Irish Soul
1 post
Jun 05, 2017
1:19 AM
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New forum member ....have prowled the board for awhile and am a faithful watcher of the YouTube channels, both of the generous Adam Gussow (free lessons and content, etc., etc.)and of other contributors of this forum.
I was raised and currently reside in Michigan. I am a former saxophone player and paramedic (retired due to injuries not age). The harp is my outlet. I am certain many of you can relate. I
On Adam's scale I am roughly an intermediate player but striving for perfection I'll never see! haha
Ill try to hook up google etc soon....nice to meet you all and thanks for having me
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florida-trader
1141 posts
Jun 05, 2017
7:11 AM
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Welcome.
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Tom Halchak
www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com
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jbone
2296 posts
Jun 05, 2017
8:45 AM
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Carry on! Welcome.
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Reverbnation
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nacoran
9480 posts
Jun 05, 2017
2:14 PM
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Welcome aboard!
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Nate
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First Post- May 8, 2009
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Mirco
474 posts
Jun 05, 2017
4:25 PM
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Welcome!
Also, do you pucker or tongue block? Which one do you think is objectively better?
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Marc Graci
YouTube Channel
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Irish Soul
2 posts
Jun 05, 2017
11:57 PM
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I was taught pucker as a child just a very little by my grandfather, but never got past simple songs....When I picked the harp back up I discovered after playing sax for years I do some tongue blocking and play a lot by ear.
I am also breaking a lot of bad habits.....but to answer directly....I am now and likely always will be primarily a pucker player with a few idiosyncrasies, the occasional instinctive tongue block is one.
Your thoughts? I believe for most that pucker is simpler and in most cases, easier to learn. having said that....some of the very best sure don't ignore that tongue block...balance is best but in the end it's preference and style of playing.
Last Edited by Irish Soul on Jun 06, 2017 12:03 AM
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florida-trader
1142 posts
Jun 06, 2017
7:26 AM
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This is a subject that has been discussed at length on this forum. Since you are new, you may not realize that there is a search capability built in to this website. If you hover your cursor over the BLUES HARP FORUM button, you will see an additional menu pop up. The third one down is "forum search".
My simple advice would be to not limit yourself to one embouchure over another. Both pucker and tongue block have their advantages. To limit yourself to one or the other would be like a drummer only playing with one hand or an artist painting with only half the colors. It will take work for you to master tongue blocking but you will be glad you did.
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Tom Halchak
www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com
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Irish Soul
3 posts
Jun 06, 2017
8:03 AM
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Sorry Florida....was answering a question above me on the thread, asking how I personally play... I'll watch more closely in the future on topics
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florida-trader
1143 posts
Jun 06, 2017
8:53 AM
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No need to apologize. Just giving you a heads up so you can avail yourself of all the tools on this site.
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Tom Halchak
www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com
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nacoran
9482 posts
Jun 06, 2017
2:53 PM
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I think Micro may have been playfully inciting you a bit.
Man, back in the day people used to get heated over pucker vs. tongue block! I think people tend to favor whichever one they learned first. I think pucker gets slightly faster riffs, but tongue blocking gives you neat tricks like octaves and slaps and everything.
There is also U blocking, and I've argued that there is a kind of angle blocking thing (I do it at least, and a couple other people have said they can do it). Lots of old threads on the topic.
I came to harmonica after playing baritone tuba. The biggest adjustment I had to make was the breathing. Learning to leave room in my lungs for draw notes was tough. Did you have that problem at all coming over from sax?
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Nate
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First Post- May 8, 2009
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Mirco
475 posts
Jun 06, 2017
2:56 PM
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I was starting trouble.
Besides, we all know that tongue blocking is better. It has been scientifically proven.
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Marc Graci
YouTube Channel
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ME.HarpDoc
250 posts
Jun 06, 2017
5:25 PM
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Irish,
a recent discussion on LP vs. TB is on the beginners forum (hover over BLUES HARP FORUM and scroll down to beginners forum). Discussion held on May 11, 2017.
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NJenkins83
11 posts
Jun 06, 2017
5:43 PM
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Welcome Irish, from another Michigander. Wealth of knowledge on here not to mention the incredible varied personalities of fellow harp players.
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Rontana
412 posts
Jun 06, 2017
5:51 PM
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Ignore all those strident attempts at conversion by the sectarian churches of TB and LP. Take the road less traveled, and focus exclusively on a combination of tongue pursing and blip locking.
Or better yet, play in whatever manner brings you the most pleasure and makes you the most happy.
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Fil
322 posts
Jun 07, 2017
5:09 AM
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Ditto, Rontana. Play, work at it to get better, have fun.
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Phil Pennington
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