[stewy baby]

i just got my new harmonica neck rack and i was just wandering if any one has a few good little exercises to practice to get a feel for the whole thing. i can play my harp great without it but when i try to play the guitar as well it all goes tits up. also does any one have a harmonica tab for dylans all along the watch tower.

cheers in advance

[dadfad]

Just start off slowly and do simple little harp-fills as you play. Straight-harp (simple Dylanish and folkish-style harp) isn't too hard to get started into (it's hard to hit a "wrong" note playing straight-harp (harmonica is in the same key as the tune). That's the easiest to begin with. Then get into cross-harp (used for blues and rock'n'roll, etc more. Harp in the key of the IV-position of the key of the tune. For example: E-blues=A-harp; G-blues=C-harp, etc. Cross-harp is based more on draw-notes than blown-notes like straight-harp is). For that practice playing simple 12-bar shuffles slowly as you work on simple chugs at first and then warbles and bends, etc. It doesn't take too long to be able to play simple but decent rack-harp that enhances your solo guitar-work quite a bit. Of course doing advanced techniques on a rack take a little longer, just like in learning hand-held harp. Good rack-harp is a skill of its own. I'm at that level somewhere between "simple but decent" and "good" (probably closer to the decent! ) Probably the best rack-harp player alive is a guy named Paul Geremia, who can play any melody and advanced technique flawlessly while simultaneously playing extremely complex guitar or piano.

Anyway, like most things musical, it's just a matter of more practice. Have fun!

[stewy baby]

Just start off slowly and do simple little harp-fills as you play. Straight-harp (simple Dylanish and folkish-style harp) isn't too hard to get started into (it's hard to hit a "wrong" note playing straight-harp (harmonica is in the same key as the tune). That's the easiest to begin with. Then get into cross-harp (used for blues and rock'n'roll, etc more. Harp in the key of the IV-position of the key of the tune. For example: E-blues=A-harp; G-blues=C-harp, etc. Cross-harp is based more on draw-notes than blown-notes like straight-harp is). For that practice playing simple 12-bar shuffles slowly as you work on simple chugs at first and then warbles and bends, etc. It doesn't take too long to be able to play simple but decent rack-harp that enhances your solo guitar-work quite a bit. Of course doing advanced techniques on a rack take a little longer, just like in learning hand-held harp. Good rack-harp is a skill of its own. I'm at that level somewhere between "simple but decent" and "good" (probably closer to the decent! ) Probably the best rack-harp player alive is a guy named Paul Geremia, who can play any melody and advanced technique flawlessly while simultaneously playing extremely complex guitar or piano.

Anyway, like most things musical, it's just a matter of more practice. Have fun!

thanks dadfad. another quick question. probably just me being stupid but what the bloody hell is c#minor harp

This post has been edited by stewy baby: 12 April 2006 - 12:09 PM

[Grizzly Adams]

I'm not Dadfad but I'll give it a go. As you may have noticed, harmonicas come in different keys. A C#m harp is simply a harmonica in the key of C sharp minor.

Did my harmonica tab for Watchtower not do you any good?

Putting the guitar and harp together is difficult and takes practice. Most of the songs I learned on harmonica+guitar I have to be playing the guitar to do it, without the guitar, I don't know how to play the harmonica part. So I caution against not practicing solo-harp stuff enough. I have no technique on playing just the harp. Tom Petty's "Mary Jane's Last Dance" is a great tune to play with. I played the harmonica part for some guy at an open mic last night.

[stewy baby]

I'm not Dadfad but I'll give it a go. As you may have noticed, harmonicas come in different keys. A C#m harp is simply a harmonica in the key of C sharp minor.

Did my harmonica tab for Watchtower not do you any good?

Putting the guitar and harp together is difficult and takes practice. Most of the songs I learned on harmonica+guitar I have to be playing the guitar to do it, without the guitar, I don't know how to play the harmonica part. So I caution against not practicing solo-harp stuff enough. I have no technique on playing just the harp. Tom Petty's "Mary Jane's Last Dance" is a great tune to play with. I played the harmonica part for some guy at an open mic last night.

cheers for that mate. your tab was fine but i just thought i would post in here too as nobody goes in the other instrument QnA. did you get that tab for watchtower from a book? i am looking to buy a dylan book at the moment

[Grizzly Adams]

I just get the melodies from songbooks and make my own harp tabs for it. I got the "Anthology" Dylan book, and as far as the guitar parts goes, it's pretty shabby. Don't get me wrong, all the songs are doable, but it's not exactly (sometimes not even close) to what he's playing. But I get use out of it by lifting the melodies from it to play on harp. If you're looking for Dylan guitar stuff, I suggest you save your money and find the www.Dylanchords.com zip file that's floating around the internet. The site took down all the tabs when the big Music Publishers Association scare was going on but there's a zip file out there with all the stuff on it.

