joypog
32 posts
Feb 15, 2015
7:00 PM
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My wife got our one year old a xylophone and (independent of me) it turned out to be a Horner piece in the key of C major. It made me think, hmm I wonder I can misuse it in conjunction with the harp in the proper key to twiddle with out some bluesy sounding arrangements. So I guess I'm asking what key harp should I get to use in second position in conjunction with this xylophone to just mess around with blues riffs and stuff.
For context, I'm just a beginner, I can bend the notes on the blues scale in second position but that's about it...but what the heck, the girl gets a kick when I play the harp. For one thing, she's discovered that taking my Golden Melody and banging at the xylophone gets better sound than using the plastic stick that comes with the xylophone at her level of coordination....
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shakeylee
110 posts
Feb 15, 2015
7:11 PM
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probably an F would be easiest.if you want to stay in second position.
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jawbone
566 posts
Feb 16, 2015
6:10 AM
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Any key will work for hitting the xylophone !!
:-) ;-)
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If it ain't got harp - it ain't really blues!!!!
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Camilo_Harper
5 posts
Feb 16, 2015
8:06 AM
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The problem with C major is that it wont sound very bluesy because you will be playing all major notes and you won't have your minor third (the 3' bend). It's sound crazy, but i would play the Xylophone in A minor (same notes as the C major Key, you just change your root note, (now an A)), so you will need to play with a D harmonica in second position, or even better a G harp in third position, if you know your way around.
You will have an easier time replicating riffs in A minor with your xilophone. Keep in mind that you won't be able to play the flatted 5th, (the 4th bend), one of our most iconic notes in harp, but that's about it.
Have fun!
Last Edited by Camilo_Harper on Feb 16, 2015 8:08 AM
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joypog
33 posts
Feb 17, 2015
9:30 PM
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Awesome thanks! I'll pick up an harp in F and D, both of which have been on my list. Unfortunately I'm not anywhere near proficient enough in 2nd position to start messing around with 3rd, so I'll let G wait for a while.
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jawbone
567 posts
Feb 18, 2015
5:25 AM
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Hey joypog - Don't be afraid to mess around with third, just use draw 4 as your root and go up from there - you will soon learn which notes don't sound right. You can't wreck a harp doing that !! ;-)
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If it ain't got harp - it ain't really blues!!!!
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STME58
1190 posts
Feb 18, 2015
6:32 PM
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I wonder if Blue Tac on the underside middle of the keys would pull the notes down in pitch without ruining the tone. If so, you could flat the third and fifth and still be able to return it to C major in case your daughter likes that scale better. :-)
Last Edited by STME58 on Feb 18, 2015 6:33 PM
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shakeylee
115 posts
Feb 18, 2015
7:12 PM
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i don't think you need to play the same things on both instruments. you could easily play in c on an F harp while playing in C on the xylophone.
just like you might hit C,E&G on a piano or guitar as your C chord,while playing the blue notes on harp.
maybe i am missing something here,but i envisioned playing arpeggiated chords on the xylophone while playing along with the harp.
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