Harmonica/Advancedtechniques

Contents
1 Overbending
2 Ornaments
2.1 Approach
2.1.1 Slidejab
2.1.2 Reversejab
2.1.3 Bendgracenote
2.1.4 Glissando
2.2 TremolovsVibrato
2.2.1 Tremolo
2.2.1.1 Hand/FingerTremolo
2.2.2 Vibrato
2.2.2.1 Shake
2.2.2.2 SlideShake("Trill")
2.2.2.3 Fluttertongue
2.2.2.4 Tonguevibrato
2.2.2.5 ThroatVibrato
2.2.2.6 Combovibrato
2.3 Splitintervals
2.4 Rake
2.5 Shimmer
3 Octave
3.1 Slidebump
3.2 Slidedip

Overbending
Overbending,commonlyreferredtoasoverblowsandoverdraws,isadifficulttechniquetomaster.The
physicsaresimpletoexplain:Inanoverbend,theoppositereedasinnormalplayisbroughttovibrate
inanoverblow,thedrawreedismadetovibrateupontheblowairflow,andinanoverdraw,theblow
reedismadetovibrateuponthedrawairflow.Forthisreason,overbendingcannotbedoneona
harmonicawithwindsavers.
Becausetheoppositereedcommonlyactsasabufferforexcessair,thisiseasiersaidthandone.The
soundisalsoharsher,similartothesoundofahardpressedorgankey.
Overblowingisdonethesamewayasabendintheupperregisterbytighteningthejaw,bringingthe
tongueupslightly,andtryingtosoundthedesiredharmonic.Toimprovetheoverbendingcapabilityofa
harmonica,onecanmakethegapbetweenthereedsandtheplatesmaller.
Onachromaticharmonica,overbendscanbedonefromhole8to12.Onatremolo,theycanbedoneon
everyhole.

Ornaments
Approach
Alsoknownasgracenotes,thisusuallyinvolveplayinganoteahalfsteplower/higherrealquickand
thenplaytheactualpiece.ifntindicated,thisisusuallyfineinblues,rocks,andjazz.Onaharmonica,
youcanuseoneofthefollowing:

Slidejab
Thetechniqueisforaslideinnote.Onewillapproachaslideinnotewiththeslideout,thenjabitin
quickly.

Reversejab
Thetechniqueisforaslideoutnote.Onewillapproachaslideoutnotewiththeslidein,thenreleaseit
inquickly.

Bendgracenote
usebendingtobendthenotehalfsteplowerbriefly,beforeplaying.

Glissando
Startwithachordrightnexttotheactualhole,thenquicklygototheactualholeandblockoutthe
restwithatongueslap.

TremolovsVibrato
Justlikeguitar'smisnamings,Tremoloandvibratoonaharmonicaisalsomisnamed.Solet'ssetit
straight,aspermusictheory:
Avibratoisafluctuationofpitch,usuallyaccompaniedwithsynchronousfluctuationsof
loudnessandtimbre,ofsuchextentandrateastogiveapleasingflexibility,tenderness,and
richnesstothetone.
Atremoloisarapidfluctuationofintensity(loudnessandsoundpressure)withoutchangingthe
pitch.
Whileallkindofmusicsuseornaments,remember,playitonlywhenitismusicallyappropriate.
Sometimes,it'sbestnottodoanyornamentation,especiallyifit'snothowonewouldplayinthisstyle
(e.g.:CanoninDplayedinclassicalstyleisverydifferentfromplayinginbluesstyle)

Tremolo
Hand/FingerTremolo
Ahand/fingertremoloisachievedbyrapidlyopeningandclosingthecuppedhandsaroundthe
harmonicatoadjustvolume.

