True life stories, jokes, funny emails, creative writing or anything about harmonica.
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Written by G.
This piece was inspired by a discussion on Harp-L of whether the harmonica was a good instrument to pick up and learn, and it was being compared to the guitar at some stage.
A lonely wind blew down the dusty way, blowing a lone tumble weed along its road to who knew where. The wind, it whistled and sung a tuneless song to no-one in particular, in a remote and hushed town.
But wait ! In the very distance a tempo can be made out, the sound of chordal tongue
slaps....
OUR HERO Harp struting confidently from corner to corner - his ten holes
proud and clean from smegma, his chrom covers shiney and new glinting in the high noon
sun. His reeds singing true to ev'ry blow & draw.
Who could challenge such a musical soul, who would dare to call a showdown ? Who would want to cut down such a fine young instrument near its prime .....?
All of a sudden as if from no-where, the strum of ill tuned strings rings horrid through the air. The Arch Nemisis Guitar jumps in front of our hero blocking Harp's way with its formidable bulk, dark & intimidating.
Harp involuntarily chokes on a reed, but spits out a 3-6 octave in disgust.
Guitar stares down twanging chords resounding in his fat belly. So a show down it is!
T'was Harp Vs Guitar
Naught stirred but the distant tumbleweed, even the wind seemed to die down in astonishment at this turn of events ... the madness and what it meant.
Harp's thoughts raced, to compare oneself against such a long standing instrument, a
formidable foe, how would he compare ?
He lost in the popularity stakes, every man and his dog had a guitar.
In size he was but insignificant, ten of him would fit in the belly of such a beast !
What of the unquantifiable qualities, how would they compare ? The tone, the chords,
expression and soul ?
But his thoughts were shattered as a G string snapped and stung him on the comb !
Guitar had drawn first blood and the fight was on.
Harp could do little but duck and weave as Guitar flailed at him with his six strings. His situation was growing grim.
For some time this went on, Guitar would strike and Harp would duck. He could only hope that his giant foe would tire, but his covers were marred, his shiney finish spoiled by savage scratches.
"Enough!" thought Harp. He blew a long sustained overblow (hole 1 if you must know) so true and proud!
And one by one, in different keys came the replies from his buddies. Until a full dozen rang out loud - a full chromatic scale solid and ruddy.
Guitar halted in his tracks, sure this was not fair. But as a chromatic stringed instrument he was on his own, and against 12 diatonic harmonicas the tables were turned.
The scene was heroic, worthy of legends, as harp after harp threw himself at the beast.
Bruising the wood, denting its finish, tangling his strings, until his neck was broken and his bridge a mess.
Guitar lay strewn on the dirt street, as a lesson to future instruments that the harmonica can't be beat!
A soldier stationed in the South Pacific wrote to his wife in the States to please send him a harmonica to occupy his free time and keep his mind off of the local women.
The wife complied and sent the best one she could find, along with several dozen lesson & music books.
Rotated back home, he rushed to their home and
through the front door.
"Oh darling" he gushed, "Come here... let me look at you...
let me hold you ! Let's have a fine dinner out, then make love
all night. I've missed your lovin' so much !"
The wife, keeping her distance, said, "All in good time
lover. First, let's hear you play that harmonica."
3M Micropore medical tape has proven very useful in improving airtightness in harmonicas (esp. diatonic short harps).
An innocent enough question:
Hi all,
Just curious. Does anyone know how safe Micropore really is when
used as a gasketing material?
In response Barry B Bean in his infinite wisdom wrote:
I understand that when lab rats were forced to play harmonicas sealed
with Micropore for 21 hours per day that they developed severe
chronic gas pain, became huge Kenny G fans, and could only be
sexually aroused with teh use of mechanical aids. On top of that, the
began to show male pattern hair loss and gained weight.
But the bright side is that they were able to overblow after an
average of just 100 hours of concentrated practice
BBB
To which Doug Steding couldn't resist adding:
This is an interesting phenomenon; if the rats only played for 20 hours they developed all the above symptoms but couldn't even bend, not to mention overblows. So, be sure to get that 21 hours in-I'm starting tonight, in five days it'll be overblow city, and umm, well,
I'll deal with the other side effects later.
