Not sure if I’d ever use them anyway but just knowing blow bends are there, but not having them in my bag, makes me crazy 
I can get a bend with some intense concentration but this oscillation frustrates me. I feel I’m holding everything steady but they persist. any hints would be appreciated.
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Not sure but it sounds to me like you’re blowing way too hard. There are many here who will know the answer. I would try practicing playing the note straight very very quietly until you nail it then very gently bend it.
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Hi @RussSkyman, it’s almost there, work on your embrochure a bit more and try not to blow too hard. I find when I do this I almost sound if I’m making the sound ppiipt with my Iips I’m not sure if this is anyone else’s experience I would also suggest you Google Jimmy Reed who was a master of this style of playing the top notes of the harp.
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@RussSkyman just had a blow and my tongue is curved downward and I’m blowing from the back of my tongue at the top of the curvature. I use a pretty tight Embrochure to prevent air escaping I’ve found you can also do it with a “teo” sound in your mouth which may be a little easier. Personally not a thing I use much if I want the Jimmy Reed sound I blow Bend from 8 up and I only do about a bar of that if it fits what I’m playing, and it’s in keeping with the song.
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I have been blowing very lightly but the thing that has helped was the tip from @andy2 regarding the TEO sound. not the sound itself but the tongue position needed to form that TE sound. tongue up against the back of the top teeth. thanks dude 
It’s gettin there.
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Now hold on thar Baba Looey! I thought it wasn’t possible to bend 7.
You’re all messing with me.
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dang @papacurly I wish you’d a told me it wasn’t possible before I did it . perhaps you were thinking of #5 which doesn’t bend in any real way?
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Really glad I was able to help, I know it can be done as I’ve done it a few times accidentally it’s not something I use much if at all tbh, the same as overblows I can do them but it’s rare I do them, I suppose they are just extra tools in the box.
I played with some friends yesterday and they’ve said how much better I’ve gotten and quite literally it’s down to all the folks on this site so you are in the right place to learn stuff. This site and the people on it are very supportive and I’ve found all the harp players I’ve met to be the same so don’t be afraid to approach a harp player and ask him about his style, his gear and approach etc
Blow bends are getting stronger but I’ve noticed my draw bends seem to have suffered. apparently my tongue gets confused as to which place to be located for which type of bend
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Yes, mate it just takes time to get everything in your head. I would suggest you pick your favorite draw bend and then your 7 blow Bend just keep alternating between the two, then slowly add all the others. It’ll also help you mentally map out the harp. But don’t get to het up or worried about it. I was watching a cool experienced harp player the other day actually have a blank out on stage to the point he took the harp out and asked himself where the hell am I. So even the pros mess it up occasionally. Which is very comforting to us lesser mortals
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@PapaCurly You are correct, the 7 only bends a 1/4 step. (Just like the -5 only bends a quarter step.)
How far you can bend a note is determined by the distance between the blow reed and draw reed on a given hole. Since 5 and 7 it’s only a half-step, we can only get a 1/4 step bend (except on a parrot-tuned harp with lowers the -7 a half-step so we have a whole-step between 7 and -7, and thus we can bend 7 a full half-step down.)
When it comes to blow bends, it seems like people often first have success with getting the 7 to move.
The hardest blow bend is the 10’ - it requires a lot of finesse to play that buggah in tune!
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I’ve been working on other areas and not spending much time on this lately but I do have a nagging question: is it extra easy to “overshoot” on blow bends? I get a decent bend on 7 and 8 now, others to a lesser extent, but find I have to consciously hold back on an extended bend or risk going past the bend and into a weird oscillation-distortion. I’m sure more time will cure this organically but I’m just curious if others have also experienced this. BTW… yes, even when using just a gentle breath. thanks
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@RussSkyman Just slow everything down don’t rush it, that’s how I improve accuracy. Blow hole 1 slowly go up blow 10. blow hole 2 slowly go up blow hole 9 and so on, there’s simply no rush. Then start to vary 1 - 9 2-10 7-3 and so on it improves your accuracy no end, then try a tune. I’ve learned some pretty complex stuff just by slowing it down. I’m not sure but for song now I think there’s an app that slows solos down without losing tone, I’m a dunce when it comes to tech, but I’m sure someone on here probably uses it
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@andy2 I just spent an hour or so playing improv over a Bm sad slow blues backing track with my A Sp20 so, ya… everything I play is slow at this stage
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