This has been the hardest bad habit for me to break. I decided to break this terrible habit by playing a couple of very slow tunes would be played until my rhythm improved. I never paid any attention to Moon River but listened to it. It was just what I needed. I even like the melody. It is very slow but played on time and with good quality notes I enjoy it. If anyone can suggest another tune like Moon River please let me know. I was shocked how a great harp player told me this tune is great, well known and will require slow play.
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I had (have?) the same issue. Unfortunately, itâs way more âsystemicâ than just a psychological urge to play too fast.
Iâll go out on a limb and assume you mostly (only) use tabs (without the sheet music stuff that dictates the pacing), and as such such itâs super hard to know which notes are which length - I had to relearn a tune like 5-6 times because I got âexperiencedâ with it, only to realize I learnt it wrong.
what helped me:
Abandon tabs-only for tunes. use tab+sheet music combos. tabs by themselves are only useful for explaining licks and learning simple tunes such as happy birthday
Also the whole âtapping your feet/rocking your body/etcâ - thatâs not jut for show, itâs an ongoing struggle for me.
Hopefully that was of some use.
Ooh just remembered: A quick hack I also use to play slower is, imagine you are on antidepressants/didnât have your morning coffee/have fog-brain, and are âtired/slowâ - that helps me slow down
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Youâll get over it. Play fast now, and teach yourself to play tabs at the speed they should be played at.
Get it out of your system!
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Try âWonderful Worldâ by Louis Armstrong. Great slow tune to play on the harp!
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Yes, indeed a great slow song that sounds like it was made for the blues harp! I play it regularly and always get good reactions from the listeners â I think everyone over the age of 25 or 30 recognizes it.
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I know. Once you start playing the harmonica itâs hard to put it down. Bad habit. LOL! Slow tunes give you a chance to get beyond technique and begin to experience the music - and understand the deeper reasons we do what we do. An extreme dynamic range and constant flow like the waves on the ocean can add amazing expression, emotion, feeling, and joy to any melody. Then you will never put the harmonica down again. 
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I use tabs to learn the note layout and after that play the tune without them. I listen to the song to see how the rhyme sounds relative to how I play it. Tabs help with learning the music but after that its 100% listening the tune many tunes. I have always been this way unless I was paid by the hour.
With regard to tapping my foot I do it now even when I do not plan to do so. I am no music guru and learn by doing and turning mistakes into a learning experience. A music sheet is helpful, especially when lyrics are involved. Thanks Scott
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I am hooked and practice at least two hours a day. Never played an instrument and started at 68. Playing tunes like Moon River is painfully slow at the beginning but it forces me to slow down, way down. I play a wide variety of songs, especially those I know the lyrics. I also pick songs that require I play up and down the harp. I am very close to getting Moon River right and when its close its most enjoyable.
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I picked this one up early on and it is a tune that requires slow play. It took awhile to play it correct but I finally got there. Good choice.
Bullseye!
I agree but Luke may not like what will slow me down. Its not a manufactured drug but what works works.
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@scott4 Hey bro no judgement here man. If youâre playing 2 hours a day then I applaud you. Keep it up!!! 
Slow and steady wins the race! Or, as I like to put it: the faster you wanna grow, the more you have to go SLOW! 
Moon River is one of my favorite songs of all time. Really fun to play on a country-tuned harp.
Amazing Grace of course is a great song to play slow as well.
And Over the Rainbow. Also, really fun to play on a country-tuned harp.
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Hey guys, just been reading through the threads on playing too fast. All comments have been great and useful to me.
I have/had issues with tabs only and needed sheet music to help.
I was missing the yardstick of the groove of all things to help with rhythm. I also needed time to find my notes, so slow tune workouts helped with that and breath control.
It also helps if you can feel the tune, an âear-wormâ from the past. Iâm 75 and just starting the journey, so most of my tunes are from the 60âs vintageâŚ
Adding âIts a wonderful worldâ to your list of slow tunes.
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Luke
Thanks! I play all three. I started with over The Rainbow as I was familiar with the song. It also makes a new player move around the harp. Moon River is my favorite and I am getting closer to to correct rhyme. I try to play Amazing Grace with each verse in a different position. O K results. It seems getting the correct rhythm correct is the hardest part of any song. Country Road is another I like. All are just fun and everyone seems to know them and all fit the harp just right. I just play what I like and never thought a musical instrument was in the plan. Father time has taken many of my favored past times and the harp could not have come at a better time. My doc says my lungs are very strong as well.
Got it as well. It is another that forces me to slow down, play it as written and its really easier when I do.
I am not that far behind. I never smoked cigarettesâ or cared for drinks. Just did not like em. A Sunday School boy I am not. I like the older classics as well. Age is a number that my doc can worry about. Its what he is paid to do. I exercise and eat pretty well. I have cheated death three times so every day is an extra so I just enjoy not knowing what time it is and many times what day it is. I had a couple of lifetimes of flights, deadlines, stress and traffic, 3.5 hours a day. In other words after raising three kids and sending them through college the rest of my time is focused on practicing and playing with a couple of toys and doing what my boss, AKA wife wants.
Luke What position do you play Moon River in or what is your favorite?
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2nd position on a country-tuned harp! Same for Over the Rainbow!
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Same issue. What I do first with every jam (specialy with the songs that I knew) is listen a few times what the hell is Luke is playing and get the rythm inside me. Then I can play along the jam, even though Sonny Boy Williamson is still turning in his grave when he hears me!!!
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