Remember, the dose defines the poison.
Doug
And Samuel J Gravina mused:
Amazing, I didn't know that there was a strain of rat's that
congenital Kenny G fans.
And pushed on its downward degenerate spiral by Jerry Kitich with:
Did they say which mechanical aids? Soprano saxes? Salad tongs?
Hitting rock bottom when Kevin R. Larkin tossed in:
Damn, Barry, those are pretty much the same symptoms my wife developed
listening to me play...and I don't play for anywhere near 21 hours a day!
KL
Footnote: 3M Micropore medical tape is regularly used in hospitals in many applications.
Copyright 1999 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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Dot Horn, a member of Deborah Heart and Lung Hospital's Better Breathers Club, breaks out laughing as she plays with her new harmonica as part of a breathing exercise at the Browns Mills, New Jersey, hospital.
December 2, 1999
Web posted at: 10:07 a.m. EST (1507 GMT)
In this story:
Group offers emotional, educational support
The sweet sound of therapy
RELATED STORIES
BROWNS MILLS, New Jersey (AP) -- When members of the Better Breathers Club blow on harmonicas, it is more than just music to their ears -- it is therapy for their disease-weakened lungs.
The lung patients at Deborah Heart and Lung Center are learning how to use the tiny wind instruments to perform breathing exercises while playing notes. It is the first time that Deborah has tried musical therapy to help patients strengthen their lungs.
"This is wonderful," Dot Horn, 75, said after her first lesson last week. "I think music adds to anything. It's a nice way to live life."
About 22 patients -- all members of the Better Breathers Club -- gathered recently for their bimonthly meeting at Deborah, located on a sprawling 55-acre campus in the Pinelands near Fort Dix. They suffer from ailments ranging from lung disease to emphysema and asthma.
Group offers emotional, educational support The group, formed 6 1/2 years ago at Deborah, provides emotional and educational support to patients and their families. There are hundreds of Better Breathers Clubs around the country.
"It's easy to get a conversation going because you basically have the same problems," said Larry Sabatini, 65.
After an hour long closed-door meeting to discuss personal health issues with lung disease specialists and each other, the group assembled in an auditorium for their first harmonica lesson.
"This is going to be the Deborah Harmonic Band," joked Joe Koszyk, a nurse counselor at Deborah. "We're going to be featured with the Mummers," referring to the famous string bands from Philadelphia.
The sweet sound of therapy
A Hicksville, New York, businessman donated 36
harmonicas to the group, and Koszyk, who
coincidentally already knew how to play the
instrument, gave instructions. Before they began, the
group first practiced breathing exercises to
strengthen their diaphragms and help get more oxygen
into their lungs.
The harmonica is excellent therapy because the inhaling and exhaling required to sound music are the same breathing exercises respiratory therapists teach patients to use when they are short of breath, said Nell Kapeghian, a nurse who oversees the Better Breathers Club.
"It's something you can take with you everywhere. It's great," Kapeghian said.
The patients -- many carrying oxygen tanks or inhalers -- were eager to try out their new equipment in their battle against diseases that often make breathing difficult. Their goal is to increase lung capacity by strengthening the lungs, diaphragm and respiratory muscles between the ribs.
"You look like you're eight years old and you got a
new toy," said Linda Ferguson, a pulmonary technician.
"It just kind of makes you feel like a kid again."
Koszyk instructed the group on how to carefully breathe into the tiny holes on the harmonica. They also practiced inhaling, or drawing air into the harmonica, to make different sounds.
A few occasionally paused to cough up phlegm.
"If you're having a problem just relax; don't force it. Let go," Koszyk cautioned. "In time, it'll be much easier."
The mood was upbeat in the auditorium. Some patients were almost giddy -- overcome with fits of laughter at their initially awkward attempts to make melodious sounds.
"I loved it," said Angie Philbin, 63. "I felt a little high. I felt really good."
After a few exercises learning the musical scale, the group was ready to move on and try their hands at a song. Koszyk used an overhead projector to display the notes for "Michael Row Your Boat Ashore" and the group was harmonizing in minutes.
