Just got back from David Barrett's Harmonica MasterClass, San Jose, California. Kudos to David for a smooth-running event chock full of info for everyone from the beginner to the seasoned pro. This event was definitely the bargain of the century, especially when compared to other musical classes costing many times more.
Before I get into depth, a little about myself. Having lurked for about 3 months now, I've decided that reporting on this event is the perfect opportunity to contribute to a list that has provided me with much useful information about an instrument that I dearly love to play. Let's face it; you can walk into any town, anywhere, and find tons of folks to help you with your guitar/keyboard/drum et al playing. Harmonica's a different story altogether. I've been playing for roughly 10 years now, and have been playing amped the last 3 years. Not knowing a thing about amps in general, and "harp" amps in particular, I followed the recommendation of my guitar player and bought a Fender Deluxe Reverb. Finding the right amp/mic combination, etc., was not easy though, and I've learned a lot in the last few years playing with this band all over Southern and Central California. However, I've learned more from harp-l in the last few months than all other sources combined. I only wish I had learned about this list sooner. My thanks to all contributors.
Now, about that class...
Friday night started out with a blast. And I do mean BLAST. Andy Just played at the Cactus Club in downtown San Jose, and his playing was very electric. And loud. When he hit those first notes, I thought..."Where's that other guitar coming from?" He has quite a digital effects set-up, spending on the order of 75-100 hours programming a box that was, let's face it, intended for guitar. He explained his rig during a seminar on Saturday, but back to Friday night. Anyone who remembers "Crossroads", the movie with Ralph "Karate Kid" Machio (sp?), will no doubt remember Steve Vai's portrayal of the devil's right-hand man, who will cut heads with any guitarist foolish enough to make a deal with the devil. Well, Andy Just reminded me of that character. Before you get any ideas, I think Andy's one helluva harp player (sorry 'bout the pun), and has a great voice, but the similarity was quite amusing. Kicking up his knees when playing, and struting around the stage atop those long, lanky legs, all the while blaring a hellhounds wail of harp tone to create a heavy-metal style of blues harp...well, it got just a little too loud for me. His guitarist, John Weidemeyer, was easily the best guitarist of the weekend, playing choice, tasty licks. Bottom line-if I had wanted to hear guitar, I would've rather listend to Weidemeyer, not a harp that sounded just like a guitar. Sorry, Andy...just not my style.
The other treat of the evening besides Mr. Weidemeyer was Gary Smith. Straight-ahead Chicago/Butterfield stuff, Gary played clean and clear. The same could not be said for his tone...down, way down there. You want to know about tone-this guy has it in spades. And that chromed Astatic...too cool! Gary pumped all that heavy stuff through two re-issue Bassmans and Fender reverb unit. My only disappointment was he just didn't play long enough!
Contrary to previous reports, Saturday did NOT include minor league guys (shame on you, Mic'l!). Dave Barrett started out the day with some basic blues instruction, and was followed by Andy Just with Mark Ford. These two childhood buddies hammed it up quite a bit, and played beatifully together. They fielded questions that included the all too familiar heard-all-weekend "how do you get that killer tone?", to questions 'bout that killer effects rig of Andy's. Just don't ask him about the oh-so-special Astatic Andy has tweaked to the nth degree. He could tell you, but he'd have to kill ya first... One question that concerned feedback produced a device from the audience intended to suppress that evil sound. Known as the FEED-BLOK, it is familiar to anyone who has a Kevin's Harps catalog. I was personally interested as to wheter or not this device affected tone in any way, and am pleased to report that after several back-to-back tests, no difference in tone could be detected, but the feedback was long gone. Oh, yeahhh......
David, Andy, and Mark then went through several amps, including a dissapointing Peavey Classic 20. No guts, and definitely no glory! It's too bad that David, who played all his stuff through his little Champ, didn't compare the two. It would've been a hands-down for the Champ!
The trio also went through some mics, including a one dollar tape recorder mic that proudly came from an audience member. (Was that you, Mic'l?). They played it and..."yup, sounds like it costs...a buck." David's favorite seems to be the Green Bullet, and near the end of this, the folks from Shaker Mics showed off their pride and joy. An interesting alternative, especially those with small hands (like me), but a little more homework on their part could have helped to properly illustrate the point that, in their words, "you need to play the mic." The element, being in an acoustic chamber, requires a different cupping and playing style, according the them.
Near the end of the Just/Ford session, Mark played his own very personal style of blues. The kind of blues, he says, that he likes to play at this stage in his life. "I prop myself up in a corner, close my eyes, and..." Very nice acoustic stuff, and very personal. You could feel all the emotion pour through on this one, without being heavy. Real nice, Mark.
