I hear several U Tubers give advice, much of which is good, on how to improve and get the most out of the time you spend playing the harp. I play different scales but my biggest focus is playing single notes consistently. What has worked best for me is learning about 10 songs and then getting the rhythm down. I pick songs that I like but every new one I try to tackle is more difficult. I start and suck but after a week or two the pieces start to come together. It seems like I will get a portion of the tune down but there is always a portion that slaps me around until I practice enough to improve of this potion.
The first one I really got down was Country Road, timing and all. Like the other songs I liked it but after trying to play it got intimidated but putting 50% of my practice time into listening to the tune I felt I would eventually win. Have a couple more on the list and I am trying but these two will be slow in coming. Point is this has helped me more than anything else. If someone has a better suggested method I would like to hear about it. Patience is not my virtue but persistence is.
Slowly slowly catchee monkey is my Method, I tackle everything as slow as I can. This also works for accuracy and building up on speed. I get things to the point where itās really difficult to play them slow. Repetition is also a big thing. I apply about 90% of methods I learned in martial arts breathing, patience, co- ordination practicing something over and over until I stop thinking about it and just play it. Another method I use is visualisation I visualize myself playing a part that is difficult and I keep doing that until I hear it in my head. Once I get the tune in my head I can play it.
@scott4, I donāt know the answer, but Iām doing pretty much the same as you and hoping thatās enough.
I donāt like to ask many questions because I feel like the answer might be, " Hey Papa Curly, I got a suggestion for you, why donāt you pay some money and take a course, ya cheapskate". So, I no complain.
Play things you like playing.
Little and often.
Learn to play it right, not kinda ok.
Donāt get disheartened, it sounding easy and it being easy are not the same thing.
I am the same way and frankly have no choice given when I am with the harp. I am still trying to get the toughest line down first. It is over and over until I can go through it with no tabs, etc and the rhythm is correct, then the next. My background is baseball and billiards, with the latter being a waist of time. It extremely tough and gives nothing back. Father time took baseball away. Music is something I never did but listen to and it does help when you can replicate the song as is should be. I have about ten tunes down now but unless I try to learn more difficult songs going forward I will stagnate. Sorta like weight lifting in that if you lift the same weight over and over your strength will slow to a stop.
@scott4. We seem to be on very similar paths. I learned āNobody does it betterā the James Bond theme song, sung by Carly Simon, just because itās difficult and as you say, in order to move forward. It switches up and down from middle notes to high notes so itās a bit of a stretch for me. Iāve got it bedded down, but I still find it difficult. I think it good to push yourself enough that its breaking new ground but not so much that it breaks your belief.
I 100% totally agree. Biggest mistake a person can make is not pushing themselves. I learn much more from mistakes than I do on the occasion things go well. Your comment on moving up and down the harp is the criteria I used when selecting the songs I wanted to learn at the get go. Sounds like you might have surprised yourself, well done. I am trying to learn El Pasa Condor for the same reason and I like the tune. Practicing the the single notes that require moving up and down the harp is fantastic learning method, especially when there are many high end draws. If you got this far you will have the tune down and really clean up the rhythm. That is when it really is fun to play a tune. Try the long version of the theme song for Dances With Wolves. Its on U Tube and a really nice lick. I am trying to get more of it down but this one is going to tack lots of time and persistence. Pushing yourself is what will get you up the latter. I learn from mistakes and practice after listening a song many times. I started playing about 18 months ago and knew nothing about playing music. It is fantastic medicine and a great way to keep your mind working as well. I am hooked. Its going to snow in central Texas today and I plan to just sit and practice as I dislike just setting around.
Keep pushing yourself up and if you try the sound track mentioned above let me know what you think. I well know its going to take me a while but those who get back up after many mistakes are the ones that wind up good players.
Yes, we should push ourselves, but we want to have fun also. Iām not sure what the right balance is. Iām probably trying to do a bit too much at the moment.
I have seen the movie, Dances with wolves, and enjoyed it but was not familiar with the theme song. Iāve looked it up now and agree it would sound good on a harmonica. El Condor Pasa I am more familiar with but holy smokes, it looks difficult. If you can play it, I congratulate you. A good one for me for the future but Iām already stretched. āCatch the windā is my latest but thereās a few that Iām working on.
Snowing in Texas! are you kidding me? Thatās something I would not have expected.
It snowed most of the day and may tomorrow. I left for a vacation a couple of summers ago and it was 106 F and it got down to 0 F the following winter when we fly in from a vacation. If you are coming to SPAH this August I can say with certainty no coat will be needed and it will be hot. San Antonio is a nice place and the food great.
El Condor Pasa is not as tough as the DWW theme song. The first line can be and was for me intimidating but its coming along. Like all the other tough ones you have to move up and down the harp and there are many high draws. These notes no longer intimidate me as Luke strongly emphasized that easier is better. His analogy of using almost enough pressure to almost blow out a candle was very helpful. I/M/O there are many hints and brief comments that are very helpful in his coarse. His comment on playing high notes lightly was worth the price of admission.
The DWW track is something and will take much time. My son lives in Peru and ECP is one of the Peruvians really love. Iāll get this one down but getting al the lines in memory is going to take months. How about trying the first line in ECP as once you get this on working the rest will fall in place. When my son and his wife come into the states hopefully I will be able to play ECP well enough to pull out a harp and play it. I am retired and very few friends know I started playing the harp. If I ever get good enough Iāll surprise them as I am the last person that they would suspect to be able to convert air to tolerable music.
I am going to stick with the get tougher tunes approach. Its my only hope for playing something well. Stick with it and never give up no matter how tough a song may be. I have little talent but persistence is my virtue. When I ask my wife to paint something for me I ask her and end my request by saying " might as well agree " as Iāll ask about a painting until I get it and it always works. She is a fantastic artist and I want a oil painting of an Indian shooting a bison on horseback. She agreed and it will be hung over a authentic plains Indian short bow picked up circa 1860. My daughter already has but her name on it. My wife was a great flute player but has no interest in it. It must have come to her very easily as her entire family plays an instrument.
I suspect you will surprise yourself in 6 to 8 months by how much your approach moves a player up the curve. Keep us posted.