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From: Bluesonics
Date: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 05:49:49 EST
Subject: Re: Held bends/ over blows etc

On the topic of playing high notes and audience reaction ... last weekend
another harp player asked to sit in and (after verifying he wasn't a dead cold
beginner) I agreed to let him come up and play a few (always something new to
learn from almost everybody). In any case, he was playing a HIGH G (we were
in D) and after what I consider to be just a bunch of "junk" runs up and down
the harp, he got a great reaction from the audience! I couldn't believe it!
He had decent tone and a good vibrato but he had practically no phrasing, no
chording, just high pitched bending and disconnected runs.

I wondered at that time (as I do now) what the audience thinks it is hearing
when someone blows harp. Clearly, phrasing doesn't seem to be as important as
high pitched bending. I can only conclude that the audience naively thinks
that such high pitched playing is intrinsically more difficult than lower
pitched bends, chords, runs, etc. Jumping around a lot seems to help, too.
And to top it all off, the guy then gives me a business card which says he is
a "professional harmonicist", "available for hire for recording, gigs" etc.
Now THAT'S discouraging, especially when you think the audience hears and
appreciates all the nuances and phrases you've spent years developing .... HA!

Mike Meadors
BLUESONICS