HARMONICA WORLD
AUGUST - SEPTEMBER 2021
Harmonica.co.uk
President: Paul Jones Vice-President: Ben Hewlett vicepres@harmonica.co.uk Patrons: Lee Sankey, Adam Glasser
Contents 4 Chair’s Message 5
News Update
Executive Committee
6 Events
Chair: Pete Hewitt chair@harmonica.co.uk
7 AGM
Vice-Chair: Richard Taylor hove.actually@ntlworld.com Secretary: Davina Brazier sec@harmonica.co.uk Treasurer: Phil Leiwy treasurer@harmonica.co.uk Committee Members Membership Secretary: David Hambley memsec@harmonica.co.uk 7 Ingleborough Way, Leyland, Lancs, PR25 4ZS, UK +44 (0)7757 215047 Publicity: Sam Wilkinson publicity@harmonica.co.uk
8
10 A Sense of Music, an interview with Amanda Ventura 12
Ben Talks Harmonica
14
125 Years of the Marine Band
16
Teach to Learn Harmonica
18
Building Amps
20 Reviews 24
Matt Walklate
27
Virtual Chromatic Weekend
30
Late ‘60s cult film leaves mark on harmonica’s Power
32
Publicity
34
History of National Harmonica League/ HarmonicaUK
IT: Barbara Tate* Tremolo: Simon Joy* Editor: Barry Elms editor@harmonica.co.uk Assistants to the committee Education: Dick Powell edu@harmonica.co.uk Health: Rollen Flood* Archivist: Roger Trobridge gopher@internet–gopher.com *Use the contact form at harmonicauk.com/about-us
Ice-pick James Harman
36 An interview with Victor Bøsling 38
Classifieds
HarmonicaUK membership The subscription year starts in January UK - Annual subscription/renewal £20, under 18s £10 Join Oct–Mar £20, April–June £15, July–Sept £10 Europe - Annual subscription/renewal £25 Join Oct–Mar £25, April–June £19, July–Sept £13 Outside Europe - Annual subscription/renewal £30 Join Oct–Mar £30, April–June £23, July–Sept £15 Five Year Membership UK £90, Europe £113, Outside Europe £135
Cover: Amanda Ventura
August - September 2021 • Harmonica.co.uk
3
Hello everyone, My goodness, there is so much to report on! Our Virtual Chromatic Weekend was a great success, with many top players from around the world joining us for the event. There is a full account later on in this magazine, but I must offer my sincere thanks to the artists, planning team, sound and technical engineers, archivists, and presenters who made it happen. It was a brilliant team effort. Likewise, I would like to thank you all for your generosity, you certainly did dig deep to support our artists.
CHAIR’S MESSAGE
Our Annual Festival and AGM will now take place online between the 15th & 17th of October. This is a significant event because as well as staging a wonderful festival, on the Friday, when we have our AGM, we will also be launching our re-brand of HarmonicaUK including our brand new IT system and website. There will be so many improvements to the charity as a result of this. Additionally, we will be unveiling our 6 new ambassadors to HarmonicaUK who will spearhead our renewed focus on outreach. I can’t begin to tell you how much work has gone into getting ready for our October reveal, but it will certainly be a significant event in our history. I’m pleased to report that we have seen a positive trend in new members and I would like to thank everyone who has helped make this possible. Lets’s keep up the momentum in demonstrating that the harmonica really is the best instrument in the world! As I draw to a close, I am sad to report that Eva Hurt has decided to step down from the committee due to personal reasons. Eva has been a popular and very capable committee member. I am glad to report that she will stay on as a helper. 2021 is certainly panning out to be a year of positive change and enormous progress. I hope you are all enjoying the summer and are enjoying the work of our organisation and its volunteers. Happy Harping,
Best wishes Pete
4
The magazine for HarmonicaUK
Welcome to the August issue of Harmonica World. My thanks to all our contributors for writing some great articles for this issue of Harmonica World, and the fantastic editorial team for putting everything together - there wouldn’t be a magazine without them all. Please note that there was an error with the diagram in the article on page 19 of our June/July magazine. Please refer to the electronic ISSUU magazine for the correct diagram.
NEWS UPDATE Barry Elms Editor
At Harmonica World we always need volunteers to write articles or reviews, or generally to help out. For articles we need either 300 or 600 words, ideally in Word or Pages format, and some photos or images to go with them if possible. If you’d like to help or submit an article, please get in touch by email. Finally, we are always on the lookout for short news items for this page - please send them in by email. editor@harmonica.co.uk
A message from HarmonicaUK member Jim Davies: I’ve got a lot of good friends in the lovely, wounded town of Bad Muenstereifel, all made through the Town Twinning Association. The town has been savaged by the floods, roads ripped up, people swept away, bridges destroyed, no power, no water and no phone lines. Three of my friends have had their cellars flooded - they say they’re lucky! https://ashfordtwintowns.uk/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bad_M%C3%BCnstereifel Ashford Folk has played their Carnival a few times, Morris sides, beekeepers, archers, and choirs have all been out there. I’ve included the crowd-funding appeal set up by Ashford Twinning Association, please give what you can. https://justgiving.com/crowfunding/bm-flood-appeal and will be organising other fundraising events so please keep following this page. Any thoughts on a fund-raising event muso people?
August - September 2021 • Harmonica.co.uk
5
SPAH Convention: 10–14 August 2021. Charlotte, USA. Currently planned to be a virtual festival: https://www.spah.org/content.asp?contentid=138 HarmonicaUK Annual Festival: 15–17 October 2021, UK. Confirmed as a virtual festival Wisconsin Annual Blues Harmonica Festival: 19 November, 2021, USA. Currently planned to be a physical festival: www.eventbrite.com/e/wisconsin–annual–blues– harmonica–festival–2021–tickets–84058736945
EVENTS CALENDAR Neil Warren
HarmonicaUK Lockdown Sessions: typically run weekly, virtually: www.harmonicauk.com/lockdown–sessions/ Mundharmonika Live, 14–19 September, Germany: https://mundharmonika–live.de/
SPAH Week 2021 Join us for SPAH Week 2021, 58th Annual SPAH Convention, online 10–14 August 2021, featuring OVER 60 hours of live and recorded, world-class performances, seminars, and technical sessions, including: • The Blues Blowoff - a live show, hosted by Mark Hummel, with several great blues artists • The Music-City All-Stars, with PT Gazell, Buddy Greene, Charlie McCoy and more • Jason Ricci w/Joe Krown • Featuring: Billy Boy Arnold w/Eric Noden, Christelle Berthon, Cy Leo, The Haymakers, International Youth Show, and many, many more • 25 seminars on chromatic, diatonic, and MIDI harmonicas, as well as repairs • A Sponsor & Vendor room • 8 hours of Joe Filisko’s Teach-in • Plus: time to visit with friends Brought to your home by SPAH and its sponsors Registration/details: www.SPAH.org Blues Blowoff: $15 Convention: SPAH Members only $100 Annual SPAH Membership: $50/year Registration proceeds go to our artists Please note: performers and teachers are subject to change.
