I’m gonna chime in on something that is helping me at this stage in my playing (beginner).
I, like you, am able to bend on multiple holes but I’m not getting consistent tones nor am I hitting the notes consistently.
Yes the better bend tool is helpful, however here is what I’ve been doing for the last two weeks and my bends have gotten better than they had the last 3 months:
About a month ago I went to the 2 below harmonica.com complimentary lessons and I practiced the riffs and read the tips every day for 10 days
Once I had them down I played with the phrasing as follows:
In any phrases that have a draw -4 I picked a drw -4 note to extend a little longer and I bend it and return it. I don’t stop and analyze it nor do I think too much about it and I definitely don’t judge me as a player based on the results.
It takes the conscious out of it and lets the subconscious do its job
It’s also much more fun than sitting and just bending over and over at a tool. That said, I went back the the tool this past weekend and I am hit my bends with better consistency. I’ll keep practicing those riffs and won’t go check the tool for 2 more weeks
I also wrote a few riffs that use draw -6 and I’ve added the same concept.
@chris3 good to hear you had a -2’ bend moment. For me all those technique tricks taught everywhere never really helped. The only thing that made it clicked for me was taking my -1’ bend, that I got instantly, and taking it to other holes on a G harmonica. On a G harmonica, once I had that mouth position for the -1’ and using it on other holes, it was just about playing with tongue position. I find practicing all the bends (half step, whole step and minor 3rd) much easier on a G harmonica. It is also far easier to differentiate -3’, -3’’ and -3’‘’. And then once I had it on a G harmonica, I moved up to A harmonica and then C and then D… The only thing is that on C&D the -3’ I need to use a very different mouth and tongue position to get the half step bend. @cloves-fibs0f I do both. I also practice a lot of tunes which includes bends, also repeat the Blues scale daily and also work with the Bend it better tool.
Thanks for the detailed explanation of your practice regime Mugen. This is interesting to me for a couple of reasons and i’m definitely going to adopt some of your techniques. The first thing that struck me is that we are alike in as much as we both found the -1 draw the easiest (i’m assuming therefore you found the -4 draw the hardest?). According to many people (including Luke and JP) this is counter to most people’s experiences who find the -4 the easiest and the -1 the hardest, like yourself i got the -1 draw almost instantly. The second thing that was interesting is that you found it easier to bend on a G harp. I could be wrong here but im pretty sure i’ve heard it said that the lower the key the harder it is to bend but i’m going with the theory that like the -1 draw bend, we are mixed up people who find the opposite to normal to be easier
Anyway as I am lucky enough to have harps in G, A, C and D i’m going to give it a go exactly as you have done, and i’ll let you know my progress
@chris3 “I could be wrong here but im pretty sure i’ve heard it said that the lower the key the harder it is to bend”
yes I think I heard Luke saying something like this in a lessons.
My experience is that on a lower key harmonica you have to pull the tongue more to bend. Just like to bend on a -1 compared to -4 (or even more so -6) on a C harmonica. This might be the exact reason I find it easier on a G harmonica = I can just pull my tongue to the max without thinking and I get a bend on all the holes of a G harmonica. But if I do that on a -6 on a C harmonica, I just get an air flow sound. I have to be far more gentle with the pulling. But on a G harmonica I did not had to worry.
That said, at first the result was that on a G harmonica I was getting a -2’’ and -3’‘’ or -3’‘. Not the half step bend. But once I got those bends, I practiced from there still on the G harmonica to restrain and be more gentle. With some practice I could differentiate -2’ and -2’‘. On the -3, I still have to be cautious in order to get a -3’, because if I’m not I immediately go to the -3’‘, but I can fairly easily do -3 -3’ -3’’ -3’‘’ on a G harmonica (hitting the right bend playing a riff is a different story).
Now for me overall the hardest bend is the -3’ (and maybe the -6’). The -6’ because as I said you have to be very gentle and I easily pull the tongue back too hard. The -3’, because the way I do it on a G and A harmonicas do not work at all on a C harmonica. I hit directly the -3’‘’. I have to use a different embouchure. I called that a “donald duck draw” as it sounds like I’m doing a duck sound (if I take the harmonica out and blow instead of draw). Luke has a better way of saying it: “you have to make your mouth more narrow and forward” on those key, but he confirms that the difficulty with the -3’ is that it is different on all key harmonica.
Anyway, yes if you also find -1’ easier on C, you might be in the same situation that it is because you are also naturally pulling the tongue hard and working on G harmonica first and then moving up the keys might help.
Hey guys - regarding keys, the lower the key THE MORE BIG AND DRAMATIC mouth movement is required. For most that equates to being more difficult, but for some it’s actually easier.
A theme being echoed here is the FACT that when we are learning a technique we’ll get it, and then lose it, get it, and then lose it again. As frustrating as this is, it’s good to remember that it’s a normal part of learning ANY new technique on an instrument, and it will be cured eventually through perserverance and curiosity.
