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beginner forum: for novice and developing blues harp players > Not satisfied with glissandos, help
Not satisfied with glissandos, help
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Havoc
75 posts
Dec 09, 2017
10:31 AM
I've been working with Grey Owl's "work song"on YouTube. I can't remember who, from here, put me on to it, but thank you. I'm really enjoying it.

His glissandos are awesome, mine are far from it! It almost feels as if he has one more additional note between the 4 draw to 2 draw glissando that I'm not even touching. Any help will be appreciated! As well as any other critiques out kind words.

Thanks guys!


My work song, click here

Grey owls r reference here


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If you don't cut it while it's hot......

Last Edited by Havoc on Dec 10, 2017 6:53 AM
Havoc
76 posts
Dec 09, 2017
9:01 PM
His tableture shows "-4gliss-2" , but it sounds like he may bump up to -5 before the glissando to -2.

Can any body confirm?

Also I'm playing mine on a A harp, I blew out a reed on my bB and waiting to get a replacement kit.
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If you don't cut it while it's hot......
Havoc
77 posts
Dec 09, 2017
9:13 PM
Wait maybe -4, -4*,-4 gliss-2? This sounds better than the bump to 5?

Thoughts?
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If you don't cut it while it's hot......
SuperBee
5119 posts
Dec 09, 2017
11:57 PM
Sorry, I can’t follow either of those links. I get a 404 in grey owl and an ‘open in app?’ on yours. I don’t wanna load up a Dropbox app right now so afraid I can’t really
MindTheGap
2416 posts
Dec 10, 2017
5:04 AM
The YT link is wobbly. It's...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPMGpAKBTzw

I think it's -4' -4 -4' -3' -2. With that first -4' -4 -4' being a quick grace-note-trill kind of thing. And play the whole thing legato. Although you can articulate the first note with a 'Therr' sound, that's quite nice so you dip into the first bend.

Last Edited by MindTheGap on Dec 10, 2017 5:12 AM
LSB
309 posts
Dec 10, 2017
6:36 AM
I believe MTG is correct. Another way to think of it is:

“Kwaaa” (4 draw bend and release), then immediately play 4 draw bent, slide to the 3 draw with the tongue still in the bend position, and continue sliding to the 2 while dropping the tongue for that final unbent 2 draw note.

Cool lick with almost a quintuplet feel.

Last Edited by LSB on Dec 10, 2017 6:42 AM
Havoc
78 posts
Dec 10, 2017
7:07 AM
Yes! This is why I love this place! Thanks guys! Just posting this question began to help as you can see from the three successive posts, ha!

SB- sorry. I fixed the YouTube link, there was a space where there ought not to be.

LSB-super cool, and mine was not approaching the coolness.

Next question, timing. I feel comfortable up to the first gliss, after that it feels awkward. Maybe having the correct sequence in this gliss will help. When I piggy back my play on top of grey owls recording I feel fine, and can maintain, but solo it's difficult as your can hear.

Solution, play with metronome?
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If you don't cut it while it's hot......
LSB
310 posts
Dec 10, 2017
7:57 AM
In order to learn to play something with the exact feel of what and how someone else has played a phrase or lick, you first need to be able to hear it very accurately in your mind.

The best way to get to that point is to use software to isolate just the part your working on, and then slow that part waaaay down, while keeping the lick at the correct pitch. There are various software options out there for this for Mac, pc, phone, tablet, etc. Some of them are free, although I’m not up on which ones, but I’m sure others will chime in. I tend to use Amazing Slow Downer for audio recordings, and I think Youtube has a slow down function but not sure you can set it to loop just a specific section.

Anyway, listen to the lick played slowly over and over again. Once you can hear it exactly the same in your mind, try to play it just as slowly on the harp and adjust till you get it right, then try playing with the slowed down loop, and record yourself at the same time if possible.

As for the lick itself, it’s a quintuplet (5 notes in the space of a standard subdivision), but it’s not really..... by that I mean, normally quints are five articulated and evenly spaced notes in the space you’d normally play something like 8th not triplets. However in this case, since the initial 4 draw bend and release, the first 2 notes of the 5 note grouping, are played slurred together, it sounds essentially one longer note, breaking the pure quintuplet feel. And yet, from the player’s perspective, it is 5 notes total in the standard subdivision.

What does all that mean? Well, in addition to the listening to the lick slowed down, you should also work on practicing playing 5 evenly spaced notes between clicks of a metronome. That is to say, start counting 1 on the click, finish before the next click with 5, and land perfectly on the next click with 1 again.

Once you can do that alternate between, triplets, quads, and quints randomly while staying perfectly in time with the metronome. This is all speaking, not playing your instrument! “If you can say it, you can play it!” As they say in drum corps. So move to your instrument only after you can say your subdivisions in time.

Ideally you should be able to say, and then play, all common subdivisions - whole notes, half notes, quarters, quints, eighths, quarter triplets, eighth triplets, sixteenth notes - mixed together and improvised randomly. When you can do that you’ll be well beyond most harmonica players in your understanding and use of subdivisions and your playing will be far more interesting to the ear than it would be otherwise.
LSB
311 posts
Dec 10, 2017
8:24 AM
Also, maybe use the slow down software to isolate Butterfield’s playing of the lick, which may be different from what grey owl played.

Last Edited by LSB on Dec 10, 2017 9:55 AM
Havoc
79 posts
Dec 12, 2017
7:17 AM
Thanks LSB. Counting a quintuplet is difficult! You advice is helping!
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If you don't cut it while it's hot......
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If you don't cut it while it's hot......
LSB
312 posts
Dec 12, 2017
1:25 PM
Glad if I’m even a little bit of help.

I should have mentioned that there are a number of ways to count out quintuplets verbally or mentally: As mentioned, you can simply count 1-2-3-4-5, but more often people will use a 5 syllable word, like hip-po-pot-am-us or op-por-tun-i-ty.

Drummers often use drum sound “words” that can be said much faster than standard English words because you really can’t say most 5 syllable words at drum fill speed. Drum speak quint counting would bak-a-do-ga-da.

Try out all 4 variations and see what works best for you.

Quints are fun when you can play them properly in time, and they add a nice change/flavor to your riffs.

Have fun!
Havoc
83 posts
Dec 13, 2017
7:36 PM
Thanks LsB!
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If you don't cut it while it's hot......


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