6
The magazine for HarmonicaUK
HarmonicaUK AGM HarmonicaUK Committee Notice of Meeting The Annual General Meeting of HarmonicaUK (formerly National Harmonica League) will be held at 7pm on Friday 15th October 2021 using Zoom video conferencing facilities. Sign up for a free account at https://zoom.us/ or download the app. Go to 'join a meeting' at the appropriate time and put in the meeting: ID 942 3074 7187 password 185909.
AGENDA 1. Welcome 2. Minutes of the previous AGM and matters arising 3. Reports and accounts 4. Proposed amendment to the constitution (section 4) 5. (Re)election of committee members Pete Hewitt, Richard Taylor, Sam Wilkinson, Phil Leiwy, Davina Brazier, David Hambley, Barbara Tate, Simon Joy & Barry Elms 6. Member proposed resolutions 7. Any other business If you are unable to attend the Zoom meeting, please appoint the Chair as your proxy by emailing sec@harmonica.co.uk before 13th October 2021, stating your membership number if known. Papers for the AGM can be found at www.harmonicauk.com/agm and include previous minutes, reports and accounts, draft amendments to the constitution, and brief profiles of existing and proposed committee members. In addition, there is a proxy voting form and a committee member nomination form. There are at least three committee vacancies, so please consider whether you would like to stand yourself or nominate someone to carry out this valuable work. The main committee meets online about six times per annum and you will also be part of a subcommittee. A minimum commitment of two hours per week is expected. We are also seeking ‘helpers’, so please express an interest if you have expertise in events management, digital technology, graphic design, education, youth work, outreach or administration. Contact chair@harmonica.co.uk for an informal discussion.
August - September 2021 • Harmonica.co.uk
7
ICE-PICK JAMES HARMAN Keith Parker, Editorial Team
8
Sadly, in May this year we lost James Harman, so I thought it only fitting that this issue’s Heroes of the Harp should be dedicated to James, who in my opinion was one of the best modern day blues harp players and singers. He was certainly a huge influence on me. His history, biography, and discography are well documented, and there is plenty of live footage of him on the net, so I will focus on my experiences around him. I have always been a fan of James’s playing and singing style and, having seen him live a couple of times, know he always had the knack of creating an infectious groove which his fellow band members always fell in line with, which is sometimes difficult to replicate. I first met him at one of Mark Hummel’s legendary harp blow-outs at a hotel in Paris in the early 2000s. Before the show he was sitting at the bar with a drink on his own, so I went over to talk to him, after I had introduced myself and we had exchanged a few harp related pleasantries he said, ‘Now you’re English - tell me what is a Geordie?’ Being slightly taken aback by this question, I did my best to explain my understanding of a Geordie, and apparently he had asked Mick Taylor (of Rolling Stones fame) the same question on an earlier visit to the UK and hadn’t understood. Mick and I, both being Hertfordshire lads, were probably not the right people to ask! We settled down for his show, and he certainly did not disappoint: it was a great performance with fantastic playing and singing, and there was that unmistakable groove. The next time I saw him was a few years later at the Blues Kitchen in Camden London guesting with a British band. This show had been put together with help from my guitarist and friend Pete. Before the show I was introduced to James while he was having his pre-show meal, and he said ‘Hi Keith, I met you in Paris, didn’t I?’ Top Man. The venue was packed with fans and harp players, and I’m sure some of our readership were in the audience that night, but it was here we all witnessed the more colourful side of his character. He was clearly not happy with the band’s groove or something else, but he walked off the stage, never to be seen again, and the band played on without him. It was slightly disappointing, but what we did see was a legendary blues singer and harp player at work - here was a man who had worked in the Blues all his life, who had worked with some legendary musicians both in his various bands and with others. If you look at pictures of him playing, he has one finger hooked over the end of the harp and I think that sums up his life: he cocked his finger to the world, a true Blues man, a one off and fantastic musician who went way too soon and, to use the title of one of his songs, It’s a Crapshoot.
The magazine for HarmonicaUK
Silverfish Harmonicas Full bodied and glorious fat crunch tone with good bass and very very hot
Handmade, artisan microphones that are rich in tone, robust and comfortable to hold
www.silverfish-harmonicas.com • • • • • • • • • • • • •
High impedance Unique rubber O-ring / sleeve to improve hand-seal Two-stage mesh/foam to reduce breath noise Shock-mount design reduces handling noise Robust construction for rigour of touring Volume/gain control – optional 1/4″ (6.3mm) jack connector Great feedback rejection Small and very light weight Stainless steel mesh grille Leather and hardwood finish Holster-style leatherette case Guarantee
http://recklesstram.com August - September 2021 • Harmonica.co.uk
9
Amanda Ventura is a young harmonica player based in the city of Curitiba, Brazil. I first saw her playing on Instagram and was blown away with her “True Blues” style of playing. How long have you been playing harmonica?
A SENSE OF MUSIC
I’ve been playing harmonica since I was 18 years old, so I’ve been playing for six years now. At first, I learned from a teacher in my city called Tiago Juk. After a few months, I continued to study by myself using YouTube including those from the great Brazilian harmonica player Igor Kasuya.
An interview with Amanda Ventura Steve Pardue, Editorial team
What brought you to playing harmonica?