"Sounds good," praised Koszyk.
The patients took the harmonicas home with them with instructions to practice. They want to come back for more lessons, although Deborah officials had only planned a solo performance.
"I feel better. I really do," Helen Wills said. "I think maybe the breathing in and out helped."
Sabatini said he plans to learn how to play the harmonica with his wife, Dot, 60, who accompanied him to the meeting at Deborah.
"We can do a duet," he said. "Then when I get good I can do a solo. I like the sound of it."
Deborah, founded in 1922 as a tuberculosis sanitarium, today specializes in diagnosing and treating heart, lung and vascular diseases in adults, and acquired and congenital heart conditions in infants and children.
This was posted during a long standing debate about the overblow or overbends a contraversial technique to make more notes available on Diatonic Harps.
From: Turbodog
To: harp-l@foo.garply.com
Sent: December 11, 1999 07:35
Subject: Getting There
This is a comment to Paul Messenger a post relating to Howard
Levy's obsession to explore all the various harmonica "issues."
Paul conveyed Howard's sentiment that he's not "there" yet.
And this reminded me of a story, call it folkore, of the late great Pablo Casals.
As the legend goes, Pablo was well into his
eighties and was continuing to practice 6 hours a day on his
cello. A young player stopped to ask, "Mr Casals, you are already
the world's greatest cello player, why do you continue to practice
so hard? Why not take it easy in your old age?"
To which Pable replied, "But I think I'm making progress!"
Now I'm sure my memory of this is a bit distorted, so
please forgive me if I messed up the details of the story. But the
sentiment is preserved. Its truly awe inspiring to be reminded by
these great's that their accomplishment is not just luck of the
cards, but is comprised of intense passion for their instrument,
and persisting hard work. (I've got to remember this next time I
get the urge to give up on those blasted overdraws.)
TD
Turbo Dog has
contributed great innovations to the harmonica world.
Check it out.
Jack Ely reflects on when harpists usually got their first axe...
A Harmonica Satire... Reprint - from December 1992 Harmonica Dispatch and Harp-L December 1993, 94, 95. Returning to Harp-l in 1999 after a few years absence with the hope that some new readers may enjoy this. Those who have read it before... Suffer again! J Solution to a childhood mystery? (Hmmm..... maybe)
DO YOU REMEMBER YOUR FIRST HARMONICA? Most of us admit to getting our first harmonica around the age of 6 or 7, maybe a little older.
But think back; way back. Was there a harmonica in your life even at an earlier age? A friend and I were musing this possibility the other day and we think we figured out what really happened. How many of you, in your teen years say 15 - 18, found a harmonica in an old dresser drawer or some other obscure storage place like an attic chest or cupboard?
You either didn't remember where it came from or maybe vaguely remember having one of these way back when you were just a toddler 3 or 4 years of age.
You probably didn't think much of it and proceeded to actually learn to play the instrument, even adding more harmonicas to your collection - a habit that continues to this day for most of us.
Well, we theorize that every child in the world received their first harmonica by the age of four, no later. And here is what REALLY happened. It didn't take us long to put the thing in our mouths (as we did everything we got our hands on then) and accidentally discover that it made noise (no - sounds, by gosh, it's music) when we breathed through it.
More experimenting revealed the capability of producing sound when we breathed in or out through this fascinating new (excuse the term) toy; and that the volume increased in magnitude the more holes we got our mouth around. Now you remember don't you? - Blow, Draw, Blow, Draw, Blow, Draw, Blow - you never had to come up for air, this was wonderful! You couldn't do this with dad's fluegelhorn! Wow man - Draw, Blow, Draw, Blow, Draw - Honk, Squawk, Screech, Rack, Sploot, Rasp! - Music to my ears! Ecstasy!
Music? Well, not to adult ears. No, nope, not! That first harmonica very soon mysteriously disappeared. The average life cycle being, I would guess, less than 24 hours. Search as we might, we could not find that wonderful gift we had found in our Christmas stocking early that morning. "Mom, Dad, have you seen my harmonica?" "Why no dear, we can't imagine what could have happened to it." - Years later, when long forgotten, the little instrument re-surfaced and the joy of the harmonica, which would last a lifetime, was discovered anew.
