blues harmonica master class by jerry portnoy

8/3/2019 Blues Harmonica Master Class by Jerry Portnoy

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DOOica l~edto, M ' uddy W f'!IIers. - Q _" '~ " ' ..Wall'~.. L~O'..4"""-_ ~ nJ. J. i ! i i . . . . , m J i j l 'ndSonnyTerry fo r a n[~heyta,Ughtme+rnusic andm" , , ~ . - . ; u . . -c ....lr " J UYIJ Dl~L .


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---_ -- _ . - --- ---- - -- --A -'l{}


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-_... _ -- --- - --------~B}'""');" '~ ryl): .TI.S Brr],r~v,~ ~...v' J.. .l,'.R .. ~ \."". \. ... _ ....- -- ---' ---

reviewed, most of the explanations arecontamed in the it,ext of th . book, and theaccompanying sound reference consists onlyof playing .'xamples. In this course,.v,e'''fthitlg r au :-eed is on th " [CDs- "'0'1.1 d -"I~.have to switch back and forth betweenreading rand istening. md try 'to coordinate -hie'two. The book is 'merely i ;U1 adjunct, 'wheresometimes Im ay flesh nut an explanation. oroffer additional comme 1[8 -.~out a techni ue,or area of music. SOITI .times there is a thought, t J i J . , a t ' t I m,ight bave putt on 'tl~!eI e . \ but "tescaped my attention at the time, and. SO Ihave included it here,


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-_ ----P'REFACE'----- -~-. -_.. -_. - .IT, ~ i _ . his co urse is a dis tilla Han of the ' tw,e:n~:yyears Lhave 'been teaching privately' during aperformi ng , ! J . n d recordin ..g career of almostthirty years, I myself had some of the bestteachers in the world, b : t : G r t what ' ! t h , e t y did. WClS,not teaching In the formal sense, Many anaftemo ~)nwould t~ lcJethe E~.train down tO I theSou th Side of Chicago and, pa eking amenac ing looking bulge in my overcoa ..pocket I would stride t . 'c . .e few' blocks, to the'run-down rooming house' where Big 'WalterHorton lived, TIlE~bulge ' was, in. f ~ c t j O ,3 . bottle o r fV, ,0 .. that we 'would cons ume during' thecourse of the ,day ',",:hile I would exhort him to ,show me ,thi.sor that. H e would just say, , r~We.lt ,it g'o like t]].is/it and then 'pl ay the mostbea utiful sounding shit I ever hear-d ,.Atnight Iwould be down at Pepper's Lounge listeningto How lin' Wolf or at 111retia's checking outjunior Wells, They were all my [ teachers and.imprinted tbeihrsounds :in my .he,ad.~But no oneever said "Make this noise in your throa t" or"Pronounce thls s . y ' n a ' b , b ~ L - j . 'or " B l o c k these holeswith yOUT tongue.' Just how they did it, I had'to .f~_gulleout for myself. No one taught me inthe manner in wm,ch 1:teach this COU.fSe ..6


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I T - - :__he harmon.ica is a sonH~what difficultinstrument to' '19'a,lchtn that there ~.snothing'visual to relate to , With a guibitl the technique' ~ : S ,a U '~ nw o n t o f Y lo ur e ,re s. ~ c r u can see ,f ingerpositions on the fre t' board, or that the' plrldnghand is ma ,k in g u p strokes or down stroke s .Slut with the harmonica, i . t , is all :inte-lna'~ and

,invisible-s-mouth and tongue, throat,epiglotfis, diaphragm and breath. T,Ii e

challenge is to find" ', w a ,v s o f e x : p - , b ' i r u n g , th e,J I."physicality of sound

7


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-~,IiiIlii'i11I" D " ' .. . . . . , . . ,~ I . " , . n ' ' ' . . . . " ' ,. . . . . . . jIj ",j:. , j , .' I ! .. - : 'I:oIl.n;-~",,",", 'Ho' .~, 1IIOfl' ., ;t i!'U,",,---";: " !Il!J "'(;ii' J I I . ' ,1.'~.:l!~I!.!!J"" .IL II,...gJl !.'C.~. G~. LW ~ !II'~',I!II!lIl!li:, "_ ~J' 1II....j'Q'production in as clear a way as possible solbat the' studen t nnders rands the mechanicsand can begm to train the appropriater espo :n s 1es in 'his ow n 'body . And in fact , that iswhat you. are dclng=-trairnng you.r bo!dy:.Aharmordca, after all, is just an inert ob jec t thatm.~n::~yesponds ~o'you r :physi. ca J, in:put, hereare m,a,ny rechniques that can be practicedWl'~t_k~U-,,-t_even usin g ~ ' the lnstru ment Som rCI;, . lW .!!V ' . . .,.,.. _ . .~;;;;J! J ! l . I " !,. . 1 1 , ; ; ; . , ~ , I.;JI I !J , .J J . _ , , .~ I ,. .' v.l I~techniques are easily mastered 'in'a few days-=others take weeks, months, ().f sometimes evenyears of p'ra ctice,Iecommendthat regardless of your

skill level, you 'start at the hegbuUngand. work your 'wa.y through. , the'course one step at it time, Even ifyou have a , h : w g ' h . aD]l [eve~~,head)r~you should make sure that you

,can eiern.b: : !' all the e1()eros:es and drills prfoped.yto insure that Y o O u r fundamentals are solid,1 8


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- _ ..- .._.HOL, 'DING 'l'HE HARP-- -

,I ,p W ,"e 1 f' !e to , wrap my' right thUm,b over , t h , l e 'harp. This gives me a seal against my cheek"and . a , kindof a nc ho r, '\I\T he nImove to the top;of the harp, IJust slide my thumb out of th e'Wiaty in the classic position.


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- -CH,Q,RD'RHl:~HM ;I-_. -_ ._-- --!M a n y harmonica jootru1ct]lon u]}etbods teamsmgle note lip pursing as tile very first item, To

my' mind, that is putting the cartbefo r e o th e hers e. A harmo n i c a isfir st. ,o f all a chord instrument. 'Playany group of adjace nt holesanywhere IO n the harp, either on

the' blow or draw, and you. have' a. chord a, H.seems as though; regardless of the instrument,,e'v,e: ry a.s,p ':r ut,n,g musicia n wan ts to ' [playlightning-fast single-note ru ns, As a result,

- l ' C ' ~ - ', 'J~1 I.


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there a re thousa nds of guitans ts who can ru nall over ,the frlet board, 'but fe'w who l.llOWanything a .bou t co m pin g ' chords and pla yingr h ythm ,',:M any harm 0nica pia y'e't s ha 'V e asimilar mind set. They not only :fa,il to takeadvantage of one of Ut'S great strengths and thefun dame nta 1 . na ture .0i the ins trume nt, but' they fatl as well to understand the underlyingprmciples of b '~a("k ,music, h~European-basedmusic melody is primary and. rhythm issecondary, '~:ot so in African-based music,,V 'here rhythm occup ie s . t he central role.