When I was a teenager, I loved a harmonica solo of a song called “Morena” by a band called Scracho. I remember repeating the solo part over and over again. At the time I was studying acoustic guitar, but I was so fascinated by the sound and expressiveness of the harmonica that I switched instruments. What harmonica do you play? I like to play different harmonicas according to the style of music I’m playing. When I play old school blues, for example, I choose a Hohner Marine Band. I love its wood tone and I think the sound suits this style of music a lot. When I want a more modern sound, I play with Suzuki or Seydel models. My favourites from these brands are the Suzuki Manji and the Seydel 1847 Noble. How do you practise? I practise every day. My favourite exercise is to search for cool backing tracks on YouTube and from these I create my own melodies. I just play and have fun. Before the pandemic, I played gigs with different bands from my city. It was such a good experience for me to show people the music I practise alone. How long have you been teaching? I’ve been teaching classes for about a year. My lessons usually start with first learning to play single notes and develop the “embocadura” (embrochure). After the first class, I give my students a simple song so that they start to feel the music, even before they know how to perform the techniques. This helps my students to develop their sense of music and learn to use their ears.
I will play something to them and then ask them to repeat the same notes I played, without reading the tabs. I do use tabs too, but I think developing the ear is the most important thing. After that we learn songs together. I also encourage them to create their own melodies and improvise. I like to create songs and video productions for YouTube and Instagram and [am] constantly building my social media presence. I have always liked photography, so on my Instagram, there are pictures that I take of places and things I like and usually me posing like a model (laughs). Usually with a harmonica though (laughs again). My main influence on harmonica is Indiara Sfair - she’s amazing and so creative with her melodies. I think she has a great sense of music, and everything she does with the harp sounds good. I also like to listen to another Brazilian harmonica player called Flávio Guimarães and also Jean Jacques Milteau, Billy Branch and Dale Spalding. What are your future plans? I will continue to teach and produce music and videos. I also want [to] make an album, play in Brazilian blues festivals, and I would love to travel and visit some blues places like Chicago and Mississippi. My dream is to play with big names of the blues. I think I would be nervous, but I would also feel very happy and fulfilled. Instagram: www.instagram.com/amandaventura YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/AmandaVentura
Here’s My Lockdown (NEW Business) Story What’s Yours? Today I want to tell you a story, my lockdown story. What’s yours, by the way? Schools closed, so my business teaching children collapsed. A few years ago, in its heyday, we had 600 children having weekly harmonica lessons. Gigs stopped, private students could no longer come to lessons, corporate team building gigs got cancelled, and one day workshops in schools also got cancelled, so what to do?
BEN TALKS HARMONICA Ben Hewlett Vice-President
Two things happened: the government was kind enough to come to the aid of self-employed people like myself, and secondly, I was suddenly able to free up a huge amount of time by handing over the HarmonicaUK Chair.
So there I was with temporary financial support, but not much other income. On the plus side, I also had lots of free time, skill, desire (ok, desperation!) and knew lots of people in the harmonica world. What to do? The answer - obvious now - was to go 100% digital. I set up HarmonicaUK coffee mornings and handed them over to David Hambley after a few weeks, and I started doing open Sunday Zoom sessions on April 5th 2020 with three guests, all free of charge. We had pretty good turnouts and some cracking sessions - maybe you came to a few? This was all well and good, but there were mouths to feed, so I embarked on full time study - learning how to create a brand new digital harmonica business. All the years I have been producing book, audio, and, for the last ten years, video tuition got me thinking about how people learn, and I came up with an excellent plan: coaching and mentoring. So now I have a system where the growing group of students (currently 35) meets daily for a limited number of months on Zoom and Facebook. They have daily harmonica challenges to carry out and also weekly and monthly harmonica targets to reach. Each member gets five hours of live coaching and mentoring with me every week, and the whole group, including me, gives each member daily comments and helpful suggestions on their progress within the private Facebook group. I really can’t think of a better way of learning - you get constant support, motivation, engagement, feedback, friendship, challenges, fun, nurturing, and camaraderie as you work through the 90 hours of video and audio book training.
12
The magazine for HarmonicaUK
This is EXACTLY what I wanted to have when I first started learning music - continual support from skilful teachers showing me the way, giving me doable challenges, and watching my back through coaching and mentoring. The current students are men and women from the UK and North/ Central America, so we get a wide range of interests and skills. Some are great players, and some join the program without even having a harmonica. Most are semi-retired or retired, so they have an hour or so a day to play their harmonicas and study hard. It’s daily, intensive, and time limited - I think that’s why it’s proving to be so effective. Why am I telling the HarmonicaUK members? Two reasons 1. It’s becoming clear that I am starting to need help to run the business. Talking to potential new students is something I need help with, and planning and admin are also on the list. I will certainly need to pay people for this help in due course. Interested? Good at sales? 2. It might be that you are interested in joining an intensive learning programme (diatonic only) to really get to grips with your harmonica - finally. HarmonicaUK members get a 50% discount. Here’s what some of my students say: 3. https://benhewlett.wistia.com/medias/mmv2ww20ou Email benhewlett@me.com if you are interested in either, please.
