Frank
3889 posts
Feb 23, 2014
12:19 PM
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Do you believe that having weak Gluteus maximus muscles could possibly contribute to not playing the harmonica to ones fullest potential?
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Rick Davis
2998 posts
Feb 23, 2014
1:22 PM
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Does this harp make my ass look big?
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-Little Rick Davis
The Memphis Mini harp amp
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
The Mile High Blues Society
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didjcripey
712 posts
Feb 23, 2014
1:30 PM
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Only when trying to get those deep deep bends using my newly developed and somewhat controversial Arse bending method as described in earlier posts (watch out for the overblows!)
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Lucky Lester
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messy ventura
127 posts
Feb 23, 2014
4:17 PM
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Kinda brings a whole new meaning to " pucker " . lol
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Chris L
37 posts
Feb 23, 2014
6:57 PM
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Damn! Do I have to learn (yet)another embouchure to try to keep up with you guys? So do you play with the high notes at the top? i.e the one hole at the bottom?
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walterharp
1325 posts
Feb 23, 2014
7:53 PM
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did you honestly expect a serious responses? :-)
with all the talk about deep vibrato, breathing from stomach, etc.. of course. Developing your core should help. also if you have a gig and need to stand up and bend backward like little walter wailing and hump your gear around.. all those muscles are important.
and if you want to move like dennis the snake, then all those muscles are even more important!
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FMWoodeye
824 posts
Feb 23, 2014
9:04 PM
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Well, I have REALLY bad knees. Both are scheduled for total replacement. I find it difficult to stand for one entire song. I also find it difficult to sit for extended periods of time. I have to change positions often. So I use a short wooden bar stool that allows me to stand or sit as I wish and still appear to be in a similar position. So no...I don't think that well-conditioned glutes are a prerequisite to good harp playing. By the way, I believe that the disease Lou Gherig had was Lou Gherig's disease. Quite a coincidence, I'm thinking, to contract a disease named after you.
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STME58
646 posts
Feb 23, 2014
10:52 PM
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I had a band director that suggested you could get a well supported tone by imagining you had a marble in your belly button and had to keep it in place by tensing your stomach muscles. When people got sloppy and tone when thin, he would comment. "There are marbles all over the floor!"
A choir director gave a more graphic imagery that is closer to Franks question. He said to "imagine you have a hamburger jammed up your ass and you need to keep things tight to keep the pickles from coming out!"
Neither of these images involve the gluteus maximus directly but do point to how your entire body can contribute to tone production.
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bloozefish
153 posts
Feb 24, 2014
11:00 AM
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Gluteus maximus (other than being the muscle most responsible for turning the head, hehe) provides most (ca. 70%) of the forward thrust required to move your thigh back during walking or running.
Gluteus medius and minimus work together to move the thigh out to the side of the body. So, the 'gluts" have different functions, neither of which are essential to harp playing. Now, cool stage moves are a different story. (sorry, but I teach this stuff.)
james
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