Vibrato
Shake
Shakeisalsoknownaswarble.Awarbleisanalternationbetweentwonotes.Manyplayersconfuse
themwithtrills,buttrillssounddissonantduetotheircombinationofnotes.Warbles,ontheotherhand,
soundharmoniousandsmooth.
Inwarbles,theleftnoteisthemainnotewhiletherightnoteistheaddednote.Whenplayingwarbles,
makesureyouselecttwoholesandsustainyourbreathforthewholesequence.
Toalternatebetweentwonotes,useoneofthefollowingfourtechniques:
Jawflick:Flickyourlowerjawfromsidetoside.
Tongueflick:Selecttwoholeswithyourlipsandflickyourtonguefromsidetoside.
Headshake:Shakeyourheadfromsidetoside.
Handwarble:Movetheharmonicafromsidetosidewithyourhands.
Todoahandwarble,followthesesteps:
1.Holdtheharmonicalikeyouwouldnormallydo.
2.Playthemainnote,sustainingyourinhaledbreathforthewholesequence.
3.Unbendyourrightwristslightly.Whenyoudothis,therighthandpressesyourlefthandandthe
harmonicatotheleft,slidingtheleftholeoutofyourmouthandtherightholeintoyourmouth.
Noticethatwhenyouunbendyourrightwrist,yourleftwristbendsslightlybackward.
4.Allowyourrighthandtoreleasethepressure,lettingyourlefthandspringbackandcarrythe
harmonicabacktoitsstartingposition.
Remembertosustainyourbreath.Letyourrighthanddrivethemotionandletyourlefthandrespond
likeaspring.Workonthismoveslowlyuntilyoucanaccuratelymovejustoneholebynudgingthe
harmonicagentlyandthenreleasingthepressurewithyourrighthand.Whenyougetthehangofthis
move,tryrepeatingitatasteadyrate,firstslowlyandthenfasterandfaster.
Tovarythesoundofthewarble,youcancombinethewarblingtechniquesdescribedabove.Youcan
changethepaceofthewarble.Also,youcanbendthenotedownandthenreleaseitwhileyousustaina
warble.Normally,youtargettheleftnoteasthebendingnote.Theexceptioniswhenyoudoawarbleon
Draw5,thenotetotheright,Draw6,bendsmorereadilyandcontributesmoretothebendingeffort.
Allowthetwonotestobleedtogetherforwetwarbles.Keepthemseparatefordrywarbles.
Toplayadrywarble(orsometimescalledacleanwarble),startwiththeleftnoteisolatedandthenmove
farenoughtoisolatethenoteontheright.Bothnotesareneverplayedatonce.
Toplayawetwarble(sometimescalledadirtywarble),soundbothnotessimultaneouslyatleastpartof
thetime.Todothis,startbyplayingthenoteontheleftandthenmovetotherightfarenoughthatyou
includetherightnotebutnotfarenoughthatyouexcludetheleftnote.Youcanchangebetweenthetwo
kindsofwarbles,eithergraduallyorsuddenly.
Whenpracticingpassageswithwarbles,getthehangofthepassagewithoutwarbles.Thenaddthe
warbles.
SlideShake("Trill")