August - September 2021 • Harmonica.co.uk
13
125 years ago, Hohner released what was to become their most popular model, the world's best selling harmonica and possibly the world's best selling musical instrument. This was their model number 1896, better known to us as the Marine Orchestra. Or was it the Up To Date? Or the Orpheus Concert? In fact, it was all of these and possibly some other names too, but the name by which most of us know this instrument is the Marine Band. The name Marine Band was trademarked in both the US and Germany in 1896. In 1897, US patent 588920 was granted to Jacob Hohner, the eldest son of the company's founder. The main focus of the patent was the cover design, which was used on all the 1896 models and a few others, although not on all the other instruments with the name Marine Band. The patent claimed: "Each cover-plate is free from sharp angles or ridges, and hence is as free as possible to vibrate throughout its entire width, as such sharp angles or ridges serve to stiffen the plate and hinder it from fulfilling its function as a sounding-board. This freedom of vibration is greatly extended by securing the cover plates at the ends by lugs or ears, which are separated from each other. Thus, as will be readily understood, each cover plate is held only at four points by narrow lugs and, being without any ribs, ridges or corners, is perfectly free to vibrate throughout its entire length and width, even down to its line of contact with the reed-plate at the front. Such a result adds largely to the power of the instrument and has not been achieved by any construction in harmonicas hitherto known to me. In addition to the above advantages, the curved form of the coverplate permits the latter to extend higher above the reeds about the middle of their lengths, thereby giving more room above them without increasing the thickness of the mouthpiece or producing a clumsy instrument, as would be the case if the front portion of the cover-plate sloped upward in a straight line to the same height and then extended backward in a flat surface, as in those constructions hitherto known. By this increase in the space between the reeds and the cover-plate a larger volume of air, to be thrown into vibration, is enclosed and the power of the harmonica, for that reason, greatly enhanced. Besides this such an enlarged space gives better opportunity for the passage of air to or from the reeds, and hence a purer clearer tone results." This may have been more wishful thinking than solid acoustical science. Cover plates have little in common with the soundboard of stringed instruments, and, once they are in a harmonica player's firm grasp, any freedom of vibration is severely restricted. However, those little gaps at each end of the covers allowed for a tonal projection that was quite different from other
125 YEARS OF THE MARINE BAND Pat Missin
14
The magazine for HarmonicaUK
harmonicas. Originally made from brass, in the early 20th century the covers were changed to German silver (not actually silver, but a copper alloy), then in the early 1920s, they were changed to nickel plated steel. Around this time, the shape of the covers was also changed, from the four narrow lugs of the patent, to the shape that is still in use today. Throughout all these changes, the Marine Band kept the distinctive tone that made it the favourite harmonica for players of all ages, abilities and styles of music. UK harmonica players of a certain age will remember the excitement in the late 70s when the Marine Band was first made available over here, replacing the Echo Super Vamper (although the only difference between the ESV and the MB was the engraving on the upper cover). Finally, British players could have the same harp that was played by Sonny Terry, Little Walter and every other big name in blues harmonica. Unfortunately, we were rather late to the party and the quality of the Marine Band was already starting to decline, and by the time its 100th birthday approached, Hohner's flagship harmonica was just a shadow of its former self. However, this decline was to have an unexpected benefit, inspiring a new cottage industry in the 1990s, the making of customised diatonic harmonicas. Enamoured of the custom Marine Bands built by Joe Filisko and Richard Sleigh, Hohner Consultant Steve Baker wondered if some of the improvements they made to their custom harmonicas could be applied to factory-made instruments. With assistance from Rick Epping and the Hohner R&D department, along with support and encouragement from Product Manager Gerhard Muller and CEO Arthur Chuang, the venerable Marine Band was overhauled and upgraded and is now once again the standard by which all other diatonic harmonicas are judged. For more details on how the Marine Band has changed over the years, please visit my web page on this topic: www.patmissin.com/ffaq/q38.html
August - September 2021 • Harmonica.co.uk
15
Hello everybody! By way of introducing my upcoming harmonica course 'Teach to Learn Harmonica' I would like you all to know that I have had an exhilarating experience during the pandemic teaching harmonica and piano online and very much looking forward to sharing the fruits during August. After many months of lockdown, technical challenges are largely solved and, through the course of teaching, I can now troubleshoot for private students and those at Kingsdale Secondary School (in South London where I have taught 2 days per week through term time) pretty much most technical issues that used to get in our way online, so we can focus on enjoyable and stimulating musical activity. These technical tips will be part of the course. Delivering Zoom lectures on a variety of subjects - Larry Adler, Stevie Wonder and Toots Thielemans (and in particular for the University of Kwa Zulu Natal on the iconic 1960s South African musical King Kong, available now on YouTube) - has led me through a revolution in the way I teach both piano and harmonica. Those who have already attended my workshops have had a taste of this. Especially the importance of tailor-made supplementary material for individual interests - pdfs, audio and video. And my beloved Logic Pro X music software for recording, scoring and transcribing just about anything we might want to learn or explore. A key experience has been working with Harmonica UK member Susie Colclough who is blind. Her husband Dave is well known to members of Harmonica UK as an accomplished diatonic blues player, but Susie – who decided in March of this year to learn the chromatic - is taking a different path. At the suggestion of our Chairman, Pete Hewitt, we began working weekly in April. Our challenge was to find ways of learning from scratch that did not involve reading music or seeing videos and we have come a very long way in a short space of time. Lessons are still ongoing and fascinating for us both. So much so that I will be devoting an entire article to Susie and her harmonica journey in the next issue of the magazine. But I will let you know now that there are 3 key elements to our lessons:
TEACH TO LEARN HARMONICA Adam Glasser HarmonicaUK Patron
1/ They are conducted by WhatsApp phone call on speaker phone (which enables me to play music from my computer). 2/ We exchange harmonica recordings via Voice Memos phone to phone. 3/ The proof that you have learnt a specific exercise or piece of music thoroughly is that you can teach it.
The August course 'Teach to Learn Harmonica' will explore the new, very enjoyable steps a chromatic player needs to follow in order to develop their playing from scratch to advanced, starting anywhere along the way.
Teach to Learn with Adam Glasser • Three Zoom Chromatic Harmonica Workshops • Saturdays 3pm - 4pm 14th 21st 28th August • Free to join - optional donation A radical fresh approach to learning chromatic harmonica online based on new techniques and exercises Adam has developed over lockdown. For detailed course description and registration email: adamgharmonica@gmail.com www.adamglassermusic.com
During the 2020 COVID lockdown in Australia, I formed a Rockabilly/Blues busking trio. This meant returning to an amplified blues harmonica sound, after a break of some decades. I have a fine Lone Wolf pedal which approximates this classic sound; however, nothing beats a harmonica-friendly valve amp. Time to roll up my sleeves and make one.
