I have read several comments in various threads for folks who would like to acquire the ability to quickly pick out a melody on the harp. I have found a scale exercise that I think really helps in this regard. It emphasizes seconds and thirds which are very important to the construction of melody. I also find it a good way to, as The Iceman says, "learn where the notes live" on the instrument. One other thing about playing any melody you happen to know that seems obvious but I have found myself frequently in violation of the principle, is that you actually have to know the melody first! There have been a number of times when I just could not get a melody to come out of my harp so I tried to sing the melody and found out I really did not know it yet. Once I learned it to the point where I could sing it, it came out of the harp fairly easily. So in learning to play melodies without a lot of rote practice, start with melodies you know very well, be they hymns or camps songs or silly songs you learned as a kid. It wont be long before you will be able to easily play any major melody you hear with very little practice. Then you can start working on other modes and melodies with chromaticism.
Along with "learn where the notes live", I also suggest "if you can't sing it, don't expect the harmonica to tell it to you".
I watch with amusement as my beginner students search for a note or two in a melodic line.
My analogy - Think of notes from a simple melody as big rocks. Now, as each note of the melody goes by, pick up the rock that corresponds to that note.
Beginners will often "pick up the wrong rock", set it down and after a moment, pick up that same wrong rock again, as if it will magically turn into the right rock (or note).
As well, I've seen a student (with a choice of, let's say 5 "rocks") pick up every rock except the right one numerous times in a row.
Teaching note awareness is like learning that once you pick up a wrong rock - never pick up that one again.
Eventually (and hopefully), this learning process guides the student towards making better choices until he finally connects the note with the right rock.
---------- The Iceman
Last Edited by The Iceman on Feb 21, 2016 7:48 AM
Thank you all for for the encouraging words on my attempt to share what I have learned. My music teacher at Ventura College, Frank Salazar , many years ago told us that the best way to learn something is to teach it, and I have found this to be true. Whenever I focus on something enough to prepare to teach it I always gain new insights.
Ryan, the scale degree pattern you listed is what I played. Note that it goes above the octave to 2' or as you listed it 9. It is symmetrical on the way down and drops below the tonic to the 7 in the lower octave. Because of this, you can only play it fully in the middle octave of the harp. It is a more challenging exercise in the first and third octaves not only because of the required bends, but because you have to to leave a space in time where the missing note should be.
Last Edited by STME58 on Feb 21, 2016 12:00 PM
Hope you don't mind a few comments on your right on approach.
1. In the video, you open up by simply playing the 8 tone diatonic scale up and down. However, within the exercises, you actually ascend to the 9th scale degree (as well as descend down one note beyond the tonic).
Why not consider the ascending scale as a diatonic line that extends to the 9th and back. Try slowly playing this up and down (without repeating the highest note twice). What you will find is that what once sounded like a "scale" now magically transforms into what sounds more like a melodic line.
This is how I bridge that pesky gap from "scale exercises" to "music".
It introduces the student to the fact that a "scale" is nothing more than a series of note choices and can sound very musical rather than a dry, dusty exercise up and down.
The exercise you created with the pattern follows this line of logic quite nicely.
2. This next suggestion is kinda getting into your actual approach and sound to playing your harmonica, so I hope you don't take offense.
It concerns the 6 and 7 inhale, where the inhale/exhale harmonica "pattern" reversed. 6 and 7 inhale, being next to each other and both created by inhaling will almost blur into each other rather than allowing each note to stand alone as a solid entity - something that happens naturally when you have to change breath direction on successive notes.
With this awareness in mind, one can subtly alter how to approach these two notes to create a more seamless sounding line by treating them like separate entities; perhaps by pausing completely between the two very quickly while not disrupting the time/flow of the line and adding just a tiny bit of "attack" to the 7 inhale.
The end result should be that each note has its own solid and consistent quality - not unlike playing a scale on the piano using only one finger - every note sounds equal from start to finish.
It's what I like, anyways, in listening to melodic ideas on harmonica. ---------- The Iceman
Last Edited by The Iceman on Feb 21, 2016 12:05 PM
Iceman, I really appreciate you taking the time to give me feedback on this. I particularly like your comment "if you can't sing it, don't expect the harmonica to tell it to you".