Whattraditionallycalledasatrillonachromaticisnotatrill.Asitinvolvesmovingtheslideinandout
rapidly,itismoreappropriatelyatypeofvibrato.
Fluttertongue
Afluttertongueisdifferentonchromaticharmonicaasitactuallymostlyinvolvesthethroat.Itis
achievedbymakingasortofsnoringsoundinthebackofthethroat,bothinhalingandexhaling.
Tonguevibrato
Youmakevibrationsinsideyourmouthwithyourtongue(depends,backandforth,upanddown,or
somemixedmotion)asifyouweretryingtobendthenoteusingthetonguemotion.
Insimplewordsyoujustmoveyourtonguebackandforthveryfastasiftryingtowhistleexhalingand
inhalingtheair.Don'tuseyourthroatorlungsforbreathingforawhile,justusetheamountofairin
yourcheeks.Movethetonguereallyfast.Inthiscasethetrajectoryoftheairstreamisnotstraightand
pressureonthereedissomewhatmixedcausingsomekindofturbulence.
Thiseffectisveryimpressivewhenusedonabentnotewithatleasthalfofthetoneroomaboveand
below.Thebestuseofitinmyopinionisbygettingthedeepestbentnote,say,2draw2stepbendand
thendowhatwasdescribedabovebyaddingsomeairpressure.
Infine,whenyouvibrateyourtonguethenotefluctuatesfromthe2stepdeepbendtoalmostpure2
drawwithlargerincrementoftimedevotedtothe2stepdeepbentnoteandsmallerincrementoftime
devotedtotheunbentnoteorIwouldsaytotransitionfrom2stepbendtounbentnoteandback.Thatis,
youaretohearthebentnotealmostconstantlywithtransitoryvibratoeffectalongthepossiblebending
range.Allthishappensduringthetonguevibration.
ThroatVibrato
Throatvibratoisoneofthemostimportantharmonicatechniquestomaster.Itaddscolorandvarietyto
yournotesinthesamewaythatitdoesforasinger,anditisintimatelyassociatedwithgoodtone.There
areseveraldifferentwaysofachievingvariousvibratosontheharp,includingdiaphragmvibrato,hand
vibrato,andthroatvibrato.Diaphragmvibratoandthroatvibratoarecloselyrelated,whilehandvibrato
isachievedbyopeningandclosingthehandstovarytheairsealcupatthebackoftheharp.
Diaphragmvibratoprimarilymakesuseofthediaphragmforalteringtheamountofairflowingthrough
theharp,whichprovidesarhythmicpulsingofvolumefromsoftertoloudertosofter.Throatvibrato
maybethemostemotionalofthevibratosbymakinguseofpitchchangesaswellasvolumechanges.
Thekeytothroatvibratoisasmoothoscillationofbothpitchandvolume.Donepoorlyitsounds
chunky,andnotsmooth.Donewellitsoundssmoothandnaturalandwonderful.Striveforasinewave
typecontinuoussmoothness,withconsistentpitchandvolumechanges.Rhythmisanimportantpartof
thevibrato.Youcandovibratoatdifferentspeeds,soyouchooseaspeedthatfitswiththerhythmand
feelofthemusic.Thepulsesofthevibratoshouldbemadetodividethenotesintoevenintervalstoadd
totherhythmiccontentofthemusic.
Theclassicwaytogetthroatvibratoistoimitatearapidfiremachinegun(eheheheheh),likewhen
youwereakid.Thendoitinhalinginsteadofexhaling.It'sthesamethroatmotionthatgetsthethroat
vibrato.Workonituntilallthechunkinessisgone,anditsoundsasnaturalinyourplayasitdoesina
singer'svoice.

Agoodwaytogetthefeelistoputvibratoonthe3draw1/2step(orevenless)bend.Yourthroatis
involvedgettingthebendinitially,sothere'ssomefeeltherebeforeyougoforthevibrato.Breathing
fromthediaphragmwillhelpcontrolthevibrato.There'salwaysaninteractionbetweenthethroatand
diaphragmwhendoingavibrato,sinceeachisinvolvedincontrollingtheairstream.Forthroatvibrato,
obviouslytheemphasisisonthethroatbutyou'llprobablynoticesomeinvolvementofthediaphragm
aswell.
Tryitamplified,butplaysoftly.Practiceverysoftdrawbends.Atsomepointyou'llnoticewhatfeels
likeadirectconnectionbetweenyourthroatandthenote.Everylittlenuanceofthroatmotionis
reflectedinthesound.Workonplayingthe3draw1/2stepbendsoftly.Thenputsomevibratoonthe
notebypulsingtheairstreamwithyourthroat.Thepitchwillchangeupanddownbecauseyou'vegota
holdofthebendwithyourthroat.Keepatit,it'sworthit!
Combovibrato
Thisisacomboofdiaphragm,tonqueandjawtechniquewhilebendingthenote.Thediaphragmis
workingaquickvibrato,whilethetonque/jawaredoingapumpingactiontoenhanceandspeedupthe
vibratoevenmore.Also,bendthenoteasyoudothis.

