be bending a little :). Try different holes and make a different sized mouth cavity. It's not certain that "bigger is better".
----------
Pistolkatt - Pistolkatts youtube
|
colman
187 posts
Aug 23, 2012
11:34 AM
|
breath easy and relaxed, blow and draw light, hold that note untill it stops.it`s like OM chant,one note at a time and you`ll find after awile the note will naturally develop a vibrato, when you get to know that harp up and down then you can use dynamics and hit a note like crackin` a whip ! i still do this with all new harps...
|
BrokenComputerBlues
18 posts
Aug 23, 2012
12:02 PM
|
Pistolcat, I think how far it swings effects the loudness (amplitude). I think how quickly it swings determines the pitch (frequency). That's why you put a big weight on the end of low reeds. It slows down how fast the reed moves (but not necessarily how far it swings- lowest reeds are most likely to rattle, although that's also partially a function reed length.)
I suspect low reeds may be leakier because of that slow swing time too. It's just a thought experiment, but thinking just about blow reeds, there are two forces acting on the reed. The first is breath. It pushes the reed up. The second is the springiness of the reed. When the reed is pushed as far as the force from the breath will push it, air pressure drops because the gap is wide open. The spring action pushes the reed back down until the drag from the reeds springiness the other direction and new air coming in pushes it back. The low reeds, being longer, and taking longer to swing, leave the gap open longer (both time wise and length wise) in each cycle.
----------
It's me. My computer is broken.
|
Pistolcat
279 posts
Aug 23, 2012
12:43 PM
|
Um, That could be right, Nate, but a longer reed will swing further and thus take longer time to complete its pendulum and thus produce a lower frequency. Weight is a factor too, of course.
----------
Pistolkatt - Pistolkatts youtube
|