BUILDING AMPS Tony Eyres
Not entirely silly - I worked as an Electronics Engineer in the 1980s before moving on. I also taught introductory electronics for some years. I figured this past experience would keep me from stupid mistakes. It did not. More on this later. There is a large community, entirely male as far as I can tell, who build classic 1950s/60s guitar amplifiers. The relatively simplicity of these now ancient circuits, mostly from Leo Fender, makes these enterprises feasible. The glorious sound which results makes the effort (and considerable expense) worthwhile. As I am finding, the projects become addictive. Amp builders like myself gather online at the “Shock Brothers DIY Forum”, on TDPRI.com (Telecaster Discussion Page Reissue). Here folk display their projects (some of which are exquisitely well done), and seek advice when things go wrong. Valve amplifiers routinely produce more than 400 volts DC, waiting to pounce on the inexperienced or careless operator. I treat these voltages with great respect, and hence still have ten digits to type with. In particular, I plan and rehearse measurements before turning the amp on, and unplug it once they are done. Capacitors will happily retain lethal voltages after shutdown, so I install discharge resistors to eliminate this hazard. I warmed up, so to speak, on a 1957 Fender Deluxe guitar amp. The circuit is called a 5e3, the kit which I built came from China. The story of this build (and the failures along the way) are for another day. However, it sounds just mighty with my 1950s Gibson archtop, which I play in my new band, along with my harmonicas, the latter in a Seydel Gecko Rack with the excellent Greg Heumann Rackit! featuring his Bulletini mic. The 5e3 build behind me (until it breaks down), I set on a valve harmonica amp to complement my busking rig. My guitar and vocals go through an AER Alpha, 40 watts of incomparable German engineering. This runs from a 500 watt inverter, connected to a 12 amp hour Lithium Ion battery. I’ve only once run the battery down while playing, the day I brought a Fender Champ out for
18
The magazine for HarmonicaUK
my harmonica. So, my valve amp had to draw less power than the Champ. Enter the Champ Micro, a 1 watt version of the 5 watt Fender Champ. The circuit comes from Rob Robinette - Champ Micro builds feature regularly on the Shock Brothers forum. This low powered amp would suit my battery - I figured (correctly as it turned out) that 1 watt would meet my modest busking volume needs. Plus I would be able to drive the amp flat out without the feedback issues which come when a regular Champ is driven too hard. I settled on a 10 inch speaker, a Jensen P10R Alnico, a remake of the classic Jensen speakers which powered the 1950s Fender “Tweed” amplifiers. My build also drew upon my shaky woodwork skills, which were put to use building a cabinet. Blackboard paint gave the project a suitably scuffed look and hid my dodgy woodwork. Reproduction grill cloth and a Fender handle rounded out the look, as the picture shows. But back to the amplifier build. I eventually got the parts together (the Australian branch of Evatco are basing their retirements on my purchases), and soldered and screwed everything into place. When switching on a new amplifier for the first time, a wise safety move is to include a 100 watt light globe in the circuit. Any faults will cause the globe to glow bright and, more importantly, will limit current into the amplifier, thereby protecting the parts. I duly engaged this globe, put safety glasses on, then switched on the amp. The globe went bright for a second, then the circuit breaker at the front of our house went off.
Strike one. I soon realised that major stupidity on my part had caused this mishap and rebuilt the offending part of the amplifier. I turned it on again, the safety globe stayed off, and the house power stayed on. My joy was short lived: smoke rose from near the output valve. I did some calculations, and concluded that a short circuit on the output valve was to blame. Heat-shrink tubing went onto the valve pins, the smoke disappeared, and the amp worked. With a guitar, the Champ Micro produces a bedroom level volume. The harmonica sound is just wonderful - the stage debut was to be my gig last Friday. Then Sydney went into another lockdown…
August - September 2021 • Harmonica.co.uk
19
REVIEWS Martin Brinsford CD An album review by Jim, Editorial Team “Next Slide Please” - Martin Brinsford and Keith Ryan with Gareth Kiddier An Album Review by Jim Davies This is a traditional dance release from three English-based musicians, well versed in English music, but playing mainly Irish music, and also Scots, Scandinavian, and American music. There’s the fiddle of Keith Ryan, the keyboards of Gareth Kiddier, and Martin Brinsford plays the harmonica and our FreeReed cousin, the jaw harp. He also plays us the tambourine, probably the most annoying instrument of all when somebody gets up and thrashes it around out of time, but not here - there’s a consummate use of it, doing what it does best. Martin came to one of the HarmonicaUK Bristol festivals a few years ago, and we had a pleasant time blowing in a session in the café there. I remember hearing the English influences in his playing, so I was surprised how Celtic this collection is. Although it’s a mainly Irish playlist, this doesn’t sound like those fine Irish tremolo players, the Murphy brothers or Noel Battle. To my ears, the sound is Scottish, with the stamp of the greatly underrated Jimmy Shand running through it, but perhaps that’s not surprising - these are top class dance-band players. The harmonica player who comes to mind here is Northumbrian Ernie Gordon, with his Scots influences. In some of the Polkas (such as Hugh Gillespie’s) they sound Mainland Western European rather than British or Irish, perhaps a little more staccato than our styles on these islands. The sharp bite of Martin’s tremolo, cutting through and above and below the fiddle is impressive, using the similar range of the two instruments. He uses the tremolo percussively in some of the tracks, other times the fiddle and harmonica play an octave away from each other, and other times one plays straight while the other does the twiddly bits. The tremolo comes up particularly well in the Scandinavian pieces, the drone of the Hardanger Fjelle being replicated so well by the vibrating tone from the two chambers in the tremolo. They show how tightly they can play, both by the use of the tacet (shutting up for a beat or so!) and also the changing time signatures in “Trowie Burn” and “The Waterman’s Hornpipe”. The chrom gets into the CD too. “The Return of Spring” and “The Mountain Pathway” come from the grand old days of the
20
The magazine for HarmonicaUK
REVIEWS chromatic harmonica, as Roger Trobridge was telling us in the last edition of the magazine. We are hearing the likes of Ronald Chesney and Max Geldray here. The Free Reed family is also represented by Martin’s playing of the jaw harp on “The Lonesome Polkas” and “Tobin’s” then back to the tremolo for “The Frost is all Over”, with a nice change of rhythmical feel in the middle. A call for attention: we need to look after this neglected member of our family. There is some fine understated keyboard on this CD, by England’s own Violet Tulloch, Gareth Kiddier, his rhythmical patterns supporting and driving the tune carriers. Big shoutout here to the producer, Rod Stradling, who has balanced up the sound so well. He’s kept the lively sound. I wonder whether he cut out the sound of Martin’s expelled air and those involuntary throat sounds we make?! I like the way he’s kept a few of the slight speed ups and slow downs that we all do, the feet tapping, the slight fluffs with the endings. He could have faked them out, but he kept them in, so we know we’re listening to humans. A fine mix of Celtic and Scandinavian traditional dance music.
