OK, has anybody tried modifying a harmon mute for a trumpet to use with a harp? Seems like it might be interesting. I see them all the time on ebay and can't help wonder how it would sound.
When I saw your post I thought of the derby like trumpet mutes, frequently used with great flourish and sometime highly choreographed, seen in old films of big bands from the 30's and 40's.
I have never seen one used except of on film and I wondered if they were still available. Turns out they are. It might have a useful effect with a harmonica.
I have a selection of trombone mutes including a Harmon. I am not ready to modify any of them but I will play around with them with a harp and let you know if I find anything interesting.
Thanks TH. STME58, Thanks for the input. I'm looking forward to hearing how they work out! I saw Jerry Portnoy use a paper tube like a wah wah and it got me thinking. Ebay is the root of all evil:o)
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Last Edited by Georgia Blues on Mar 01, 2015 6:55 AM
With harmonica, using either a mug or a funnel will definitely have a strong effect. Plunger and hat mutes for trumpet or trombone are to big to be cupped around a harmonica. Harmon mutes have a small entry port and might work but I suspect that to function they might require the volume and breath pressure of a trumpet - just a guess, though. =========== Winslow
Here is a video sample of trying various mutes. To my ears, the Harmon wow had the biggest effect followed by the aluminum hat. the straight mutes are bout like using a coke bottle, it might be interesting if you could get a full seal but I was unable to do that. I don't think any had as big of an effect as a coffee mug.
Winslow, your comment about volume and breath pressure has been sticking in my mind. I am relating it to another comment I heard recently from a flute player who said a flute required more airflow than a tuba, and a seemingly unrelated comment from a physics professor long ago who said the reason AC current uses smaller wires is that the power company is not flowing anything to our homes, they are just jiggling electrons.
I am postulating that sound from an instrument is like AC current. You don't have to fill the whole tuba with a mighty blast from the lungs, you just have to get the air jiggling.
I have also noticed that I can not hold a note much longer on a harmonica than I can on a trombone( I can play a much longer melodic phrase on the harp because there are no draw notes on the trombone! ). This tells me the volume of air going through the instrument is not much different.
Based on these thoughts and the brief test in the video above, I think the Harmon Wow mute might give an interesting result if you can acoustically couple it to the harp.
Last Edited by STME58 on Mar 03, 2015 1:22 PM
Your comments about breath, jiggling electrons and so on got me thinking about my own breath problems, and I'm not talking about odor. I have been taking singing lessons and I have a tendency to "burst" at the start of a line, often running out of breath too soon. I suspect playing the harp has given me the idea I need to push air out. My teacher told me the other day to just use the breath in my mouth.Anyway, I think your jiggling electrons analogy is good and will apply it to my singing/playing.
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BronzeWailer, I am glad you found my comments helpful.
I will add one more analogy/visualization of sound I have found useful. This one is sound enough to be used to help determine the optimum room shape and speaker placements for an auditorium.
If you tap a still pond of water, like a swimming pool, you will see little waves spread out in circles, bounce off the sides of the pool and create all sorts of patterns. If you had a ping pong ball sitting on the water some distance from where you tapped, it would bob up and down as the wave reached it but it would not move. The ball will bob as the wave hits it again after bouncing of the side of the pool, this is analogous to an echo. Very little energy is required to get the ball bobbing, just a light tap of the finger anywhere in the pool. If you wanted to get the ball to move, much more energy is required as you need to create a current flow by stirring the water in pool. In the same way, you cannot blow hard enough for a person standing 20 feet from you to feel it, but you can easily talk so they can hear you.
The term “Blow Your Horn” is really a bit of a misnomer, but calling out “vibrate you air column” just doesn't cut it.
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