Inow many harmonica players who can playcomfortebly as IQn;g as, ~h)ey have a bass line t(J'play against and to support them, but are at aloss if ' n l J e y - are ~OIiCed eo play unaccompanied,They have nothing to go on because they doni '[


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know how to create their own bottom, and~arry their own rhythm. to wor k off ; Q t , If "to'ulisten carefully to some of Little Wal'lerlsshuffle mstrumentals, yuu, will hear lit-t.:~ebreaths and half-breaths that he plays as. '"as a wa.y of keeprng his time and internalrhythmic flow, W b J @ n Y'lou learn to d o that~ t b J e nthe melodic ideas, will now more easily r ightout of the r"hYlthm,

,AmO'n;g . 'the best players 'to listen eo, to really , g e tan. understanding of rhythmic .playing; is,JohnL ee W ' -: :j'N I .'",-so n 10"r-onnv B / i I ' " ' i I o Y ' 'm ' ~"S he , ~ , 1 i I ' (jIift~ne l l ; ; . '. . n~.~m!t~.I!!,;;II_, I' '" ,iJU1 . 'J , ..! I; JI ' , .lII.~'~. . ,II; ,~ v -~referred to , His whole ' style is worth some' deepstud y, as :it really is the foundation of' modem'playing., E ven l1 ttle W alt-e 'J" 'sp.laying, sat o n. th ebedrock of Sonny Boy I. HowUn' Wo l f is alsowort~y of some serious attenoottru, m,this r !e,ga.~.and even though. he credits his brother-in -la, , v IS o n n y ' B O I Y D i (Rjoe i 'MiJ]'f'l' ),,'l N 1 i l t n ' h e t l c J U n , g , l fr u i m ,to


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-.Wi th Somly' Terry, Chicago, circa ' 1971p[a~ t-he influence of :Sonny' Buy 1]80 still apparent,as it is in almost everyone 'who followed him, AUthe best players working toda~ !ike K im W i l l s o n ! "Rick Estrin and Paul Oscher, are thoroughlygrounded in , the p,hy iling o f John L ee, lNUliarnson.

Ano~her great player, whose uniq ue andamazing Sqcf le ~h as n ot, had much, ~nfiuem.(e'011J,Chicago-style pia,ying, but was the absolutemaster o,{ chord r :h .y lhm~, the o,ne'' \ f~ ' I~omade itth e cen tral fea ture and ha llmar k of his s tv le I~was t h e great c , o u m 1 . fl tr y blues player Sonny' Terry.J met him in California. in early 1969 f. and sincehe was i~]mo5~otally blind, 'would lead. himto his gigs at a " club called Mandra ..ke's onUniversity Avenue :w nBrke'~ey.Later (),n.. in theearly 70'$, he 'would come to my apartment in


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Chicago when, he was in town. lie 'was awonderful man, generous wUh, his. time ,a ndi~aent, and al'though 1 play nothing like him,and I[)n'~yfl l iH'h;Qbri}eny 'with ilis style '~l'elJleildy'on, his encouragement made me persevere,' On e nigh:t~,back in . California, he' puUled a, harp0\.1t of his shirt pocket, held it u.p1 and said. tome, "[erry, this harp hi-ken me all over the,world, If you stick with it; it gonna do the samefo r :rOU,./~ 5 ev ,e f;a '~ .}I,e ar s a n d s ev er al I Q o n tin 'e n ts ,later, when Iwas with Mud d v , we were on th e~.bU~ogether at a blues : f f i ~ s . t . w , v , a l in, Montreal, Iwalked down the' hall to Scnnv's dressing_J Droom and when m . said hello, he recognized 'm yv0ice in stan tly , H e broke in to a 'b ig ,grin andsaid, ..... an , Iheard you was with Muddy. 1'knew you was gonna do it." Itwas a ve'ryg,r.a:ti,fyingmoment that I treasure still,I (a,ni~,emphasize it ,e.'110Ugb-h~,t1]":r!' E O p , , ' ' ( r yr : ' l.u'" L ,.ny~-nm;

. --_. -- ..--. --__..._-1~()t~GUEL()(:K~NGYears ago, when they packaged MarineBands, ther- e w as a 'paper insert included in th ebox ' \ < \ 1 "hich showed how totongue block, Most peoplethrew :i~ ,aW8],V without aJ'thought. They we're thr-owing a .way the key to


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o ne ,of the 11 1ost im..portant techniq ue sin.harmonica . p I D a . y i n g . Withou~, t O I n . ,g , u e b.~.o(king, .your s,ound is going to be very limited. andpn~Uy. h r u m . ' I o n g u e blocking allows :you to playpercussive single notes, octaves, split chords,back rhvthm , ;~nd various special , IHech; . ,When, r1 . learned to do iti I completel y ,gave up playmg1t\f iU, l1l'y U p s " , Iplayed almos . I~eny 'ea rs tongueblocking exclusively, Including bet1ding with.


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my tongue on the harp, before I realized that~hereW'eI \e 'occasions when I. needed : m . y ' t o n g ' l J J e 'for other thmgs=single note double and tripletonguing, io~rinstan,cIE'" An d , 50", 1 . began to uselip-pursing again. There are tonal differencesIt'hat can be used ~oadvantage as w l e : ~ . '. , It tookme a while before I was fluent again, with thelip method and before I sorted out 'where andw hen to use wh1eh methods, and h O I ' \ < V andwhere to switch and make smooth transitions'be~een o n e t ec l1n iqu . e' and the o ~ ~ h r e F . : , l thoug;h,now i ll generally play the first thr-ee holes with,m.y lips, sometimes . f' O ' F ' tonal and. percussivepurposes" I still tongue block at the bo ttom of

the harp, On occasion I 'ltv"ll- , h - '1 1bend witl -my 'tongue on the

harp 1 3 , S well, 'B,'U,t'I have found ,tb,a~ if youtongue 'block all the time}, including bendingyour not's" you are playing wifh anasymmetrical embouchure, since you ateemphasizing muscles on , the right slide of ~olU'rmou th and face, which can create some ' musclefatigue, The symmetry of p'[a.yin:g with your lipsat the right times allows, yon to r.,e'~axand alsokeeps your mouth from drying out

A note about back rhythm; W he ' l' l you do this,your tongue shou1d bare 1y brea k co ntact '\'\f])lhthe harp, Dont retract it vier)" car or the leadnote will. be absorbed into thechord." l : --b,P . _ _ . " _ . "


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- -- -_ - - -----_. - ----- .. --: L1P P'UR-sIt~G

n-n't ! l: 1T i - II. f - - - -strafedI p I I ; ; u... . - - I~p~o"f~r rhe, 0 '1 ," ~e l' ,ru~-,' ec=- ,:n'b' i o u r ,1,~ ",V'C IL. ' , , ; : ; 'he rp I and after a 'w.hi~,eY . O / 1 U1Ilget ' t n , e ' fee;] lot'h....w to ]1' p p : -i i ' i ' l i"~.::iI 3, ~d T'iI 'g~I ' " "" O , I L b cl early Tl..~Ll. '. '. ,,:", J L , ; ; ' ~ ~ C!ic;' U ~JL~IL, . _ ,I 1. !" : " ~ ; ~ '.~ ILc- ~ ,~~" 1.. . . . . . rres , i m , pm . i e scales on the ,CO are' good practice forpia ying them cleanly, an d win also begin togive you th e feel for. just how' far you have itomove to land squarely on the next hole ' .