An interesting point about playing the scale up to the 9th. When having the kids I work with in a Boy Scout band warm up I frequently have them do this, but for some reason on the harp I typically stop at the tonic. I agree that playing up to the 9th would fit this exercise better. Another thing I do with the Scouts is have them play a scale, solo, but change the note length to whatever they feel like. This can really bring home the relationship between scale and melody. I have also pointed out that the Christmas carol "Joy to The World" starts with a descending major scale.
The 6 7 draw in the scale is something I have been working on to try to get it to sound similar to the other note transitions. As you noted from the video I am not there yet. Not only is the attack different but I have a tendency to rush as the transition is so much easier without having to switch breath direction. A metronome helps here and I need to do more work with it. Another way I do this exercise sometimes is to tongue every note, both inhale and exhale. I agree with you that this would be an excellent point of discussion to incorporate in this video, and I had considered it, but because I did not write out talking points to work from, I left it out.
Your comment on playing a piano scale with one finger reminds me of one of the obscure details I remember from my music classes in college, piano method calls for playing a scale starting with the thumb and crossing the thumb over to play the 4th note so the scale is 3 + 5, in harpsichord methodology you play 4 notes before crossing the thumb over, breaking the scale into 4 + 4. Which method you use changes the phrasing unless you are exceptionally skilled. This seems similar to the 6-7 transition in the scale on the harp.
I did the video presented here in one take without a lot of formal preparation, and it shows. If I do it over I will certainly incorporate your suggestions.
Last Edited by STME58 on Feb 21, 2016 2:52 PM
"piano method calls for playing a scale starting with the thumb and crossing the thumb over to play the 4th note so the scale is 3 + 5, in harpsichord methodology you play 4 notes before crossing the thumb over, breaking the scale into 4 + 4. Which method you use changes the phrasing unless you are exceptionally skilled. "
In keyboard technique, the thumb actually crosses under. For piano, if the technique learned is weight transference (a la Russian approach - also apparent in the classical piano music performances of Ivan Moravec), the hand remains totally relaxed looking in a crescent shape, and the phrasing is mostly unaffected to the close listener. One needn't be exceptionally skilled, but merely competent in this approach to sound quite fluid at all times.
What follows is video of Ivan playing Beethoven's Fourth Piano Concerto - (my favorite concerto). Notice how relaxed his hands are at all times. His hands are mostly small and pudgy, but with this technique he can span all the keys he needs to to sound very fluid.
fwiw, I sat with Ivan at a Steinway in the early 80's at the Meadowbrook Festival Stage outdoors in Rochester, MI. At that time, I was the first call piano tech for a lot of high profile concerts and was also studying this weight transference technique under Detroiter Howard Lucas (a most remarkable musician - jazz and classical). He was a very humble and kind little guy (not tall at all) and a lot of fun. ---------- The Iceman
Last Edited by The Iceman on Feb 21, 2016 3:33 PM
Thanks for posting the concerto. I always like to watch and listen to musicians who make it look effortless. I also appreciate you personal insight into the musician.I find it fascinating that personalities of all types, from real jerks, to humble and kind folks can make great music.
As you can tell, I am not a keyboard player. I had to laugh at myself when I read your correction about the thumb going under and I tried to go though the motion of actually crossing the thumb over and saw the ridiculous contortion it would require!
Your experience as a piano tech sounds fascinating. The shear mass of that instrument is understood by anyone who has tried to move one, but the amount of energy stored in all the strings and the force they apply to the frame is also formidable. I understand this as an engineer, not as someone who knows anything about the maintenance of a piano. I read a few times on the site that all musicians should be able to tune and make rudimentary repairs to their instrument. If there is an exception to this, it would certainly be the piano.
A friend of mine wanted to play harp and piano so he had his piano tuned and found it still did not match his harp. He called the tuner and was told that standard procedure for a residential tuning was to bring the piano into relative pitch with itself and that if he wanted it to be tuned to proper pitch it would take several tunings several days apart, as the added tension of bringing it up to tune would cause things to settle. There is always so much more to understand about things than it seem like on the surface.
Not having seen your piano, I can only comment in a generic sense based on my 35 years of experience.
Standard procedure includes tuner discussingbbxjhb pitch issue before tuning. In most cases, a pretuning pitch raise can be done before tuning for a (minimal) additional charge to bring piano to A-440.
I've corrected many neglected pianos with two sessions a week or two apart. Very rarely did it take many tunings, although it does sometimes happen. ---------- The Iceman
