From: Stephanie Denise Stevenson Date: Tue, 15 Oct 1996 17:53:15 -0500 Subject: Playing upside down
>Bobby Rush plays his harps (not especially well) upside down.
Fellow harpers: I wonder how many players on this list play upside down. (I am about two days behind on reading my email, so this has probably been thoroughly covered.) I learned to play upside down because the first harp I ever had was an Echo with double reeds - upper and lower. I wanted to play the higher-register reed set and cover the low register, because playing only the higher register reeds was the same as playing a C diatonic on this particular harp, so I turned the Echo upside down and covered the lower scale with my lower lip. This also obviously helped me to play single notes and easily bend reeds. All I played then was Steven Foster melodies and blues. This was the only harp I owned for the first six months I began to learn to play, and when I finally bought a key of C Marine Band, it was too late to break the habit of playing upside down. I don't play any type of harp that MUST be played upright, so to me there's no difference. Playing from tablature is no problem either. Occasionally people notice I play upside down and ask about it. I lost that Echo when I was running around in the woods - I went back and looked for it but couldn't find it. All I play now are Marine Bands. Why learn blues on an Echo? I wanted a Marine Band but had no job or money at the age of 16 and someone gave it to me (no disrespect intended to Echo harp lovers). By the way - a great place to practice is in the woods, especially if the trees are tall and there is no undergrowth. You get an excellent echo return, better than a hotel stairway or silo, and of course more natural! I used to practice in the woods because I was self-conscious and didn't want anyone to hear me practicing. I kept the harp hid when people were around. Also, we had two beagle dogs and they used to howl at the slightest sound from a harmonica, so I had to get away from the house. No kidding - even if I put the dogs out and practiced indoors, they'd hear me and howl up a storm. Camping in northern Wisconsin a couple of years ago, some of us were playing around the campfire and coyotes began to howl at the sound of my harp and our voices.
Keep on ramblin'!
Art Stevenson 909 E. Dayton St. Apt. 2 Madison, WI 53703
"If you have musicians who won't play in B or minor keys, get rid if 'em." - ---Bill Monroe