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1. ---- .._-_. -----------LIP BLC)c: I rqG

'W ' hue I demonstraee this on. the .2 draw~ youcan use this technique anywhere, although I'Use it pret ty much exclu sivel y on the secondand third holes. Further up, I'll usually 'tongueb1ock, Au ..d as : 1 sa id ea r~~er, Someti m es forcontrast or a bit heavier percussion, I wil!tongue block. 2 and 3,instead of lip blockl ng,.

It elax, \ tVhen, you consider that some of thegrea ~s~ pla y[~,r ;si\ 11~Sb)'rycould n' t even readEng:- lsh le t alone Inusic, if 's, obvious tha t anv~in-d epth knowled ge o f music theory is! in noway essential LiUle ' W a],- te r got, a ] o , n g : j us t finewi thout i and I can' I t think '0f OI1,e tQP bluesharrl)l,Olmica player who can read music I f yonwan t to learn to read or can do so already,th 1 1 . 1 . . . i i ; . . . . . ~ it w - i l l " I - - . . . J I - bt dlx. .d)" S gIe,~,II\\ii ',a,D.u ,1 . ._ '_ ': . ' U l1 l1 U on ..; e . . ,} ,be of value in man y areas, but as, forpla, -yin. ,g b ues harmonica it ismer,ely req uired that you learn touse tbosle' fun,ny' lo eking th ingson each side of your head"

- 1 8 ' : " "Ii '__.


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The 0111v thi ng . YCfU rea lly need '~O kno w isJ ," ~ .w.hait in ~ ~ lrvms a re ~An in terva~ is th e distance~n " pl~ ,~.. .. ' i "i ll b e t w ~.a:i;;eUlf'l, 'iIj 'Ilof"\.t.,tiIJ:Jl . ,.,"'Ji,L,b :I~ :~ ' . .' ~~~\w I .lIJ.u.[ut~~'1!

Iere is a section 01 3 1 piano keyboard whkhg . ives us a vi sual representation 'O f how notes.relate to one a~"othet.

C'D,EII!. . . .. .JI L..... . .J1'1l., .._j L-J,L...Ji11l-...,l L..,J,\V 'W H 'W ' W '~fiI 'H ' ~V:=:Wbole st~I'H~Half step

-There are sharps or flats (b la ck keys) betweenall the lettered notes whi te keys) exceptbetween Band C ', and E and F; The interval, forinstance, between 'C and D Is called a wholestep because there is another note betweenthem. You can call that note C' s / - z a r p (C#)meaning t.hart the ' mote is a half step highef t.hanC I' or you could call it D f l ' a t (D~)mean t l 1 . g ' that;I~ . , jl~ , 'Ji ' Il .. ~ " I f l ' ~ ' , I I : . , e j n l~ I i ' l I 'w~' .r. ' i i ,r th : O n , D . I [ IQ"~ Ih e r W ' ':Ii '\1 '; 1 L!'IIIIi. ,II!;':' !foIl ~l, , , , J [ , Qll,. 't'" ,h.iI' . ... ~,"_ , ~ Ii . ,~ ,C,III (, I i ;; ; ,~ , '!Ii;I.1' ,~,;;;i!'akay~i t refers to the same note. The intervalbetween H ,an d C or between E and f~,owever,ts on ly a half step beca use ,thet is nointerven ig ' no te, If we wanted a '~r!hole s te pinterval up from B, 'live would have to g o . to e l f ' . q"l_, .~i'


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f we started. on C and pressed every key(white and black) as 'we ascended in half stepintervals to the next C we' would be 'playing achromatic s ca le ~ If we only pressed th e 'whitekeys going from C to C~we would ha ve d,d i atonic or major scale; C - 'D - = F .. !G . . .A ,= B = C . T h , ,old DOlI R.EL.WI' ,FA/-'SOIL" LA,~,IL , 0 0 1 " And ~~h!eintervals we play when. we press just th,e whitekeys a re ' ",'ho:~ , e'IC='DI), ' w l ' iw o l e CD-E)! ,half ( E - F ) "'whole (F-G); whole (G =A ) I whole (A=8)1- andhalf (8..!CJ.T his - p m t o o r n o f intervals itJocreate amajor scale (W '~ W = H~ W '~ W ~ 'W - ") remainscon sisten t regardless ofwhere we start

1 : 2 . :3 4 : 5 6 - '7 8C DI ' E l ' F G , A B C_ ,W W H \V W W H

S :-"if"iil ' i f ' , ' " we p.)lay . . " b ' l , i ,-i' in ,1'.'11 - k e v I .}r. , C " , t 1L .- , li " Ii lm ; , , "' - ; " ' . '"v ,- ,_ ..... ,"'~'_ . ". U~.;Il ,I, Ul,~,~'y 01" .~ . ' ne v~m}1i: 18the, C, the four is the F ~,and ~he' five is the G ,!H i e - t i e is ~ he k e ' y ' of E ' :

] _ 2 , 3 4 5'E F# G ; ; / f A B,'W W ,rl w W Vii II

The one is E~tb.refour Is '~heA,; and the five isthe B,

6 7 8 -IC,# O,t E

We are pla ring the; sa me intervals tha t weP I ay ed in the key of C J. ' ju st star ,t lng from a.different pain t.


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--01V you should be able to figure out whatnotes c , o im .p r rh ~ je major scale in ;~.lny,ke'Y~and,eollsequenHy w'hat the one, four and five are'~oranv kev ,or ,J'

Y o n now know everything you need to knowabout music theory-or at least everythingthat I know. Itain't much but I've gotten bv onc ~


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---- -- .__. ._--- - _ .'~l2BAR S1'R 'UC1 ' " \JRF~1 1 1 1

IE jl 11 II 'IE,

1 1 1

s 4 1 "1;8 11 1 il II IIA'II I' 'I I I El' I I I i I II I ' I I I'1 ...,#~" Ihole draw

T h i s simple way of 'playing through a . twelvebar b m u es 'p ro gress ion \v il ,giV'E!iyou a, basictemplate for where the chord changes are, So ifsomeone saJys~ "lntro from t 'he S/' y.ou" n kn!()wthat it is a, four bar intra starting from the- 5eho,rdJ 10 'D the '9 th. bar, 1 0 f I (JOU me 'w',e are playingthese 12 bars ill the simplest possible \ v a . y . I justmarking the chord changes by playing the rootnote of the appropriate chord at the start of eachbar, In actual 'p'~a.y~ngfof course, Y'i[')U can : p l a ' Y 'all kinds of lines and, riffs. as long as thev fit~agalnst the underlying chords, That's whatplaying is all about


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l{emember that there are foul' beats 'to eachbar, Coun the' bars along wit.h-be exa aple ysaying, " 1 . .2 - 3 , . .- 4 ; 2 - 2 = . 3 - 4 ; 3-2-3-4; 4-2~3~;etc.