I’m exactly here: “when we are learning a technique we’ll get it, and then lose it, get it, and then lose it again. As frustrating as this is, it’s good to remember that it’s a normal part of learning ANY new technique on an instrument”.
I would argue that it’s part of learning - anything-. In sports too for example. It’s not because you have reached a strength level once that you mastered that level and will be able to constantly repeat that performance.
It is indeed a process. Regarding bending, every time I lose and have to work to get it back I feel that I am learning something new.
Hi all! OP here,
You’ll get there eventually, after lots of trial and error and help from Luke’s amazing “happy birthday” youtube video, I managed to play single notes and bend. It’s all in the “inner air chamber” of the mouth, try saying “Yaa” while moving your jaw forward.
There’s always more to learn though, I just realized I’m not actually tongue-blocking lol
Hi all! So, I have a question. In the above song, I’m using this ambrachure.
This isn’t puckering/lip pursing right? Here, the note I’m playing is on the left side of my jaw/mouth, not in the center. Also, my mouth opening is not a “small round hole” but elongated.
Since then, I’ve also experimented and am now to tongue-block happy birthday (where the tongue actually touches the harmonica hole/hole sides). HOWEVER, with the “real” tongue blocking, how the heck do people actually bend? I’ve had good success with my above technique, but with tongue blocking the tongue is used for well, “the blocking”
I’m not 100% certain how I do it, and unfortunately it’s very early in the morning here so I don’t want to wake the wife or neighbors, hard to tell from the pic is your tongue on the harp or not or are you blocking with your lip (I used to call it cheek blocking) if so it’s a very similar technique but without the tone of a full tongue block. I’ve some unexpected errands to run today. But (depending when I get back) I’ll have a go on my harp and see if I can work out how I do it. But I sometimes do not know how I do them I just play them. A friend a few weeks ago asked me how I did my overblows, until I later went on the Internet and looked up what an overblow was, I didn’t really have any idea, I must have done them once in the moment and I’ve done them ever since.
Sounds like you are getting very close. I try to slide the harp from a bend on 4 to three and am getting better at it but mastering bending to the point it sounds very good will take much more time than just activating one.
Are you raising the back of your tongue up? A light draw on 4 and slowly moving your tongue back slowly will help as this makes the back of your tongue raise up, reducing the size of the passage… You will feel air rushing through a smaller area. At this point play KA to activate the bend. Dropping your jaw should help create a small round hole and is good for isolating a single note. Bending is like explaining to someone how long a short piece of rope is. Just practice and it will happen.
Hi @yuriythebest bending whilst tongue blocking sorry fory the late reply to this had to get time when there was no Neighbors in and my wife was busy doing her hair.
So as far as I can tell if I’m pursuing I move my tongue slightly upwards for a bend. And for a tongue blocking bend I seen to draw from the back of my throat pulling the air under the back of the tongue? I think this is what I’m doing, I’ve tried to break it down as best I could I’m blocking on hole five draw bending on four, and then keeping my tongue in place on hole 5 then rocking over to hole 6 and doing the same on the opposite side this takes a bit more effort, especially when your trying to break it down slow. (And yes I have been putting my finger on the hole where my tongue is to find out exactly where I am, sorry just not used to breaking down stuff and explaining it )
I’ve only been learning Harmonica for a few weeks and had my toung in every part of my mouth except tied in a knot until this ah-ha moment. my mouth eventually learned how to do it without the audible slurp so that’s even better https://youtu.be/21slGQLNICc
My bends are pretty ugly to with the exception of the first step on *3. My -1 bens reminds me of a ship whistle coming into harbor in San Francisco bay. A deep, low and dull sound. When I was trying to tackle this I would lock up a reed. What I was doing was going through the bend.
Yes, I did exactly the same when I used to try it, tbh I only tongue block 4,5,6, now I use the side of my mouth on 1,2,3 . When I do octaves slaps flutters etc I use my tongue, for speed I pucker, it’s really this hybrid form of playing I like. I have heard quite a few Harp players ( Rick Estrin and Jason Ricci among them) who say if you solely tongue block you can sound a bit samey, and if you solely purse you can sound a bit thin? But there exceptions to those rules, Howard Levy and Paul Butterfield were both pursers totally different players totally different and beautiful sounds, in particular I love 'Butter’s" playing as undoubtedly he had an amazing tone and all that experimentation he did with Indian and Middle Eastern tunings was just gob smacking. It took me forever to learn tongue blocking and a lot of patience and practice ( and I still practice hard on it to keep it sharp.) I’m pretty pleased with my style now, but I may start shifting positions and try tongue blocking those lower notes on the bends and just gradually add them when I can do the right and get more confident with them.
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