H A P P Y H A R M O N I C A
from: Jack Ely
The Buckeye State Harmonica Club
Q. Why does my dog howl and moan at the sound of a harmonica?
J.T., Walpole
A. Time to take those harmonica lessons you've been putting off, J.T.
Actually, it has nothing to do with how well or poorly the harmonica is being played. Dogs don't howl, as some think, because a sound is hurting their ears. Those howls are the ancient cry of the wolf still embedded in your dog's genes.
Dr. Nicholas Dodman, director of the Animal Behavior Clinic at the Tufts Veterinary School, explains that dogs howl in response to sounds that trigger vestigial biological responses that were part of their ancestors 10,000 to 12,000 years ago, when most scientists think our human ancestors tamed wild animals into the dogs we know today.
Back then, the wild canid predecessors of today's dogs probably used howling "like smoke signals, a kind of long-distance relay to carry messages farther than just one voice could,'' Dodman says. ``The message probably wasn't very complicated. It was likely, `I'm here. Pass it along.' Or something simple like that."
Then, our human ancestors bred our dogs' ancestors to do the things humans wanted them to do, like protect them and their livestock, and stop doing things they didn't want them to do, like eating humans. Barking around the campfire for protection at night when something stirred in the darkness was a good trait. Howling all night keeping the humans awake, and calling in their human-eating relatives, was not. So those traits were bred out as wolves were domesticated.
The breeds that still howl the most, like the Siberian husky and the American Eskimo, weren't bred as much to become docile, quiet domestic pets, but rather to keep some of their useful wild animal traits.
Domesticating dogs also bred a lot of the intelligence out of them. Juvenile wolves are playful and friendly but not nearly as smart as the adults. An adult wolf, on the other hand, is a veritable animal Ph.D. compared to most dogs. But we bred dogs to be like juvenile wolves: safer to be around but not as smart.
But though we bred most of the howling out of them, we didn't eliminate it entirely. So when dogs hear a sound that triggers that ages-old response, they howl back, ``I'm here.'' Lots of sounds set them off, including a harmonica, another dog's howl, or even a human howling at the dog.
Dodman says you can take a pretty accurate census of the dog population in his hometown when the fire department siren goes off.
Courtesy of the
alt.music.harmonica newsgroup.
'Re:Meanest Cheap Mic/Amp Combo'
B.B. Bean
Man, I once knew a harp mic and amp combo so mean they'd
kick your ass just for lookin' at 'em.
They used to steal food from little old ladies and make
babies cry just for grins.
B.B. Bean - Have horn, will travel bbbean@beancotton.com
From G
Hell Barry,
Dat aint mean! *Spatooey!*
Now! DI'S iz MEAN ....
I once knew a harp mic an' amp combo so mean it'd kick your
ass to next week, jus' fer fun.
I once knew a rig so tough it'd tear pool tables in 'alf wid
its bare cabs,
I once knew an amp so cruel dat it'd make hardened harley
bikers cry buckets juz by starin' 'em in the eye,
I once knew a mic so rough dat it'd strip paint off dem
walls with a single riff,
I once knew a harp with da devil's own bluez howlin' out
sewz dat we 'ad ta draw dem pentagrams around da bar stools
jus' so we's weren't dragged down to da 7th plane ov hell by
de river Styx only t'be torchured fer all eternity by
Bealzebub's minions, demonz an' all !
Man! Now DAT iz wat I'z calls a MEEEEAAAAAN rig!
Top DAT, sucker! :-)
Harpin' in Wellington, New Zealand
G
https://www.angelfire.com/music/HarpOn
thats.... AngelFire baby! All da way from my mouth organ!
:)
BluesDogg sayz
LOL yaw have got the meanest baaaads rigs out there.