- - - B ' E , l D ' 1-" .lG - -- ;-J. lrro.rt1E 'S- - - - -, ~,L~ 1 . _.i. .L~ l.'~:\..U!..l,,, '--- - ------ -

T ' b e nnportaR't thing in learning hov to ben-is to keep a '"'grip" on the air stream as youm, ke your vowel changes. When you feel orhear the brea i l k . O'r s.map..' change b 1 J ,th..:,nnle asyou make the vowel change, bu t ehe notedoesn't change pitch.. - o QU haven't got a gri.p 01 ' \the air stream producing that note- Tlu hick iseo g'let 1 1 - 0 ' 1 . - of it and ~':I '- ' IP it' as yo :r tongu .puns slightly back and down with the vowelchang e. Some or ~y'nuwl n O 1 e t t-'.~'S fairl v easilv;D J J'protra cte d, [ru stration. DON O'T GIVE '.'P r

You WILL be able to do this.Mavbe not the first tim -, but It.. .l. ILL bap'p,en-',iO ~." ' G" EUP! Keep at it day a .' ter day,I .nd ' \ vh!en it happe: s .. as. IgU(i ran tee it witt you'wo nder wha t the heUwas 501 hard.


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onee you gel: the sense of how to bend, workon each hole to get centro -'. ..ach hole on theharm nica has a slightly diffeTent feel, in thatthe pressure requirements to get the most aut ofeach note and to con:trol tbe 'pitch and. tone aredifferent, G et used to the feel of the notes andcontrolll ,g : and shapi ' J @ ; tl,'e , a " ' " streem,

Masb r the " ,'nd.~ '- , i' :; -,exercises and you win beable to play almost any run you hear, once you'"'!In UiP 0 t the n o "'O;e T he - O , I i ! - i C . 00'm ll cate I li"",1-\ b , _ ~ ' ' . : . . . ' I .. ll.[~[1i _.l~, ~ !, ..~!~ ( .. '1.1_.. I . - ' I ! ' -. - J . . Il'!~. I ' !1lJK..in th e world is , still. comprised of the' same basic'I uildlng blocks. If vou are able to move. ~smoothly between any no~e'n , a g~venmol ' and,_ny note in the adja. ent hole ...eiU'er higher orl()\er", 't_hfl yOt l w ill be ' able' to :p~ayB - n y line..O tf

course, sometim .. we sl ip holes ormake jumps, hut y,ou will ge~ used, tothis as you start working out licks

~ "i If fl J - . . . . . : : : . a ; ~ from 'i'iII"Y'!ioFFi..J,~,...u,l! ., .IUl~ 1UJlI ., l ,~ . . . . .v! l , ~ \ .

A 5 I noted before, you canbend with the ' tongue blockingmethod wili'l,e your tongue is on rtbe harp. ButD\ Old f. ' to learn how to do this, you must 1 , am,how to bend with your lips first. Bending with, ' o ur t ' i . _ , _ , g ; ' u . e lon thl har P c a n be ha ndv onocccasion, but it will take some WOIk and you


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should try to do it only ' after you gain. totalmasterv with \ I ' IOur lips.,J I ;J

- - .. --- . . ._ . ----- -----, nrt:,\ "A NS " ' " Tn~T r)".TS,.l J. . " ' ~ - n . . . . . . . " ! j j , , . . . t . -.L\. L ~ ~--- - _ . _ - - --- _ . --_-

while u\ov~n:g down the ha-rp that Is going& 0 0 0 , 1 . the' 4 blow '~~]lha t 'Ol1g~lje block to th e 3 .draw lip pursing ..Sometimes if t'he " draw isinvolved , r u n .he d,escerndlng l ick, . 1 'm , a y s w i t c hthere ..It is r-eally u.p to you and what fe e Is easyand comfortable for you wlhui e giving you thesound you want. Of course there will be'


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swltrcb_s, anytime you go from bent notes 'toI ~ -. ' ,to m,il~ ' I L . ' I . . . . . . . .' N I . .. ~ iii'Io. pr or "Ilri;llI"'.:;!ii " :1 '" - " ~ ' ' ' : i J r nC ' i I f f I ; v~,'i T . . , : r i ! UI Ib'~~UJJJJi~I:D" v. I, I, ,y.-~t1!:r.~ Y e . ~ , S]~~I~1~ ;"-U1u ..",y.~~ ,

be, bendin,g'~r l r i t a n i . y ~ith pursed lips~'Being

. . . . . . . . . .. .The tedm!qu~ I show you on the way up,- , ., "h ' L . . . d" :FW'~th. e cnors s as "ghest note IS .!,'1' is 'Ve.ry

- valuable, You should really try to master this... ;I '.. .

- - - - - -' ) D ' r ~ 7 " W ' " I i ' V l : , ; : ; L 5 ' ' ' ' 1 ' ; ' '1 5 3 ' B T . r~1" 'T !- L , lh't"1 .1~ J~ ""..._ u"'" .._.)V :,_ -- - -------, -"hree blow is,mos't often 'Used when fhe note

preceding it is also ,a t blow' note on the 2 hole OT.ill 1!..0' an"':I' . 1 . 1 1 1 . "I . .. ' J i ! " R i. .

'I, ,Iieks: (dow _3iDOiW means !dralw '"u:pr ar ri();' -.'

1 . 2 3 3 4means blow.)

I t t ~3 2 3 4 3 4 3 232, , j t t t , I , ,

- 2 " - . , .' . I ' b ' 'I f' .: ._ : .


28/52

,

. ._ - . . . - p r _

_I! .. .... . - -- ---- -----SrlE~ ~IAL. L~FFE:, " , " " ! , r n c~ . .r : ~ . l ~ I, ,,.. 1~~ =- .._..C . o .J . . . , , - - : l-_ - ---

V B"ATO~V.iD ra to gi'v les, .ife a nd c ,-a racte - to f '- e 'sound of a note. .If you play without any':'.~bra'~oat all" you.r notes win IOUlIl"- Weless,ftat and. dlull, ex.perim enld fO F 'a long timeand practically choked. myself in the process,burt erveu'wJaUy._ m S i L o ' r e T e d . .and mas'tell sd ." aysto prod uce different kinds of' vibra tn . BigW a .'e r -I ad o n e tha't 'W,IlS Ughi t l a J n d ' 's t~ 'v1ery 'subtle, which ,g av le a n almost imperceptibleg~,o'w'to' his notes. Tbey shimmered ~verybeautiful. In . workmg on . the throat vibratoyo,u IC~l\ try 'to elimina te or su bdue th eclidrlng: of the ep'ig:iottis, so that the vi:. 'rato ,"',..smooth and seamless.

2 -" " " ' 7 ".