Seriously, has anyone else purchased that book and tried to play that version of "Shelter from the Storm"? Just doesn't sound right at all. I've got my doubts about "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues" too...

[dadfad]

Playing harp against a minor tune can be done in several ways. PLaying in what's often called "Third-Position." (On a harmonica, "positions" are the most common way of playing it, related to modes. First-Position is "straight-harp," second-position is cross-harp, third is minor, etc). You can also use other harps to work on minor tunes but third-position is the most common but others can be used as well. Different harps offer different notes. A third position minor harp is the harp in the key of the note two frets lower than the tonic of the minor key on a guitar on the same string. A key of tune is Am uses a G-harp, etc. Em would use a D-harp. But other harps have some notes available as well (like Neil Young's "Heart of Gold" in Em. He used a G-harp.)

To make all of this minor-harp stuff easier (a little easier) with more useable notes, etc on a single harp, Lee Oskar started making harmonicas in specific minor-keys (and in both straight and cross minor-keys). You can buy a Lee Oskar C#m harp for example. A regular key of B harp made by anyone would also give you some useable notes as well when playing in the key of C#m. Minor harp is a bit confusing at first. I don't play that much in minor keys myself (I don't care for that many minor-key tunes anyway). I have a couple of Lee Oskar minor-harps, or I'll just use a 3rd-pos harp (two frets lower). If I happen to be playing "harp-only" (hand-held, not rack and guitar) I'll usually use a couple of different harps for the same minor tune, using selected notes from both.

Don't let it get confusing. You can worry about the intricacies a few steps on down the road. For now, here's the basics for using the right key of harmonica for different styles:

Examples:
Straight (1st pos) Tune in A, harp in A -(same string and fret as tonic-note)
Cross (2nd pos) Tune in A, harp in D -(same string five frets up as tonic note)
Minor (3rd pos) Tune in Am, harp in G -(same string two frets down from tonic note)

[stewy baby]

Playing harp against a minor tune can be done in several ways. PLaying in what's often called "Third-Position." (On a harmonica, "positions" are the most common way of playing it, related to modes. First-Position is "straight-harp," second-position is cross-harp, third is minor, etc). You can also use other harps to work on minor tunes but third-position is the most common but others can be used as well. Different harps offer different notes. A third position minor harp is the harp in the key of the note two frets lower than the tonic of the minor key on a guitar on the same string. A key of tune is Am uses a G-harp, etc. Em would use a D-harp. But other harps have some notes available as well (like Neil Young's "Heart of Gold" in Em. He used a G-harp.)

To make all of this minor-harp stuff easier (a little easier) with more useable notes, etc on a single harp, Lee Oskar started making harmonicas in specific minor-keys (and in both straight and cross minor-keys). You can buy a Lee Oskar C#m harp for example. A regular key of B harp made by anyone would also give you some useable notes as well when playing in the key of C#m. Minor harp is a bit confusing at first. I don't play that much in minor keys myself (I don't care for that many minor-key tunes anyway). I have a couple of Lee Oskar minor-harps, or I'll just use a 3rd-pos harp (two frets lower). If I happen to be playing "harp-only" (hand-held, not rack and guitar) I'll usually use a couple of different harps for the same minor tune, using selected notes from both.

Don't let it get confusing. You can worry about the intricacies a few steps on down the road. For now, here's the basics for using the right key of harmonica for different styles:

Examples:
Straight (1st pos) Tune in A, harp in A -(same string and fret as tonic-note)
Cross (2nd pos) Tune in A, harp in D -(same string five frets up as tonic note)
Minor (3rd pos) Tune in Am, harp in G -(same string two frets down from tonic note)

damn. you guys know your sh*t. thanks. i know the sort of thing youron about grizzly. i have a beatles harp book and it is complete rubbish.