You don't even have to go to a bar to get your ass kicked
with rigs like that you can stay at home and get a azz kicking :)
So G say
Heck! I gotta keep that sukka in da basement BEHIND bars to
stay safe in me own home! :))
G
Barry Bean juz cum rite out an' say
Shoot - they wrote a song about my amp/mic combo:
You see my amp comin,
you'd better step aside
Cause a wimpy solid state
is about to get fried!
AND THEN... CafeMojo show'd us who da boss!
I once heard tell of a harp mic / amp rig so
tremolus and ferocifyin' that the last cat that turned the master volume up to
3, ...ain't nuthin' left of him but his fingerprints
on the knob.
One time another cat attempted to play
a Toots Thielman riff on it, ...rig fried him on
the spot, ...wasn't nuthin' left on the stage
but a small greasy spot and a faint whiff of
burnin' hair.
They say da Rig lived down in Nawlins just off Rampart St., ...in a roomin'
house owned by the seventh great granddaughter of Marie Lavou.
The rig's cab sides was made out of carved
High John de Conker root and the knobs
wuz made o' polished black cat bone the color of wombat teeth.
The sides were covered in a purple lookin' type o' hide
dey said wuz the dried scrotums of 13 hell hounds.
Had a handle on top made out of a petrified wolverine pecker and a cobra-skin
powercord.
They say da rig wouldn't ever let nobody ever play it cept dis one cat named
Lou Cypher dat everybody called Ol' Scratch. But not da kinda scratchin day
talk abou today, dis was way way back afo' all dat hipityhoppin stuff nowadays.
...say when ol' Louie fired that rig up and began to play the blues that the
tubes inside the thing started ta glow like they was da firey bowels of the
devil's own bunghole and that it had a tone so wicked bad that 3 major
religions considered just hearing it a excommunicable sin so greivous that the
only other rig of it's kind known ta exist is believed to be kept in a special
vault buried under the Vatican.
Other folk say it made a tone so sweet it'd make evah crack ho on Bourbon St
put down dey pipe and go ta Church 24-7.
There have been rumors of other sightings of the rig over the years, some folks
say it was seen once at a Johnny Sansone show down in the Quarter, somebody
else said it was seen another time when Jerry Portnoy played at Tipitina's. Yet
others swear it was onstage the last time the late Nat Riddles played Dan
Lynch's Blues Bar in NYC before he passed. Others testify that it was seen at
Muddy Water's funeral and still others say it can often be found at midnight on
full moon's in the backseat of a long black Cadillac parked at the crossroads
of Hwy 61 & Hwy 49 just outside of Clarksdale, MS.
There's an old blues dude dat lives down in Clarksdale, named Wade Walton, runs
a jookjoint barbershop,...he told me one time that ..."you look around all you
want but you don't find dat rig boy...if it meant ta be, dat rig FINDS YOU!"
Then ol' Wade looked at me real serious and said,
"You ever come up on dat rig...it one thing ta look at it, or even touch da
knobs, ...but you pick up yo harp...you gotta ask yoseff
...is you man enuff ta put cho mouth on it?
HA-Ha-HA-Ha-HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!"
You blow da blues on dat rig boy, you be
mo dan sellin' yo soul...you gon be blowin' on da Devil's Own Harp Rig!!!
You better hope he don ketcha!!!! HAHAHA!
**********************
And this concludes tonights scary campfire story here at CafeMojo Blues
SummerCamp!
Now everybody get some sleep now, we're getting up early tomorrow for Harmonica
Hoodoo merit badges!
Q. What do you call an irritating git who hangs around with musicians?
A. A harmonica player!
Q. Why do dogs howl when harmonica players play?
A. They're trying to tell them how the song goes.
Q. What do you call a harmonica players accompanist?
A. Fido.
Q. What do the best harmonica players have in common?
A. They all suck.
Q. What do you call a harmonica player who doesn't step all over the
singers's lines?
A. Deceased
Q. What do you say at the end of a great harmonica solo?
A. Thank God.
Q. How many harmonica players does it take to screw in a lightbulb?
A. Five. One to screw it in and four to determine if it should be in
straight or cross position.
Q. What do you call a harmonica player who says he knows what notes he's
playing?