After lunch, Gary Smith joined us and talked about technique and stlye, equipment and influences. "I'm sorry, but for me, it's 4-10's. It just does it for me", referring to the single re-issue Bassman he had on hand. And regarding mics-"You know...it's just that this shape is so cool, I just went ahead and had the whole damn thing chromed...it looks like one of those spotlights on an old Chevy", refering to his JT-30. Butterfield's the one who got him started, and he says that if you want to loose you mind, listen to Little Walter-then listen again. After all these years, he says, "Roller Coaster" still trips him out. Bottom line: play what you feel, through whatever sounds good to YOU. This message was regularly repeated throughout the weekend from all the participating speakers.
A change-up brought Joe Mass and the Generation Gap to us around 3ish. Quite the change in pace, Joe and his sons (who did a stint with the Harmonicats) played wonderfully, and had the crowd on their feet in applause. Even the most jaded "blues nazi" had to admit that these guys played with soul. "Peg Of My Heart" and a medely of tunes from "Fiddler On The Roof" were among the higlights of their performance. Many who had never seen a harmonica band play (myself included), were amused to see that chord harmonica whip back and forth like some kind of crazed typewriter carriage gone berserk. Cool. Hey, no matter what type of harp or style of music we play, we're all harp players. Nice addition to the seminars, David.
Mark Hummel joined us at around 4, and played the only chromatic stuff this day. Mark is tasty and delightful in his playing, and plays through a unique vintage Shure mic. The model escapes me now, but it's a chromed beauty that sounds great. Lots of good tips about technique and style. Again-play what you feel, through whatever sounds good to YOU.
An interesting observation about this event was that formal musical training/theory took a back seat to listenting to others and expressing, and doing your own thang. (Please don't respond to me about what is or isn't theory...please, PLEASE! It was understood by all that whatever theory you could learn could help you, but wasn't the cure-all). This point was especially hammered in by Lee Oskar. "Get out there and do your own thing, man. And if you don't like my painting, that's okay, you can tell me...just don't tell my WHAT to paint." Advanced techniqes, like overblowing, were briefly mentioned once or twice, and demonstrated for only a few minutes on Sunday by Larry "The Iceman" Eisenberg (who, incidentally, I had to play immediately after on Saturday night's Jam/Contest session-oh, man, give me a break!). None of the players who spoke used overblows, with the exception of Lee Oskar, and a few of them just plain said they didn't know how to do it, and weren't embarrassed to admit it. They'd rather just reach for their chromatic.
Saturday night, the Jam/Contest Session, Mark Hummel, and Lee Oskar. All great stuff, but I had to leave before I got a chance to hear LO-my aunt's Chile Verde started to kick in...don't eat this stuff for breakfast, man. Reports the next day was that LO tore the bloody roof off the house!
Blues harp was without question the focus of this MasterClass, and all the information and David's instruction were great. They covered it all-music and equipment. But, unlike other instruments, not being able to graphically show the technique, aside from a few drawings taken from David's books, was painfully obvious. All weekend long, it was "Well, you just gotta pull from down here and it sounds like this..." Just the nature of the beast. Say, maybe if I get one of them CPR dolls, and put plexiglass over the chest and throat...just a thought, along with copyright.
Met a ton of great people, including "Tomcat" from Manilla, all willing to exchange ideas and experiences. Everyone had a great time, it seemed.Even David's helpers were knowledgeable and friendly (thanks, Pete and Griff!), and David even introduced the commercial artist responsible for the shirt design. Him and I had a nice chat, since we're both in the same bid'ness. Vendors were plentiful. LO had his booth both days, and the cat with those cool custom built harp mics...Fritz Hasenpusch, Creative Solutions. These polised wood-shelled beauties fit like a glove with their contoured shells, and the element/grill combo is made to order. The volume control on the tip of the mic opposite the grill is a great idea, too, but the key here is whatever you want, he can make you. These babies are a work of art. My only question is whether you can tell the difference in tone between the wood ones and the regular metal bullet shells....(I had to ask).
I know this report is lengthy, especially for my first post. I hope I haven't contriviened some unspoken rule of internet etiquette, and if I have...well, a wise man once told me that manners were for people who don't have anything better to do. Seriously, thanks for all the great info, and here's hoping that you find this report informative and fun. If I'm allowed, I'll finish with Sunday's seminars. Hugh...can I get a witness?
Ray "Rayman" Beltran "I play the blues for a livin', even though I live to sing the blues."
