Easter Holiday Over

Nearly finished the Easter holiday and have had plenty of time to practice the harp. I've got my groove back and found it huge fun. I've tried to get some triplet runs going (in the style of Paul Butterfield) with some success. What else have I done? Ah yes I've slowed music down to help me figure it out. Adam Gussow plays some fast runs which I've sort of got but the speed is still massively beyond me. Now, as the new term looms, I have my traditional mouth ulcer-a-thon which makes playing painful. Oh well, at least I've had a few weeks off from them! Still completely neglecting the chromatic I just can't get my head round it so I'm using it for just 1 song in the set at the moment -And She was.

And that's it!

Yay

I finally plucked up courage and sent a short message and video clip (of the solo in Grapevine) to the outstanding harmonica player and teacher Adam Gussow. I was really pleased that he was kind enough to reply and also greatly encouraged by his comments.

Thanks for your thanks, and the clip. You've got a strong groove and decent tone--loud, solid. Actually, you've got very good single notes. You're definitely not playing mush-mouth harp. What you need next is some vibrato. I'm glad I helped you find your way to third position. You're definitely the sort of player whom I would urge to keep at it, rather than somebody who I would point towards basket-weaving or the like. Not everybody inspired by my videos actually has enough talent to make it worth their while, but I think you do. Keep having fun! Thanks again.

Yay!