harpfox
22 posts
Jan 06, 2014
1:55 AM
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I don't know if anybody has gotten into the habit of playing in the shower like i do.
but Ive noticed, that once the bathroom fills with steam the sound gets louder and crispier.
i asked a science student why? and he told me that sound travels faster through water.
interesting!
maybe this can be applied to a non-shower setting.
maybe moistening your hands before a song will improve the cupping sound?
let me know if you get positive results with this...
just wanted to share!
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MindTheGap
154 posts
Jan 06, 2014
4:07 AM
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harpfox - this is a welcome post because if ever my wife says I'm becoming a bit obsessed with the harmonica, I can tell her how it might be :-)
As for the explanation, well, humidity doesn't affect the speed of sound much. Temperature does though, of course. But if you were actually playing underwater, then the speed of sound is much faster. Can you try that and let us know the result!?
Singing in the shower makes everyone's singing sound good, so why not harmonica?
Last Edited by MindTheGap on Jan 06, 2014 4:08 AM
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harpfox
24 posts
Jan 06, 2014
4:24 AM
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haha excactly! luckily i have no one to answer to so i can continue playing for 5+ hours a day LOL(im addicted!)
advice: when playing in the shower the trick is figuring out how to not get water clogging up the harp...playing underwater would be a "bit" of a challenge.
about STEAM though, which is water particles in the air. the sound vibrates the particles, since the particles are closely packed, there's more vibration. therefore, louder sound. sounds travels faster in steam than air because air particles are more scattered.
as for moistened hands, maybe it improves the cupped sound/wawa's....im gonna experiment more with this...
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harpfox
25 posts
Jan 06, 2014
4:58 AM
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the subjectivity problem is exactly why i posted this, it could all be in my head/expanding mind. lol.
don't know about recreating it in a live situation. but could it be that concerts packed with sweaty people(steam) affect the sound? somethings going on there...
but also worth mentioning, i found that playing in the shower relaxes your muscles.
so if you tense up while playing, this could help get over that limitation.
maybe showers are woodsheds of the future lol
Last Edited by harpfox on Jan 06, 2014 4:59 AM
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harpfox
26 posts
Jan 06, 2014
5:06 AM
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Buzadero's idea is great! maybe MindTheGap et al. would be interested in testing this out?
for experimental consistency here's my methodology.
1) turn on shower(full heat) 2) start playing
3) as steam fills the room notice how sound changes
4) as hands become clammy or humid notice its effect on cupping techniques/wawa's.
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clyde
329 posts
Jan 06, 2014
7:07 AM
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I hope you are using a marine band
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dougharps
509 posts
Jan 06, 2014
8:34 AM
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Maybe the condensation in the harp helps seal it better, making it tighter and playing easier?
This is why people used to soak harps. Unfortunately, all the moisture was really bad for unsealed combs and corrosion of reed plates and covers. They sounded good, and died fast...
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Doug S.
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STME58
627 posts
Jan 06, 2014
8:36 AM
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I expect the improved sound you hear has to do more with the acoustics of the room than the heat or humidity. Bathrooms and especially showers tend to have hard surfaces which reflect sound efficiently, tile floor, no carpet or drapes and a smooth (non sound absorbing) ceiling. I sometimes use the bathroom when making a recording because it provides a slight natural reverberation. I have talked to a professional recording engineer who has a studio in his house, and at times he has used a bathroom to get the sound he was after.
I have learned to do a quick check of the acoustics of an area by snapping my fingers and listening. I have located some good sounding public spaces this way. Try that in the different rooms of you house and you will probably find that it takes longer for the sound of the snap to die off in the bathroom than any other room in the house.
One of the members of a brass quintet I am in has a front entry hall with hardwood floors, smooth walls, no draperies and a high ceiling that is large enough to set up with 5 musicians and the sound is amazing. I am not going to try a brass quintet in the shower though, no matter how good it might sound!
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HarveyHarp
557 posts
Jan 06, 2014
12:12 PM
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I sometimes play in my pool. Does that count? If you start blowing and then go under water, it sounds pretty interesting. I would not do it with a wood comb, and of course you can only use blow notes.
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HarveyHarp
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CarlA
420 posts
Jan 06, 2014
12:34 PM
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I have played a bit harmonica whe deep sea diving. The crustacean's seem to love it!
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harpfox
27 posts
Jan 06, 2014
3:09 PM
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@ clyde and dougharps.....i actually used to do this with marine bands and it got super air tight because of wood inflation....but as you say the harp died...now in using manji bc of synthetic comb
@stme58 ....the accoustics are great in bathrooms your right! But the steam seemed to make it even better
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Mirco
71 posts
Jan 06, 2014
3:36 PM
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I couldn't play harmonica in the shower because my hands and mouth are full of fried chicken. I eat in the shower.
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Buzadero
1166 posts
Jan 06, 2014
5:03 PM
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"I have played a bit harmonica whe deep sea diving. The crustacean's seem to love it!"
I've played at well over 500 foot storage depth and at over 700 in the bell. The other guys in the system don't seem to dig it at all.
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~Buzadero
Underwater Janitor, Patriot
Last Edited by Buzadero on Jan 06, 2014 5:04 PM
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Frank
3654 posts
Jan 07, 2014
3:12 AM
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this is close to bein in the shower :)
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ridge
481 posts
Jan 07, 2014
7:06 AM
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So this explains why smoke machines are used in concerts. All this time I thought it just looked radical, but it was really to bolster the sonic transmission to the audience.
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Ridge's YouTube
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nacoran
7474 posts
Jan 07, 2014
9:45 AM
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I've run (cheap) harmonicas under the sink to get gunk out of them, and for the first 30 seconds or so afterwards they play better. I think the water makes it more airtight.
Bathroom, laundry room, any room with hard walls will sound thick, at least until the room gets big enough so the echo is out of time with what you are playing. (Apparently Yankee Stadium is a terrible place to sing. It messes with whoever they bring in to sing the national anthem, even after they've been warned about it.)
If the shower is on, then you've got the sound of the shower in the mix too. It could be drowning out some of the less harmonious sounds- the little slip when you didn't mean to get a double stop, the little reed squeal...
Or the warm air may be clearing out your respiratory system. I know when I'm stuffed up I don't play as well. If I'm really stuffed up I don't hear as well. Getting decongested is a virtuous loop.
Or, if you have it on pulse, maybe it's just giving you a good beat to play to!
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Nate
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