Danny R & Paul Gillings - The Café Studios EP Own label A review by Norman Darwen UK’s Paul Gillings has been steadily and justifiably acquiring a formidable reputation as a magnificent blues harmonica player over the last couple of years. He and singer/acoustic guitarist Danny R recorded this four-track CD EP in Lowestoft, but it may not be quite what you expect. Although the songs themselves may be folk-blues based, rather than a Sonny Terry approach, Paul generally goes for a busy, Sugar Blue-styled approach here, with some quite breathtaking (I mean that almost literally!) sounds at times, though always remaining rooted firmly in the blues. The results are definitely worth checking out, and I look forward to a full-length album if possible! Norman Darwen (www.dannyrpaulgillingsmusic.co.uk)
August - September 2021 • Harmonica.co.uk
21
REVIEWS 28 Tunes Traditional Music for 10 Holes Harmonicas Richter or Customized, by Bruno Kowalczyk, 2020, price €35/£30: A review by Sean Spicer The best thing since sliced bread, or rather since Brendan Power’s “Play Irish Music on the Blues Harp” Introduction by Roger Trobridge - Sean will be well known to people who have seen his progress through the youth competition at Bristol and his success in being accepted as the first harmonica player in the National Youth Folk Ensemble founded by the English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS). Bruno Kowalczyk is the best known Traditional player in France. He was due to appear at the Bristol Festival in 2011 but was taken ill just before it took place. This beautifully produced, glossy 56 page wire-bound book and DVD, charmingly illustrated by Sylvie Ecobichon, is not designed to teach you how to play the 10 hole Richter diatonic harmonica. Bruno wants to show you how to use this type of harmonica to play 31 traditional tunes from around Europe, North America, and the UK, as well as some self-penned items. It is written in French and English. Bruno grew up in a Polish enclave near Nantes and took up the harmonica as a child. He has recorded 4 CDs, and in 2010 he wrote a book about playing Québécois music on the tremolo harmonica. Bruno has two main objectives in producing this book: the first is to encourage the playing of traditional music on harmonica, and, second, to show how ‘unused’, specially customised harmonicas can help you to play tunes which are almost impossible otherwise, such as Swedish songs in a minor key and Cajun songs with style and pieces that might be too high-pitched. You can play 25 of the tunes with a 10 hole Richter low D, a G Richter and a custom B flat (thirds lowered). The inclusion of music for the other specially tuned harps does not mean you have to have 15 customized harps to begin with, but it might encourage you to get some in the future. Each tune has its sheet music and tab, and I liked the footnotes which give suggestions about how you can interpret and embellish the score as well as explaining their history. For example, he learnt some of them as a child when they were played on the accordion by the Polish priest of his village. The crowning glory of the package has to be the accompanying easy-to-use DVD which features Bruno performing each tune accompanied by keyboard, accordion, fiddle and banjo players in his garden and home and even in a horse-drawn caravan.
22
The magazine for HarmonicaUK
REVIEWS He accompanies the Québécois pieces with some nifty foot percussion. You can use the videos to observe his techniques and enjoy the quality of his playing. When you are ready, you too can play along with the real musicians playing the backing tracks without Bruno’s harmonica. There is even some dancing on the DVD which is a great help in increasing your understanding of tempo and rhythm. These videos are worth watching for the pleasure of seeing Bruno perform these songs with friends in his home and garden. The selection of tunes has been thoughtfully made, drawing on music from Sweden, Poland, Finland, the Auvergne, Normandy, Ireland, Scotland, Louisiana, and Quebec. There is a good range of difficulties so there is something for everyone, though it obviously wouldn’t suit beginners. Do you need the specialist harmonicas? I found that I could play the low tuned pieces on a standard Richter, but the minor key ones require a minor key harp. I also discovered by accident that a Paddy Richter tuned diatonic makes some tunes easier to play, though of course the tab will not be the same and you will have to work out the changes for yourself. Some tunes, like Bruno’s composition ‘Ecobiche’, have a considerable amount of note-bending in them and they would be much easier to play on a valved harmonica, something which Bruno prefers to overblowing. Bruno recommends a Suzuki ProMaster MR 350v in low F for the one tune in the book which requires a valved harmonica. A section at the back of the book discusses how to valve your own harmonicas. If you enjoy the technical side, there is plenty for you to get your teeth into and additional instructions are on his website, but if you don’t, there is no need. He also provided notes and tab tables for each of the harmonicas, non-customised and customised, with a list of the tunes where they are required. I really enjoyed playing through this set of tunes and have learnt a great deal, even on just a first run through. Bruno isn’t interested in speed but in developing a traditional feel and expression and the backing tracks are at a speed which allows you to really get into that. I recommend this highly for players who want to develop their repertoire and branch out into new areas of traditional music. You can find out more and purchase this beautiful book/DVD (€35/£30) from Bruno: By email, bkharp@wanadoo.fr From his website, http://bklondike.e-monsite.com/ You can view some of his videos on his YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/user/bptard.
