Martin
756 posts
Dec 29, 2014
9:18 AM
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This is a spin-off from the "Georgia on my mind" thread.
The harp player here was new to me, and I believe he´s quite accomplished (although I´m not that wild about the "busy" section in this particular tune).
I wonder if any of you guys who knows about such things could say if he´s going to the PA here, or if it´s an amp involved? There´s a pedal of sorts before him, even my un-trained eyes could spot that -- but no more.
An educated guess?
I happen to think he´s got a fabulous sound, warm and with just the right amount of grit. The particular kind I´m attracted to (Lee Oskar sort of), but never seems to get, where you can sound bluesy and soft at the same time ...
He´s polish, i think, and not the one who´s published the YT clip, otherwise it would have been an idea to ask him directly, given that he could speak English.
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Kingley
3792 posts
Dec 29, 2014
9:32 AM
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I'd say he's going direct into the PA via the pedal board in front of him. As are the bass and guitar. Pretty sure no one here is using an amp in the conventional sense.
EDIT: The band is called 11 String Duo and a search of YouTube shows that they do appear to indeed play direct into the PA. As there are no amps visible in any of the clips I viewed.
Last Edited by Kingley on Dec 29, 2014 9:36 AM
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Martin
757 posts
Dec 29, 2014
10:17 AM
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Thanks Kingley, you confirm my suspicion, and as you say, no amps in sight.
However there´s just a tiny amount of break-up in his sound that made me wonder.
But whatever is in that pedal is good stuff (notwithstanding the fact that he can play) and I´d give a packet of crisps to know precisely what he´s using.
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Greg Heumann
2924 posts
Dec 29, 2014
2:26 PM
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All I hear from the pedals is delay.
He is very good, but, and this is as much a comment about the limits of the diatonic harp as anything - there are some key notes in the melody that require strong bends. His bends are not always on pitch and they just stick out like sore thumbs. They don't do this beautiful melody any service. We tend to be pretty forgiving as harp played because we know what it takes - but as a plain old, not a harmonica player listener? Not so much.
99.9% of us would need to play this on a chromatic to make it fully musical. Todd Parrott or PT Gazell might be able to pull it off on a diatonic.
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/Greg
BlowsMeAway Productions
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Last Edited by Greg Heumann on Dec 29, 2014 2:28 PM
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Martin
758 posts
Dec 29, 2014
5:10 PM
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Well, the iffy notes are the usual suspects, I guess: 3DD and 5OB?
I admit they stand out a bit (yes, not to harmonica players but to ordinary musicians/listeners) and althoguh I can produce them quite convincingly myself with the proper instrument, I tend to go for 12th pos on this tune. For safety´s sake. No need for a chromatic.
But the man is good, as you say -- and, more importantly here, he has a great sound.
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Gipsy
120 posts
Dec 30, 2014
12:15 AM
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I love this tune, and one day I hope to be able to do it justice. While enjoying the above version, and envying the skills and techniques demonstrated! I feel there are parts which are unmusical, and spoil it for me. The original vocal track is to my ears near perfect, no dissonant notes and everything flows perfectly. I'd prefer a harp version that attempts to achieve the same musicality, even if a chromatic harp is used.
Last Edited by Gipsy on Dec 30, 2014 12:16 AM
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MN
368 posts
Dec 31, 2014
10:46 AM
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FANTASTIC version by 11 String Duo. Warts and all, I'd still give it an 11 on a scale of 1-10. Play it that way in a club, and you'd be damn hard pressed to find anyone besides really picky harp players in the audience who would find fault with it.
Had he played it on chro (thereby "fixing" the "wrong" notes), I don't think it would have sounded as good. Then again, with a few exceptions, I don't really enjoy the sound of chromatic harmonica.
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