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WARBLESThie' most important Ithi,ng about doing awarble is tha t it should be even and smooth.Thi ~.. f' d ....;L, Il...' , " , nd -,I ~ 0' a,. , .lO g ' sna ! ' ii .m , g 0 warter iC _ ' ' , , ' y o u getsome idea . o f what t o . dO'with your head,

FLUTT'ERS'T his bee h rique may t, ke a ,",0old bi ofpractice be, .ore you can , " 0' it ' t " " , Il.As with.many other techniques, it may be helpful topractice this in short bursts un,tiill yo!u cansustain it. There is also a sideways flutter in

,M

wllich YOlLl -, ould l '0" er 3,holes (3,~4 " - = - ) andjust al ternatel y block 4 and 5r. then 3 and 4~sothat it's alm ost U ik J e,doing a warble betwen3and 5, but done with rapit tongue switchingin the foro, of a sideways ' I utter, If don, fastenough, it is a very re tty effect,

GR,OIW ,':~IT'he grovv.l is a good effect in the right spot,but Y0tI don't N!~n to overuse ~ " t , The blowgrowl is [easily mastered, iB most people are- ~ ,able >lfolliI feir tongue ag,' inst ~hle'roof oftheir mouth without too l11LlCh trouble, But' onthe dra l e V 1 i. _ can be ;I. b ] 1 ' t more d ifficul t. Pretendyou are' just: itbou t to prOnCUJflC the letter J i K . "and then maintain that position ill your throatw :h T h , e you draw, This m.alY help,- ; 8 - ' "

~f' "


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' BARKING, I_'arki -g chords are g're t for sudden

rhvthmic p',:unches and fo r mimicking' I drum-~ , "

D'ddJey beatTucka T-Tuck-~Katutta Hurta Tuck Tuck, , t

This is done on a chord on holes 1;2 and 3,

KISS 'OPS."~_ noth er technique that can be effective ifused. s p a Y m ' ] n g ] y . , Some people ca 'n . " e a Uy "pop"that note. Fortunately, ] assume you already

' ~ I . .. . .. , ho T I L . : : ' I ' "u,ruiQW-::M1 'to MSS. w , not,Y OU reallv do.f.

'R .~ PS A N D 'G ,L ,~ SSESA simple e'JJ1lOU th concept, and like a l specialeffects, useful in the' rigll't pl,ace. Just make sureY ,ou land on the : h , I , ' ~e 'vouwant,, .

DOd',Hr.'1i and Till - I ) ' L ' E TOI:,'IGUI.:,'G' 1 - ' saching double and tripI, tonguing isstandard p[ iOCedUli 011 brass instruments . Usewhatever syllable' you are mo "t comfortabte'with. Learning how to bend in stages whiled' uble o r r ' triple tongtrln,g '\' ill d _fini~_Iy take .


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lot of practice and time, Think ()f it as a long ..term projeet, The 6gtme' I show you at the- endof this section (the turnaround figure) isextremely' useful and Important. It is not justused in turnarounds; 'but is a wa.y o f p lay in .g , arhythmic figuJ1ie that IC2i.n be 'useful in manyplaces,

TONGUE S'WITCHINGY , o u couldn't play either of t' re examplesproperly without this technique. You would. beforced '~O 'movieyour head or the harp '~ O makethe jump between holes t ,and 4~,which wouldslow you down and make' the lick sound very'cil.'opPy., 'You probably won't have ' tna't,much can to use it; but mastery ,o 'ritdo es aID ,M own . . ,~ 'phrasing of' certainthings that would otherwise, bedifficult, if not impossible.

SPECIAL CHORDS: 1 t ,ij/i].l take some time andpractice to g~t the fee] of makingsom e u f these chords, T Iltlere are '~O keys: ODieis using just the ve'ry tip of your tongue toblock one hole: the other is in being able toplay ~wo notes on t of the' right side' of. youJt'mouth and one out of th'! left side, or vice


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versa, Now, if you had a forked tongue youcould re,aUyplay some good chordsl

SH,A,PENG NOTE,SC hanging rhe voice of the note can addexpressiveness to what yOin p:~ Ja ,yand reallyenhance the human quality of the sound of theharmonica which, after all, is, one 0 ' ' the g;re,a'lstrengths and appealing features of theinstrument, Having a n 'O ' , p e 'l1 .sound chamber in .your mouth, and letting the nate: aII the: W,Iyin, win give you the sound of the first~V .....' ~ -11~o: ' ! ' K-, " p ' ; i n g o , , ! j o i l . , . a tip if y'o"lltr' 1 ~ ' J f " ! I , l lg - ' u . o' " " ' . f . . . ." I l < ~ , m , p 'h,..;d., I: , e ' " . 'I,~" ',',. L,!,,"';: ' 1 1. " .1 , _ 1.t, . "I" 0 ! l . ; . u . , " : _ ' , !!i,;;,forward and blocking up any sound chamber'wi~'h. fh e meat of you:r tongue, so that Y()ll.almost keep the note from entering yourmou th, 'will give 'you the sound of the secondexamples. Trunk of the' vowel sound '~E,1'Iandtr y making a . pinched sound,

' !I \ .o , '" 't 'l L , ' ~ , ; iI " " d d ~ " . :. .. r-.i"I.Ji"j,",C1,onIj. , . . . " i . d 1"l,iI il.". . . . .. , ! I ! :n 1 ' 1 , i ' 1 u:_ '_ ' , ' 1 ' Jln "_.u.~ ~..... ' J I ~ .. . ~"I!I.', r . ! ! " ' I ! . I ' : i I '


33/52

- - --: .:1SE r),F rnJ~ TE ~T 7~.~D.C.! V _ \. ~ ..l A...... l!.._..!"\ U.. _._--- _

G,oOd hand technique 18 , e ;, 'pec ia l ly ' mn:porlan twhen playing acousticall y . . When . you playampllfted, because the microphone is heldinside the ellP r th. effects are' much lessd . ' f 8 _ m a J t i c . W ah.=wallS are less : p r o ; , n a u . n C l d t ~ etc,Ionetheless, there is still some effect when.:p Ia ym ;g '\iv ith ,~ .rn ic . A mp lif ie d or ,i, loaU'5 i t l ) C , y ou .want to have a ,good sea] to 'begin m , t h , . ,

B l~~~r~l t6-r=ad 'I ~I 'FO~h.and s ~}---t k~,nft, ~, ,w g~'ly,II! ' itll..~ ..~. .ltd...~,~ .. 1 : ' 1 1 . . 1 1 1 . L .. ' U!.d., ~,It""!1I!. U .U.!J, ,closed cu:p over the whole harp. Nothing gotout, and w'hen he p . , l a y e d . t~hafr:way it seemed asif his beautiful but muffled notes were cOIningfrom a d~,p! '{\7'eU~eflfeet behin d h im .. .VV llen he

' 3 ' , . .. . _ : . l


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CJoooo,rup

and vibrant soundpralctic~,Uy[leapedout. The contrast

Sonny 'terry'shand e ' f f e c llS , . -besides beinghigh],y expressiveand varied, were avisual trip as well.He put on a wholeshow, 'W I D th his free

I fa ruUng the harp,sometimes

Open with fi~gers or right. hand. kn ockin g th e heelsof his handstogether forP,~iI!"": ' ' I I,~~;j .O':' n ' l I " ' " ,~!!;.,!!!,;!!O;;J!J~ .. i 1 1 0 2 -mak in g g n~ , c~ dr- csorwindtnillingmotions thatwould suddenlv.,

would bunch his


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fingers together and jam them. 'U p into hisCO])ping hand, r.ohl'tig and ~W1Sing ills wris twhile wild 'Sounds poured out of his harp. Hewas all 1inc'I"ed'w"ble showman, hugelyentertaining, the greatest. SO'~!Operformer ever"and fhe' possessor O l E . ,I, hi,g'hly : p , e n ; v l 1 a l l i s~ ] J f ' '~hatp ra ctic ally d e fie s em ulalion.

