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From: Barry Schaede
Date: Sun, 07 Jan 1996 09:06:14 -0700 (MST)
Subject: Lower pitched harmonicas

Mike Curtis writes of the advantages of matched resonance while
playing lower pitched harmonicas. I have to assume that anyone
who maximizes the efficiency of their acoustic coupling with any
harmonica will attempt to do it with all of them. Therefore the
issue of the heavier reeds is still valid. The lower harmonicas
do play differently than the higher pitched ones. The reeds are
longer and heavier and take more energy to initiate sounding.
Less to sustain though. The envelope of the note on lower
harmonicas is also substantially different. The attack lags.
Much like playing a bass or drums you have to play in front of
the note rather than behind it to be in time. The lower the
harmonica the more pronounced this is. I have a low A harmonica
that I play that's so low that if you slap it against your hand
it vibrates. All of the lower notes are in the bass octave and
yet it can plays quite fine at speed. An interesting thing which
I've mentioned before is accidently pick up a G harmonica
expecting an F and try to sound a note. It won't work the first
time because you've modified your technique to accommodate the F
and that technique is so different than the required technique
for the G the reed won't sound. I choose not to use the word
resonance to describe this occurrence because I think what's
going on is more myriad and complex than that one singular
aspect.

One last aside on this issue. It recently occurred to me while
listening to Neil Young play harmonica on a Emmylou Harris album
that the reason Dylan's and others playing sounds so different
than say a Walter Horton's is the total lack of this matching
technique for a specific harmonica. They just blow and draw air
and move the harmonica around. A good and fine thing that
produces a unique sound that I can't replicate because the minute
that harmonica's in my mouth I put some English on each and every
note without thinking about it. fjm