August - September 2021 • Harmonica.co.uk
23
Mat is a professional musician who teaches harmonica and has been playing the instrument for over 30 years. He plays chromatic, diatonic, tremolo, bass harmonica, flute and Irish tin whistle! He started playing harp when, at the age of 15, he heard a Sonny Boy Williamson II track and asked for a harmonica for his upcoming 16th birthday, on which he received a Hohner Pro harp and never looked back. Born in Stoke, Mat moved to Manchester in 1989 to study zoology at university where, along with fellow students, he formed his first blues band Bad Dog. He says ‘We weren’t very good, but it was a great experience’. The allure of music was stronger than that of academia, and his career path changed to music full time. After turning professional, Mat was in a band The Moochers for 10 years, and they toured places such as Holland, Belgium, Germany, France and Switzerland, including a memorable tour of Italy. Mat says, ‘There was no order to the tour, we went from one random place to another. If you had charted our progress on a map it would’ve looked like a seismograph!’ He is also well known for another band, The House Devils, predominantly playing in the traditional Irish music style. Mat’s current collaborations include a duet with singer/ guitarist Alex Haynes: they are presently working on a duet and a full band album of original blues songs, scheduled to be released at the end of this year. He also plays with Dr. Tom Attah, who has a PhD in blues and is a regular on The Blues Show with Cerys Matthews on BBC Radio 2. A session musician, Mat has kept busy during lockdown by recording library work for film and television. Session credits include an 8 Out of 10 Cats episode where
MAT WALKLATE Dave ‘Dogfish’ Colclough, Editorial Team
Jimmy Carr pretended to play harmonica during the famous countdown clock, and most recently a couple of tracks for the Sky One sci-fi series Intergalactic, where he performs the tracks in a wedding scene (it sounds glamorous right? But it was actually filmed on a wooden platform in a forest in the middle of March near Manchester!), he tells me. Mat has been endorsed by Seydel for over ten years, and his main diatonic harmonicas are the 1847 classics with the wooden comb. ‘I have an insane amount of these harps in all keys and low tunings etc., and I can justify every single one!’ he says. He also uses a full set of Seydel Lightnings, which he tends to keep for recording and session work. For chromatic, he mainly uses the Saxony. Mat uses all three techniques for producing single notes: puckering, tongue blocking and also U blocking, where the tongue is curled in a U-shape to isolate the hole. He explains, ‘I use what is best for the situation. For example, I use U blocking when playing a lot of fast traditional Irish music - I can perform triplets easier by moving my tongue slightly to the left and right. However, many a time I use all three techniques in the same song. I think it’s better to have these tools in your armoury so you can use them when the situation requires’. Mat not only plays Irish traditional music - he plays blues, rock, ska, reggae and Americana. All these influences can be heard on his excellent Sea of Blues album. Mat’s latest album is Traditional Harmonica, a mix of traditional Americana and Irish music. The two styles complement each other, and you can really hear the influences in the Americana tracks from Celtic music. From the energetic polka The Ballydesmond, where fiddle and harmonica dance together in perfect unison, the enigmatic Wayfaring Stranger to the spirituality of Meeting is Over, and my favourite, the hauntingly beautiful Tell Her I Am, this album is a must if you enjoy the traditional style. Sea of Blues is available from Bandcamp, Amazon Music and iTunes. Traditional Harmonica available from Bandcamp.
26
The magazine for HarmonicaUK
For the second year running, COVID restrictions have meant our Celebration of Chromatic Harmonica (Weekend) was a free to attend Zoom event, with the difference this year that it was also live streamed on YouTube, benefitting viewers in parts of the world with lower bandwidth. This has had the benefit of enabling us to present some of the best international harmonica players in the world, and, as you will read, we had twelve of the very best. The audience donated generously, and we were pleased to be able to remunerate the artists significantly more than their minimum guarantee. Each day kicked off with an introductory video from Roger, remarks from our chair, and a recorded video message from the great Sigmund Groven, who had other commitments so he could not appear in person. We tried to present a balanced programme, and, in the view of all of those I have spoken to, we achieved it and it was an outstanding event. The event organisation went seamlessly - at least from the viewer’s perspective, we had one or two small crises, which were overcome. This was due in no small part to the cohesion of our event team, which numbered ten. Special thanks to the technical team of Ben Reese - Zoom and YouTube host; Roger Trobridge - video creator (still editing Zoom videos to go on the website); and Trevor Yeo - up-front and in-event artist technical advisor. Richard Taylor arranged the raffle. Neil Warren did our innovative Jam sessions. And the MCs - Patrick Byrne, Pete Hewitt, Sam Spranger and Hilvert Scheper ensured variety for the audience so that they did not see the same MC the whole time. I told you a little about the artists in the previous Harmonica World issue so will not elaborate except to say that we aimed for a varied programme and our artists ranged from the young, brilliant, two time world champion Cy Leo from Hong Kong to Dror Adler from
VIRTUAL CHROMATIC WEEKEND REVIEW David Hambly, Membership Secretary
August - September 2021 • Harmonica.co.uk
27
Israel who has a marked sense of humour. To ensure continuity between sessions we had Roger’s wonderful videos and were able to show a different one between each session. Rick Epping did our two Maintenance workshops, one on basic Chromatic Maintenance in the main Zoom room and another in a breakout room for those with specific questions for Rick whose expertise is unquestionable. We were supported in the raffle by our sponsors Easttop, Hohner, Integral, Kongsheng, Seydel, and Suzuki who each donated a chromatic harmonica or other valuable prize. Two of the sponsors, Hohner and Seydel, requested ‘Trade Stalls’. Hohner treated us to a factory tour (by video) and Seydel launched a brand new slideless chromatic harmonica - the ‘Nonslider Chromatic De Luxe Steel’, the first batch of which sold out within hours. We produced some scores and backing tracks for the physical event, and we used these for Neil Warren’s chromatic jam. They were made available online for practice ahead of the event and the audience was encouraged to play along (muted) with Neil. They also had the opportunity to play their own piece unmuted. I mentioned breakout rooms: besides Rick’s workshop one we had a ‘Bar’ where people could go and chat to one another. We also had a ‘Green Room’ which Trevor used before each session to ‘advise’ the artist and to which each artist went after their session to chat to the audience in the room. I hope we have many of the same team organising the Virtual Festival on 15th - 17th October, which will also feature our AGM. Please attend and make this a huge success too!
28
The magazine for HarmonicaUK
August - September 2021 • Harmonica.co.uk
29
LATE ‘60S CULT FILM LEAVES MARK ON HARMONICA’S POWER Buster Wolfe
“Four million dollars through a traffic jam.” Michael Caine repeated the sentence as he looked at the black-and-white film while Rossano Brazzi explained how to steal of $4 million in Turin, Italy, by driving red, white, and blue Mini-Coopers loaded with gold bars through the jammed streets. As the coach opened to collect the three Mini-Coopers and escape the city, the 1969 Paramount cult film, “The Italian Job,” started the closing music: “Getta Bloomin’ Move On,” better known by its chorus, “The Self-Preservation Society.”
