|
Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! >
Key and position question
Key and position question
Page:
1
harmonicanick
940 posts
Oct 16, 2010
5:41 AM
|
At a gig last night I grabbed a C harp instead of a D, the song was in A major
My question is what position was I playing in?
|
sammyharp
58 posts
Oct 16, 2010
5:49 AM
|
4th position.
|
HarmonicaMick
203 posts
Oct 16, 2010
7:21 AM
|
Although sammyharp is right, 4th position is generally better suited to minor songs, so the song was probably in A minor. If I'm talking twaddle, someone please correct me.
----------
YouTube SlimHarpMick
|
sammyharp
59 posts
Oct 16, 2010
7:31 AM
|
Most likely it was minor. you can play the minor scale with only 1 bent note in 4th position: 3d bent down a whole step, 3D, 4b, 4d, 5b, 5d, 6b, 6d.
|
hvyj
715 posts
Oct 16, 2010
8:13 AM
|
Or you can play the natural minor scale starting on hole 6 draw without bending: 6D 7D 7B 8D 8B 9D 9B 10D
Blues scale: 6D 7B 8D 8B* 6B 9B 10D (Can be used for MAJOR key blues, too)
Pentatonic minor scale: same as above, but omit 8B* OR, in lower register: 3D** 4B 4D 5B 6B 6D (btw, 2D/3B is flat 7th in lower octave). Can be used for major key blues, but hard to play with blues phrasing playing major key blues in Fourth Position.
Harmonic minor scale: 3D** 4B 4D 5B 5D 6D* 6* (3D***=major 7th in lower octave). Play 6B instead of 6D* and play 2D* instead of 3D*** and you have the natural minor scale (also called Aeolean mode).
Natural minor has flat third, flat sixth and flat seventh, harmonic minor has flat third, flat sixth and MAJOR seventh.
Playing in Fourth Position puts you in a minor key. It is a lot like playing in First Position and, like First position, it is a straight harp position. Because C is the relative major of A minor, when you play a C harp in A minor you are acually playing the harp in the key it is in since C major and A minor scales have the same notes in them--you just start each scale on a different note for one.
Last Edited by on Oct 16, 2010 9:28 AM
|
Ryan
368 posts
Oct 16, 2010
12:39 PM
|
"Playing in Fourth Position puts you in a minor key."
Not necessarily. Yes, 4th position is almost always played minor, but it is definately posibble to play it major. In fact the major scale in fourth position only requires one overblow in the middle octave, so it is definately possible to play 4th position major and work around having to use OBs.
The major scale in 4th position:
3d" 3d 4d' 4d 5b 5ob 6d' 6d
Granted, if I needed to play in a major key, I can't see myself ever wanting to play it in 4th (there are just better choices), but it is possible and I've played around with it in practice. So it is certainly possible that harmonicanick was playing in A major on a C harp.
Last Edited by on Oct 16, 2010 12:41 PM
|
Post a Message
|