W,orth your '~lltenti,on:T you learn '~O breathefrom the diaphragm and keep YOlu,r en tireb rea th ing a .ppa ra ,t us open, you will have greaterpow,e'r ,9 . stronger Erna.'r.k~, a ~nd,dlee~p:r tone, 1~'m ight 'be 'worth a trip to the lib rary to sea rc h outany' books t h a t eontam b r @ ' ,E d r ru , n g : exercises to 'develop diaphra gm strength and control.

3'''L d,,,",


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. _ _ ._ -. -- --- .-- ._-- ._-_. ...--Pr J S -ft" 'nTC- ' ' ' ' ' , 1 S ' ' " ' ' J j\ ' . . . . & - . . . l ~ J.L\I,I - r here' s a. famous bi t of studio banterbetween Sonny 'Boy Il and one of the' Chessbrothers in which Leonard Chess is insistingthat Sonny Boy name the song' he is about torecord, SOID1r~y Boy tells him, I!OU name :Uwhat vou wauna. You name it your mammv if~ ~ ~vo u w ' , a J J . 1 ' t 't o~uTI :1a f S pretty r n u c 1 1 :ho'w I f e e ]~ , ~about the nam ..es of positions. C aU them whatyou, wa nt as ,~o,.~\g's Y'(l,tl understand ~,berela ticnshi p between the k.ey of the harp andthe l < . ' E ' ~ Yo f t h e ' s o n g ,.

T:hose 'ty';",th :Kno\fvllooge o f' music 'theory willpoint nut that the logical and musically correctwa y to na ID,e'the p0'5ition S o is to follow the"circle of ,fifthslt so that if were playing a, , . . 1 iOharmonica tuned to the kiev of Ai then Ar

']I .- 111d b , " 1 - . , I i > - . . . . ' siri ," ". 'd D' ll' - 'I lid b ' . ~ ? ' , j ih " I . i ' ou ,~, .'e s . ~ . ,PO~ll IOml. an..N Olh, . e _~,'""position. Others could say that it makes sense'to call ,A ] 1 s~pos,]jtiJo n since thars the ' one holeblow, B 2n.d pos i ton since that's the one holedraw, D~ 3 , r d po~'ition, (1:\,,\10 .hol,e b l o 1 l i i \ f ) and E4th posi tion (two hole draw), I jus t call themth e way Iearned It 'hem, and that's th e \va:y i l l ' vie,named them in th e charts that follow. 'Youname thern whi1t you wa nt, You name thl~rnyc ~u r mamrav if vou w an t ,Ito !r. ... .} 3c'''_,J


37/52' 3 " ' < "Ii;,.' b.:\J

Here are some classic examples of first ratep~,a.fID:gn 1st and 3rd positions:

Hoochie Coochie Ma~,Mudc ly Wa" te r s{ Liu le Wa l t e r

I W a n t ~oBe L o ve di v : 1 ' u ~ l d y 'W ~~'ers!Litt le 'Wa~ter

Chance to LoveJimmy ROgt'T:$J Lilt,Ie' tM~b . e r

LudellajitiJIRY R J J g e r s l t i l t l :e' wni ' ler '

Ice Cream Man/ 0 1 t f J , 8 T , i m / . l i U'le l t V i B ' l t , t . ' t f

tbr.d Hea.rtoo, Woman,B ~ 8 ' W i il lr : t e r ' HJ~lr'~lu~

Trust. Mv Babv"' " .. .

TI,~rS Enough of T hat Stu :fffallulou5 Tlnufd'erbirds I

Ki iT I l o V U s O r JHonest lidol imm3f R e e d

Brigh t ttght31~']g"'" Ci'~v~. J ; im : m y R~~d

'f1 e l- 'H -~@ 'M , ~: : , a t s e , i B . _ - : : ' , , e o " ~M i lady Waters f L i '~ne ' WgUer

Y,oll"l'ng Fa s t . ; i O i D ' l J O O 'WaysMuddy 'W ~ fe rs / un I e -W~ l ier'W 'aUdnl Througb The P~J:k.M '~~d~y ~t 'er5,I l ,~:Ule 'W n1 ter .Sh~ s 'N : inet'E!11 Years Old

NJ:I'lddy INa l .e rs l ."L it ti e ' Wtdl :eT

I GIIDt to Go.LitUe w , ' a U : : e , r

''\J'.....u ~I , G i ' ' '' ; I " " , ' ' i 'I o ' T I , . , . , '[;l'a. S ' 'c'ii,.....,.~,I ';..i! ~ . . . V~II!.I!.WI!ll .U'i;i; :~W,.1. 'r. i'. . . .

,O ne' o j T he se' M;Omlngsl, it t~ e W a U e r

1l{ l ibtphluM3 ' B ' l " r I _ I J ~ 5Geo rg e Sm i,t hSnatch r r ' ~ 'Sackand Hold ItJun ,io' f' 'W id /s


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Ke'Y of Song~sf 2nd 3rd 4th 5t~ 6th pos~~ien

CD '~D

I I F AG D E .I ID A~, E~ I I I F I F# ' B~:.I 1

I D I A E I I F# G IB,I E I I B~ F I I 'G I A,~ C' )E II I B Fj A~ A I D p-f II I 'C , UI I A IB,~, D I I. I

, I F# II I[r A~ I! B ' ~ , 1 8 I IEI~, " ~I G 0 A I B C ' IE , II _ . I,A ~ I E I ~ I B l b c D'~, F

-

A , E ,8 , o l b , DI F# I,.IB ~ F c I o E~ IG '. c B' F# D b , E ~I E A~I

E"1 7~I~, IE

: z : :~ iFe~. IF 't,~~ G I

AABB

,Key ' of Harp1st 2nd 3 m 4th 5th 6 th p e s i t io J ' lc I C : F B,~, I ,A~, G I E~ I I: ) I I

I D ' ~ I F~ i l A . ~ I E , ID~ 8 AD I I DI G I ' C B b A i l F IIE ~ I A p l l II - . 1E~ D~ B 1 9 , ~I F#,OJ ) I,~ E C B I I GioIoII E A D1 I00 F F B~ I E~ D~ C I II ,A -Ie

,~, F# IF,' B I , IE I D D~ II A .w I~: I G G I C I! F E~ 0 I ' 1 8 ~. IIA b , A h , D~ f# E E~ I I 8I -,A A I D I G I F IE I I Ci8b , B~ E~ I A~ F# ' f I I D bB B I E II I A G I F ' I o3 7 '. . _