Splitintervals
Unlikeotherwindinstruments,theharmonicacanplaynumerousnotesatonce.Asidefromintervals
madeupofadjacentnotes,aplayercanplaysplitintervalsbyblockingtheholesbetweentheones
neededwithhistongue,thusplayingonlythetwooutmostnotes.
Whiletheprincipleissimple,inpractice,thisisverydifficult.Mostpeople,whentheydotongueblock,
canonlydooneside(andusuallycanonlyblocktheholesontheirleft).Thus,whentheyaretryingto
movetheirharmonicaleftandrighttosoundthereed,theywilleithermakenosound,ormakeawrong
sound.Furthermore,mostpeoplehavedifficultiesstretchingtheirmouthwideenough.

Rake
Todoarake,placeafewholesinyourmouthandrakethetipofyourtongueacrosstheholes,sothe
combinationofholesinyourmouthisconstantlychanging.Whenyoudothis,makesureyoufeelyour
tongue'sedgestappingthecornersofyourmouthasyourtongueflicksfromsidetoside.Byreaching
thecornersofyourmouth,youknowyouarerakingalltheholesinyourmouth.Mosttongueblocking
techniquesinharmonicaplayingarebestdonewiththetipofthetonguetuckedaway,forrakes,usethe
tipofthetongueasit'seasiertoglideanddefinewhichholesareblockedatanygivenmoment.

Shimmer
Ashimmerisacornerswitchplayedquicklyandrepeatedly.Theeffectissimilartoarake,butyouplay
fewernotesandyoucanbemoreselectiveaboutwhichnotesyouplay.Whenyouplayarake,youplay
aboutfourtofivenotesandnotallnoteswillsoundgoodwiththebackgroundchord.Withshimmers,
youcanselectonlythenotesthatfitwiththechord.Youdothisbykeepingthetipofthetongueonthe
harmonicaandcoverallholesexceptoneeithertherightmostholeortheleftmostholeinyourmouth.
Toalternatebetweencorners,nudgeyourtongueslightlytotherightorleftandalsomoveyourjaw
alifhrly,justenoughtoshifttheopeninginyourmouthbetweentheleftandrightcorners.

Octave
Ifaplayerstretchesthemouthwideenough,andblockoutacertainnumberofholesinthemiddlesuch
thatonlytwonotesthatareoctaveapart(e.g.:C1andC2)willsound,theywillformaoctave.
Forchromatic,thatmeansstretchingoutacrossfiveholes,andthenblockoutthe3holesinthe
middlewithyourtounge.
Fordiatonic,stretchoutacrossfourholesandthenblockoutthe2holesinthemiddle.Noteyou
canonlyformatrueoctaveontheblow,andjustafewdrawnotes.

Slidebump
Asplayerplayaslideoutnote,immediatelybumptheslideinandletitoutquickly,whichletitriseupa
bit.

Slidedip
Asplayerplayaslideinnote,immediatelyletitoutandpressitbackinquickly,whichletitlowerdown
forashortwhile.

Harmonica
Gettingstarted:WhyshouldIPlayHarmonica?|Typesofharmonica|AnatomyofaHarmonica|
HarmonicaPurchasingguide
Playingtheharmonica:BasicHoldingandPlayingaHarmonica|Tablature|BasicChords|Bending
Additionaltechniques:AdvanceChords|Advancetechniques|Selfaccompaniment
Generalharmonicatheory:ChromaticHarmonica|Positions|Tremelo|EnsemblePlaying|Music
Style|LearningSongs|Improvising|Recording|PlayingwithAmp
Cleaningandmaintainence:BasicMaintainenceandCare|AdvanceMaintainence|Harmonica
Modifications|Tuning
Appendices:HarmonicaLayoutsandAlternateTunings|HarmonicaPositionsChart|Blues|Writing
Songs
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