A. A Liar
Q. Why do harmonica players say they play a "harp"?
A. So you won't think they play a "harmonica"
Q. Which is better: electric guitar or harmonica?
A. Electric guitar. You can't beat a harmonica player to death with a
harmonica.
Q. What do you call a harmonica player in a brand new suit?
A. Dearly departed.
Q. How Many Harmonic Players Does it take to change a lightbulb?
A. Don't worry about the changes man, Just blow!
Q. How do you know there's a harp player at your front door?
A. He doesn't know when to come in and he can't find the key.
Q. How to harmonica players traditionally greet each other?
A. "Hi. I'm better than you."
Q. What do you call a groupie who hangs around and annoys musicians?
A. A harmonica player.
Q. What is the difference between a harmonica and a '57 Chevy?
A. You can tune a '57 Chevy.
Q. If you threw a guitar player and a harmonica player off a cliff, which
one would hit the ground first?
A. The guitar player. The harp would have to stop halfway down to ask what
key they're in.
Q. How do you get a harp player to play softer?
A. Give him some sheet music.
Q. What do a vacuum cleaner and an amplified harmonica player have in
common?
A. Both suck when you plug them in.
Q. How many Harp Players does it take to change a light bulb?
A. None--they just steal somebody else's light.
Q. What is the perfect pitch for a harmonica player?
A. When he tosses the accordeon over the piano and hits the banjo with it.
Q. What does it mean when a harmonica player is drooling out both sides of
his mouth?
A. The stage is level.
Q. How many harp players does it take to change a lightbulb?
A. Five. One to change the bulb and four to contemplate how Little Walter
would have done it.
Q. How many harmonica players does it take to play a solo
A. One hundred. One to play and 99 to say "I could do that".
Q. Why do harmonica players say they play a "harp"?
A. Harmonica is a four syllable word.
Q. How many Harmonica Players does it take to change a lightbulb?
A. Only one, but he'll go through a whole box of bulbs before he finds the
right one.
Q. What does a harp player do in his life's most tender moments?
A. He puts his reverb on "slow".
Q. Why were vintage guitar amplifiers invented?
A. So the harp player would have a place to put his beer.
Q. Why don't Guitar players suffer from piles (haemorrhoids)?
A. Because all the assholes are playing harmonicas.
Q. What's the difference between a Guitar and a Harmonica?
A. No-one minds if you spill beer on a Harmonica.
These two harmonica players walk past a bar...
Well, it could happen!
A blues musician dies and goes to heaven. He is told "Hey man, Welcome! You have been elected to the Blues All-Stars of Heaven--right up there with Muddy and the Wolf and Freddy King, all the greats. We have a gig tonight. Only one problem--God gets to play harmonica."
A Guitar Player says to his wife, "Oh, baby, I can play you just like my guitar." His wife replies, "I'd rather have you play me like a harmonica!"
There was a certain bartender who was quite famous for being able to
accurately guess people's IQs.
One night a man walked in and talked to him briefly and
the bartender said,
"Wow! You must have an IQ of about 140! You should meet
this guy over here."
So they talked for a while about nuclear physics and
existential philosophy and had a great time.
A second man walked in and soon the bartender has guessed about a 90 IQ for
him. So he sat him down in front of the big-screen TV and he watched
football with the other guys and had a hell of a time.
Then a third man stumbled in and talked to the bartender for a while. The
bartender said to himself,
"Jeez! I think this guy's IQ must be about 29!"
He took him over to a man sitting at a little table back in the corner and
said, "You might enjoy talking with this guy for a while."
After the bartender left, the man at the table said,
"So, do you play Cross or Straight harp?"
This harmonica player dies and goes to heaven. There's a long line at the
pearly gates, and some dude is going around telling folks in line that they
can check out Hell while they are waiting for their spot by just going over to
the red elevator over there (points).
"You know, if you don't like it, just get back on the elevator and come back up." so,
the guy thinks to himself, "hey, gotta check it out...maybe it ain't so bad after all."
so over he goes, gets into the elevator and down he goes... the elevator stops,
he gets out and the Devil himself is there to show him around.