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While it's true that playing amplified gives adifferent character '~O the sound of theharmonica, and that' assorted mics a nd ~unpsand 'v ,ariOUJSombinations of thent tvill alter O lesignal with aspects of their own character. Iiliiml:, that most people place entimly too muchemphasis on eq1l l . ipm.ent . .That isn't to say dlatyou shouldn't play through good equipment,but s,:m.:p'~]fthat, regardlesss of th e equipment,it's a case of garbage in ..garbage out. Don'texpec t those k nobs and s"~~c ie s to do YO 'I[]work, Tone C()mes fro'm you, (tot from an ~mp, Ora micro phon e. 'Don't practice amplified, Makethe harp do the' wOl"k"

, A s l ' : O F mv ('f",'D e q . :Iltip.mie'ntl' I play VictoriaJ .' Jamplifiers, 'which are tube amplifiers with four

ten-inch speakers . .and an Astatic JT-30microphone, which is the choice fora lot of the top p b . Y 1 e r s , . I like' iclearsound that doesn't mask thechar'acter of my own. tone, I

g:e:n,@ra lIy 5 ' : ' t the ba s s knobfairly high, the mids pretty


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'S rnong, and just a little hit of treble. I'll also have, a J bit orfreverb on" If there' is (1 , preSience knob, ,I " llusuallv put it somewhere inthe middle.., ,Your amp settings may change from gIg togig~"depending on the acoustics of the stageand room, vou 're playing, \A lh ,e li '~ se t u . u p ' ~ T"Uhit

~ ~" I

a [Ie'' notes 'to make sure everything's okay,and f h e n leave it . a l i - o n . ' ~,I f $Olll ,ething. iSJl,~t qui.te,right during th e perfor mance., I'Il makead ju s tm e n rs ' th en , Ir v ' a : m r t to :play the 'h ar p" n o tbe an 'electronics engineer,


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'The 'L EGE 'N "D 'ARY B lues B a , n d

When you start play"'ng with a band, at firstyou'll probably be concentrating so hard onget,ting' your own P art .right that you won' teven hea r w J h a t the. oth e F ' m u siian s ar e!playin z, Learn to listen to Ute res t of the band,~ l~ 0especially the' bass~,'-' hich 'w:iUgive y ou , bo rth , arhythmic and a r ona l r ef er ence , And when youplay ' \ + \ , ith a singer, dfl'1I1' t play on ~op 0 f ' thevocal Learn to play HUs that get in and outand do n' t get in the \I'i!'ay. Learn to bring;' theSing,'et back h 'L by set tin g him U J P with ' ~ ~ ' 1 i [ h J , a:Mudd v used to, ca 1 1,th e ~ ,~land ' back .~ "Listen to. . . .Little W altef ' ' p ! l a , y behindMuddy or jimmyRog,ei fS ; O F . so m ie, 'perfect examples.


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- -.rn J . . T E - ~ nlR 1\ {'~1V.S. ..l. -"'..... ~. te-\ '\...,.!'.i

There are nine: :m.ug,~~C'altracks JeaturtngDuke Rob il a re i on gu i t a r in w h ich heplays a. march beat, a, shuffle and a . slolr~blue'S in three ~epa r a te keys. All threebeats jO H ; r s ' t in t1 hI e . key of E for pla yin : ~ . ltheharmonica in Znd position, then in the keyof A fo r playing in l.s:t p o s m tio n ., fh,e'n inthe key ,o f B fO 'F 3rd. positton.E ach track is p'Fin'[ed t\ '-:ltd(e' n . succession,The first 'time I ac:compa.ny Duke and thenthe track is . repeated with o'ni 'y ' the guitar,so - that you can pla.y along. 'Having' theseO"'O.~ tar' tracks I t ,O' P ta . V' a10 H 'P with is ereal' ! G i l ' .I 'bii , t t Jfor praC 'Ucl.og and working au t your ideas.

" t4 L


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CL()SI1~G RE'M~ARKS---- --- ---- -_- - _--- _.. -8 , efore Ilinis.h; "there are a few thi n..gs I wan t'[0 say about va rio usa s p , e cts 0f learning to: p . b ~ r ya musical instrumen t, and just music ingener a1~ There a re two com po nen t s to'playing' an mstrument. One is physical andth e o ther is conceptua 1 . . In this cou rs e~ I!Veconcentrated on. the ph.y:sical side ~ that is..physc.aJ.1. mastery o:f the instrument: how h)g e t proper S H J U n d . s / - how to make it say whaty 'Ou want, 110W to sculpt arid ;_'tt.ack YOUL-notes properly. Jive tried to give you the tools,and matertals :80. tll,at y'ou can b urld any


44/52

t~tay you 'put them t o g e ther move 5, in to theconceptual area ..and in many ways that is themore d.ifn,(u~.tmountain ~()climb.

get that is from constant and. ,",vide-ranging] I ' ,s , ,t e'll 'U n ~ " ~. 't.JI' . rN!U, I \\l:"'ii' ' ii i' r il ~ t o , ' 1Ik ,~ , " ' l I i v'~- ' ! 4 1 , " b -," I I ' G S' . ' . . 1 . . "0 " ~!u,"" OI II .l i. 1 II . '" 1 I i J l ~ ! t . ' I l . ,orl e f ; i l ! I J ! , ,,~,tl~ ,harmo nica pla yerl be g1 n by 1is tenin g to grea t

L L 3. .


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blues harmonica players, You ( :C'Ui ' found upthe' us ual su spects: tittle Wallte[" both So.on."Boy Williamsons, Howlin' Wolf,.Jimmy Reed,B{g W,n.ter Horton, [u nior Ps rker, Slim.Harpe, [ames Cotton and Junior Wens. listento older stylists Uk: 'Win Shade ..Noah Lewis,D~Fold. Bailey and Sonny Terry; and modernmas ters like Kim WH son ,. Know' their classic

Lightn j . n" H ki..... " . ,:op.nnstWalelS,. Jimmy Rogers, ElmoreJames, T= 'Bon ,e W ~ lk. erj' GuitarSlim, ' ,ow'leU. F u l son. 8. ,8" . King,Ma gJlc Sam, 'B 0bby 'B land fFreddie 'King and Albert King,Listen. [00ther bl ues-re labed

bands and, instrumenta lis ts: the, great boogie-woogte pil.n ists, Pete J ohnson, A 1bertAmmons, Meade Lux Lewis; and great bluespiano players . ike Big ,.l,a.ceo Merriweather,Me:Mphis SUm and Otis Spann. S axopho nistslike Earl Bostic ...Ioe Houston, Red Prysock,Gene .A mm.o:l1.S, \Y:iJ~,isjackson, IllmoisJ acquet, 'Louis J ordan and Cleanhead Vinson.Listen to!Count Biasile,;Iisten '0 0 R,,,y Charles:


