isaacullah
1364 posts
Jan 17, 2011
11:31 AM
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Hey guys, I've been following the One Chord Backing Track thread with great interest. I tried playing along with the backing track, and I just got frustrated with it. Then I had the thought, "What about a one chord SOLO harp piece?". How would that sound? Well, I've had the morning to myself (for the first time in AGES!), and I started trying to do a one chord solo harp piece. The hardest thing to do, I've found, is to convey a sense of movement through the piece without using chord changes. The soundfile below is the best of my attempts at doing this.
What I've tried to do is to use texture changes (single notes to double stops to chords, etc) with repetition of phrase structure as well as riff variations to indicate a sense of change and motion through the song. It's a basic boogie in G (using a C harp in 2nd position), and I'm using an octave down effect on my digitech RP155. The sound is piped straight into my computer using the USB connection. You will see that even with my attempts to convey motion through the song, I still only just barely made it to a minute and half! I ran out of ideas!!!
So, what do you guys think about how to make a one chord solo harp piece really work? I'd like to hear everyone's ideas about this. I can see how it could really work. It would make a very cool piece to play on the street (I think Adam might have mentioned something about this in his video on the "Harlem Street Groove"?). Anyway, I'd like to hear all opinions and hear all attempts at doing this!
Cheers,
== I S A A C ==
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Last Edited by on Jan 18, 2011 11:48 AM
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oldwailer
1512 posts
Jan 17, 2011
12:10 PM
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Dr. Isaiah Ross is a master of this one-chord stuff--you can check out "The Chicago Break-Down" and "Shake 'em on Down" at:
http://www.rhapsody.com/dr-isaiah-ross
O course, he doesn't have to do a lot on the harp because he is also playing guitar, drums, and singing--but he gets a great oldtime sound. . .
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Ant138
748 posts
Jan 17, 2011
11:44 PM
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Nice work Isaac, i'll try and give this a go at the weekend when i've got a bit more time:o)
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http://www.youtube.com/user/fiendant?feature=mhum
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7LimitJI
321 posts
Jan 18, 2011
3:53 AM
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Here's one I did today.
Missed the ending, but ain't that the blues?
I've just read its supposed to be solo harp.
Sorreee this has got a backing track.
I'll post this in the relevant thread too.
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Why don't you leave some holes when you play, and maybe some music will fall out.
Last Edited by on Jan 18, 2011 4:15 AM
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isaacullah
1366 posts
Jan 18, 2011
11:47 AM
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@oldwailer: Thanks! I'll check Dr Ross out. I've heard of him, but I haven't really listened to him yet, so that's a good hole to fill!
@Ant: I'll look forward to what you do! To me, you are aces at solo harp, so whatever you do, I'm sure it will be cool!
@7limitJI: Yeah, I was talking about solo harp, but your interpretation of the jam track was really good! It kept a sense of motion, and I didn't get bored. I like your use of the high register to convey a climax to the song! Well done, and there's a lot to learn from it! Thanks!
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== I S A A C ==
View my videos on YouTube!
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nacoran
3670 posts
Jan 18, 2011
1:49 PM
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Very cool. Of course, by making a one chord harmonica part, you might have created a good one chord backing track. It might sound nice with a higher harp part doing some wailing over the top.
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colman
8 posts
Jan 24, 2011
7:41 AM
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one chord blues ,is modal [african] style rather than chordal[euro]all them old blues dudes were doing one chord blues long before 12 bar started...in jazz,after they got tired of swing and bop,they got into modal [african]...you can take off and play any thing you feel and resolve back on the modal chord.it`s a freedom that chord changes don`t give you...
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isaacullah
1373 posts
Jan 24, 2011
12:02 PM
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colman: I definitely feel you on that, especially for solo music. You just have so much freedom when you play like this. We have a really cool new museum here in Phoenix called the Musical Instrument Museum. They have instruments from every country in the world, and little interactive displays for each country where you can see and hear traditional music being played. I spent a whole afternoon in the Africa section, just listening and listening and listening. Man. To hear a blue third being played in a totally African context is just amazing. There were some tunes being played with nothing but a bow held up against ones mouth and plucked, and just in that, I heard the roots of the Blues. It's amazing!
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== I S A A C ==
View my videos on YouTube!
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jodanchudan
211 posts
Jan 24, 2011
12:27 PM
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Another go at something I came up with a while ago - added heavy reverb to disguise the huffing and puffing!
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/5184879/one%20chord%20tune.mp3
EDIT: How the hell do you embed sound files?
EDIT: trying tooka's code:
Last Edited by on Jan 24, 2011 1:09 PM
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jodanchudan
212 posts
Jan 24, 2011
12:45 PM
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Isaac: I think your one-chord piece works really well and does have movement. You've got a strong main hook and I like the way you rework it in different ways - that's something I've got to try a bit more.
Oldwailer: thanks for the Dr.Isaiah Ross reference - I'll definitely check him out for ideas. I also need to go back and check out more of Adam's one chord stuff - he's a master at coming up with strong hooks and reworking them in multiple ways. Makes it look damn easy too!
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jodanchudan
213 posts
Jan 24, 2011
12:48 PM
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Yeah, either like that or with the sound bar thing (that's a technical term as far as I'm concerned). I've tried copying the code from the how-to page and pasting the link above into it but that didn't seem to work either. Perhaps if I hit my computer with a hammer...
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KingoBad
581 posts
Jan 24, 2011
12:51 PM
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Adam's Kick and Stomp (song 1 on the album) is a great example of how it can be done.
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jodanchudan
214 posts
Jan 24, 2011
1:00 PM
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Tooka - thanks for that. I'll give it a go next time I post a track.
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Hobostubs Ashlock
1367 posts
Jan 24, 2011
1:07 PM
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I like it it has a bouncy feel to it and dosnt get boring,nice groove. n1 isaacullah
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Hobostubs
Last Edited by on Jan 24, 2011 1:08 PM
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jodanchudan
215 posts
Jan 24, 2011
1:10 PM
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Tooka - just edited my post above. Works fine - thanks again. There'll be no stopping me now!
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Hobostubs Ashlock
1368 posts
Jan 24, 2011
1:12 PM
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Jodanchudan you getting to good to quick,you live by a crossroads ;-)
7limitJI you sounded good also.
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Hobostubs
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isaacullah
1374 posts
Jan 24, 2011
1:37 PM
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@jodanchudan: Yeah man! That's what I'm talking about, for sure! Good use of dynamics, good progression and movement, and it never got boring. You did a good job of introducing slight tempo/meter variations to the piece over time. You introduced new ideas, but married them with the theme that you started with. All this, and you never left the I chord! Well done... And thanks for the comments on my piece as well!
@KingoBad: Yeah, that's right. I think 'Kick and Stomp' evolved out of that 'Harlem Street Groove' video that I'm thinking of. That's certainly a great example.
@Hobostubs: Thanks for the kind comments! You da man!
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== I S A A C ==
View my videos on YouTube!
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colman
9 posts
Jan 24, 2011
2:38 PM
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with one note you have in the overtone series every note, eventually. every note sounds all notes .and are in the one in the overtones. you have ]dom.] flat 7th and in higher octaves you get 5flat,3flat. and it goes on untill it repeates. we dont hear it but it`s there.you play one chord or one modal scale [blues]
and there`s the freedom to play any note and take off on the blues scale of that note,just resolve back to to start note...look at how deep coltrane and others got into one chord modal.i`am amaized at the one string diddly bow those dudes would get all different notes jumping out [overtones]harmonics...now if we could get a harp to ring out overtones,that would be it.food for thought...
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