So, off they go and pretty soon, he's thinking to himself that maybe this ain't so bad after all...they stop
in at a nightclub, and there's a great little band inside who's playing their
asses off. He spots some famous folks he knows...
"Hey, ain't that Little Walter over there?" They leave, and he finally asks the Devil,
"Wow, those cats were smokin'. This place is great! But one thing... there's got to be a
catch to this... What is it?" The Devil turns to him and says, quite
matter-of-factly,
"No solos."
A poem by Sylvain Guehl
En Francais:
Le baiser bleu
Lorsque je rentre le soir au crépuscule
Et que ma soif de vivre me paraît bien loin
Je monte l'escalier derrière la vieille pendule
Afin de retrouver celui que je quittai au matin.
Il est là, reposant sagement sur le lit drapé
Attendant simplement que je décide par moi-même
Si ma peine n'a pas besoin d'être consolée
Ou s'il doit me faire oublier tous mes problèmes.
Alors, mes mains agrippent l'arrière de son corps
Et je peux sentir sa chaleur sous mes paumes
L'émotion m'emporte, je le serre si fort
Qu'en nous se mêle l'esprit du même fantôme.
Doucement, mes lèvres se posent sur sa face
Laisant passer le souffle qui nous joint
Ma gorge en vibre d'un plaisr presque cocasse
Mais notre harmonie en ferait rêver plus d'un.
Au moment où ma langue, par un accord commun
Le rencontre et par là-même accentue le flux,
Je ferme les yeux et profite de ce tendre besoin
Ce désir d'exposer mon âme et de me sentir nu.
Dans ces rares moments d'intimité illusoire
Nous formons un couple heureux qui se fond,
Et l'on peut entendre l'amour et le désespoir
Dans l'entité musicale qui transcende notre union.
Ô Dieu, je ne connais pas de plaisir plus grand
Ni même d'émotion plus forte que celle-là,
Celle qui naît lorsque mon cri jaillit du néant,
Lorsque je pleure au travers de mon harmonica.
And translated into English
Blue Kiss
When I've found my way at twilight
Toward what little I call home
I climb up the stairs and stay quiet
For I'll find my friend there alone
Here he is, lying on the bed
Waiting for me to decide
Either my sorrow isn't led
Or he's to show me the right side
Then, I put my hands on his back
Warmth still growing in my hands
No one has ever known just what
We feel when mingling till the end
Slowly my lips come to contact
As we join in a single breath
My throat shimmering in the act
This dream would only stop in death
And when my tongue in harmony
Touches him and quicken up the flow
I close my eyes and look in me
For any need I want to show
In this rare times of privacy
We're an happy mingling couple
You'll hear love and despair only
Because we share all in double
Oh God, there's not any greater joy
Nor feeling stronger than this art
Born of shouts blowing out of void
When I cry through my dear blues harp
Hope you all like it.
Syl
Visit Syl's Website for more of his creative expression.
...A Primer.
by Lame Mango Washington (attributed to Memphis Earlene Gray with
help from Uncle Plunky, revisions by Little Blind Patti D. and Dr.
Stevie Franklin).
A cautionary tale to new harmonica players venturing into the dangerous world of tongue blocking!
"Jim" wrote in message
Learning to tongue block has to be the most frustrating thing for me.
Was it easy for others? When did you reach that "Ah hah" stage, and how?
Any pointers?
Jim
"Bill Drake" replies
Jim .... Be careful of what you wish for.
To make a long story short, I started harp with just the usual pucker.
Started playing some single notes. Learned to bend and all that.
Then I read about tongue blocking.
I practiced and practiced no matter how unnatural it felt for me.
Then it happened.
Pretty soon that was all I was doing. It was like sticking my foot in my shoe.
It was the only way the harp would go in my mouth.
I stopped puckering ... altogether!
Apparently I had practiced it so much that it started flowing over into my other activities:
On a personal note, I am grateful both for Bill's candid admission to this stigmatic problem,
but also for sharing his experience with us so we may avoid this terrible tragedy for ourselves.
So, Thankyou Bill, I realise you need to take one day at a time, but know you have our support.
G.