46/52

Hs~eIl e o Louis Armstrong. Listen 'to g.r,ea'tmusic and it w n . m [email protected]~~, iJ )u t " ' : your p'~ay] iD.:G:~A ',. . ,-.,;:.... . . -" i'.~.-."" _,- ",.. ._ '.. ~. _ ~ _: ..... _ nd ~\\!hen M sav listen r mean It m the.. .truest and deepest sense, To most people,listening is a passive experience. Hisn't, TrueIistening ]$ an ,8ctive experienoe that requiresfocus and concen tra tion, and eng.a,ges. yourintelligence, Close Y O i u r eyes, Qp 1 e : n yout ears rand listen as deeply as you. can. Listen to tiletotal sound, but listen a .s well to . each1'[1, r . f u : m , :n't.~ See 'how their parts complementand dove-tail one another . . And! 'mosttm.port ,an ' tly . . h,e,ar It 'be soun.d ,U " 'UDlenote! Is ita. rich. and meaty note, deep and dense at itscore'? Or is it thin or hollow soundi fig at thecenter? s the edge around. th e note ' s,of~:andfu zzy? , 0 ' 1 ' I S it crisp an d cle an? The ' note i alivlng, ' P a m p,mble - thing, . The .~.ound of onebea utiful no te placed in the 'fight setting can


47/52

stir emotions in people in ways they don"teven understand ..That: s the p10WIet andmystery of music,

There are no throw-away notes. Every note 'you pla y h a s to re ce ive I the pnJper attenti on sothat U : u ~ J U llsts role, however sHgltt.,Some notes are 1ead actors I othersare b~ tplayers or extras, but t~heyall hatve their func t h) n indes f ~ ~opi - 'g " the st l i F ' Io r- v vnu ' '::I;r~.. !G "ii "",.IlI. I.n,~. ll!li:; ! . 1 ' 1 _ v J I " " J ! < l l l II;;;;trying to [e:U.. JEaC'hone 'has, tobe ad d.resse d correc Hy.Remem be:r: Your ear is, ' you : rbest friend.

NI-" _OIW :~e'tme say something about how andwhat to practice, In case you haven't noticed,1 1 1 ' ' i l L . . -1 1Ii., . ' h -'.. - '..- I b I" 'h .&: l'~.. , i . ' thi ~. ! I l ~ ~ f : l lven ~ 5, J.'o\!\rn V!QU. ,3 I~ u.nc. .t 0 w : ~c.~s ru. . . 18J'course' ~ ,that is, sequences of notes to play,Thiere are thousands of licks that have beenpla yed j" and you. can get these off of records.And you should" When you are trying to learna 'fiU Oil' SO'~OIoff ': record, Iisten to it u'oliJ. youcan sing the part you are trying to play~ Thenfind in,g the' right notes win be much quicker,

A ' b ' : " ""I. . . .: 1 . . . o


48/52


49/52

phrasing fully realized, so that it conveys the:fe,e':~itg ' ~ .t's surp pos ed l to ~ W h.i.c h 110tes are

emphastzed? Is the note playedHght and. pretty or heavy anddeep?' ]s i, t pUflc '11.ed OF played

d :~.mjini .sh l' Is it p~,a'Y'ed.wi.~hvibrato? M ake your ear a

it5 0 YOIU can, The ear tralni n . , g ; an d tech 1 1 ialmastery that yau will gain by th e discipl inein 'OJtln.'~IVI~I..J!1 ' n learn ' ' ! ' ' l i r n l g . . , . . . , . ,p l a y . ~ I "' I "" ' m ,. .. . 0 .co- ....elv ,~ ,~1. 'Iii" V W . ~ IL l. .~.nU."""a. . . l . 1 I i Ii Il.!LlJ ~ 1 !I..II ll~ .,.!L .. rre .. . . . '~ . !IiLJ, .: -einvaluable, At the same time. vouIl be. . . . .learning all kinds of licks and w'ays to 1110Ve

A ' 8 4'. : : : i 1_


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around the harmonica and move within the

able to use elements oi them to play new anddl f : [ l e ' : f 1 e n t tbi'n gs. New combinatio n s wi ~.'begin to erne rge ' 5ponta n,eotu;,ly a 5, you gaj 1 1confidence, As your mastery and confidencegl'OI\fVjI ' your own stamp and style ' \ i " v i U 'be,gj:n toemerge. It's a longprocess, but it 'begins'W it h knowi ng th eclassies ,a nd tradi tion.

I,'ve heard people say that they don't 'want tolearn Little Via . l te~1 'Sonny 'Boyor anybody else,bees use they went to have ,t.heir own style.And some (,..~hem did have their OWl' style/but it,wasn't am,ythful1g tbaJ[ I would ~~$"[;enowithou t a gun to my head. The process oflearning [a music w~"ththe rich ~,radition of i t ' h eblues is a, p r o C ' ' s 8 , of going backwa rds so thateventuall y you can go forward,


51/52

E ventu al ly, you.r 0\V11 perso nal ity willelmJ~I'o:e' as y .on stop .. Ph3lvin.p": bv rote ON'a I , " IJ 0 ~memorization and you begin to trust yourselfenough h) relax a nd let the music comethrougb. yo ' U~ Br:ic Clapton calls it an act offaith~and it is, Yo u have ' 't o trust enough to letgo ot your c.(nl,s,cil(:n~lSmind and hope tobecome a conduit fo r the music to flowU: r rou :g . h~ W ' ben . it happens, th e music willcome thro u g h Yo 'U .w ith an inner logic of it tsown, with a n . a lmo st architectural balance oft . '.',',:. - ., - d ' . - , - - 1 . : " . ' h ' - iii, . '- .. ,. - .- - l d " . - - Ii t.ens. on an '-_.re e.a.se _ , , a . Ill. yoI! coU._n .cons ci0 usly con stru ct. At this point yo 11 aretruly breathing music and the harmonica wil ~seem to pia y ise lf~There i1 no .high i t rbeworld like it,and one day I hope you get there,

With !R'o 'ber~C R Y ' , ; B u J J d y G t a .Y ' ~a n d. E ri c C~apt:o.n-R o y , a I.Albi~r t F bll; L on dc. 1I111991


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J erty Portrtoy was 0 0 1 1 1 in 1943 ii i n d J yew up in t h eblues 'rich atmosphere of Chicago s famous MaxwellS u ' @ @ t . M;i'r 'kt! ,[ du w i n g , ~he,g J , d ~ ' r . u age o lf C h i c ;a g ,O I Blues,

I) udng, c career Itl1~t inch..des s :ix yea lISas a r .ne 'm~erro r r~he fabll d Muddy \ O V a t , e r s S hies B an d. .. anomer six a ' sleader o f f the Lege ndawy 'B lues , Band" ~O l l iF . ; , l@ \ - rs at. ' tm . { I 'head of lil: own band The ' l rreElnli~nrefS and another, fou r asa faa rured member o ff T he E ric C lap ~onBi1Jnd..histou ring' bas carried him b) 1 ~ 7 1 e r y st.albe 'in the U n[oln a J . n dtwenty-Ii ve coun tries on fi v e conti nents withp rfermanees at The Wlit[~,e J o U l ~ t Carn eg ie H a ~LRadioCiv 1 \ 1 1u s . ' c H a l l , Th ~ Smi til so ni an " L ond on /-, R [HtiIJ I I~ .. .

.albums while recording wirh a wide "variety of artists.iibtlldlin. 1996 was n G r a m m y Award nominee for hiswork w ith The )'1uddy \.\fat~r5 Tribute Band . In

blues harmonica master class by jerry portnoy

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