Caine sang during the song, and singer and guitarist Duffy Power played the harmonica in one of his last recordings. The gold bars were inside the coach when it slipped around a mountainside corner and was left dangling. “Hang on a minute, lads; I've got a great idea,” Caine said as the film ended and the coach was still teetering off the roadway. While the conflict was never resolved, the film later became an iconic symbol for the British-Italian car chase that featured a romp throughout Turin. The film led to a 2003 American remake, a reference in “The Simpsons” episode "The Italian Bob,” and a re-enactment of the Mini-Cooper car-chase in the “MacGyver” episode “Thief of Budapest.” It has also led to The Italian Job charity event annually since 1990, returning to historic Italian cities and Turin locations in the film and raising funds for children’s charities. The event has raised nearly 3 million pounds so far. Fifty years after the film in 2019, stunt drivers in red, white, and blue Mini-Coopers recreated parts of the film's famous car-chase around Turin. For Duffy Power, the 1969 movie and the 1972 self-titled album were among the last attempts to strengthen his entertainment value. Pop manager Larry Parnes found the 17-year-old Power singer, guitarist, and harmonica player at a 1959 talent show. Power could not reach the same financial success as Parnes’s other entertainers, and when his success stalled with Parnes, Power got depressed and left his manager. He decided to find a way to return on the charts, showing the listeners how he could get back in the business. In 1963, Power recorded for the Parlophone label (which had the Beatles in the studio), and he covered the Lennon/McCartney song “I Saw Her Standing There.” It was the Beatles’ second cover of all time. Power used the Graham Bond Organisation as his backup band on the song. Band members - who later figured into the birth of British blues in London - included Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker, who both joined Eric Clapton later as Cream; and John McLaughlin, who pioneered jazz fusion and taught Led Zeppelin founder Jimmy Page how to play guitar. Parlophone Records recorded Power through the 1960s, both as a solo artist with session musicians and with Blues Incorporated of Alexis Korner, who was instrumental in forming The Rolling Stones. However, Power’s attempt to reach financial success failed to meet his critical honour. So, Power also worked as a session musician, and played harmonica on the Quincy Jones soundtrack of “The Italian Job.” Power’s songs from the late 1960s were compiled and released in the 1970s, but again he saw little success. Power released his solo album, “Duffy Power,” in 1972 on the GSF label, increasing his critical success. His album sales continued to flounder, and he suffered depression and drug use that cut his performances. He suffered a major breakdown in 2007, so he decided to retire. “I know I had something special, but I am too old to do anything about it now,” he told one biographer. In 2014, he died at the age of 72. He and his wife, Valerie, had been married for 45 years.
I hope you are all doing OK. I’m sure everyone is aware that there has been a break in the Lockdown Sessions for a few weeks. This has given me some time to think about the future of the sessions. On one hand, venues are opening up and artists are turning their thoughts to gigging, plus people are able to do activities at the weekends again with friends and family. On the other hand, the lockdown sessions (and the coffee mornings) have now become an integral part of HarmonicaUK, and I think it’s important for us all to keep in touch as we have done for the past 15 months or so.
PUBLICITY COLUMN Sam Wilkinson
Taking all this into consideration, I’m proposing to keep the sessions running, but less frequently. From August, there will be an open mic and one other workshop each month. If anyone would like to help organise and/or run a session, then I would be very grateful. Please contact me at the usual email address - publicity@harmonica.co.uk Until next time…
Kinubi Advertorial The new company, Kinubi Audio, is proud to be bringing an innovative product to the world of harmonica playing. The Kinubi PSV offers harp players a unique ‘one stop shop’ effects pedal, helping you create the ‘Holy Grail’ sound of Chicago Blues. PSV inventor Darren Mather practised on his C harmonica for years, gradually buying more in different keys. His passion was Chicago Blues, his dream to recreate the sound of Juke joints when amps were overdriven and JT 30’s stolen from Taxi firms. He wanted to develop a product that would not replace the need for technique, but offer a range of effects without a chain of pedals and power sources. This dream will become a reality with the launch of the PSV effects pedal. The innovative feature is the Scorch™ Effect offering a warm, overdriven valve sound. Personalise with Tone, Reverb, Delay, Compression, Bass Boost, Ground Lift, XLR/1/4 Jack in, Digital Record-out and Clipping Halo™ Check out www.kinubiaudio.com
32
The magazine for HarmonicaUK
The decline in Hohner’s financial and marketing support for harmonicas and accordions in the UK came to a head with the breaking of links with the NAO, the National Accordion Organisation, and the halt to the production of the magazine “Accordion Times incorporating Harmonica News” in 1974. Since 1959, the NAO and the magazine had been the “home” for the National Harmonica League (NHL). It included a harmonica competition in its annual Accordion Day. Now there was no harmonica magazine to capture its history. In 1974, the Accordion Day was held in Brighton. The harmonica competition was mainly for chromatic players, and the winner was 16 year old Ivan Richards from West Heath, Birmingham, a pupil of Jim Hughes. In 1975, the event was held in Scarborough, and the Larry Adler Challenge Cup was again won by Ivan, only this time he was the only contestant. Interest was waning.
THE HISTORY OF HARMONICAUK Part 5 1975–1981 Roger Trobridge Chairman 2000-2012
Later that year, Hohner invited several blues harp players to take part in a competition sponsored by Hohner and “Sounds” magazine in the Kings Road Theatre, Chelsea which was judged by Steve Rye and Judd Proctor. Six were chosen and asked to travel as a team to the World Championships in Offenburg, Germany. They were the first blues harp players to take part in the World Championships. They included Steve Smith, Paul Lamb and Chris Turner, and they won the Group Contest. Chris also won the diatonic competition. The other member of the British team (and the 7th of “The Magnificent Seven”) was Ivan Richards, who won the Chromatic competition at the age of 17. He had been fourth in Ypres, Belgium in 1973. There is little information from 1976, but there was a chromatic championship in Weston-Super-Mare, which was won by Paul Templar. He had been a performer in the 1960s and was recovering from a serious lung disease. He released a four track EP, “Harmonica Magic”. At the end of 1976, Derek Kirk was the marketing manager at Hohner under their managing director, Dirk Kommer, and with their PR man, Les Stewart, he invited John Tyler, a headmaster from Essex, to become the director of a relaunched NHL organisation which would be supported by Hohner. John had been a prominent
34
The magazine for HarmonicaUK
member of the NHL and an accomplished chromatic player since the end of the 1950s. John accepted the challenge, and he set about opening up the organisation to all styles of harmonica, especially for the popular blues harmonica players. There was a strong membership drive with a small annual charge which included the new magazine - still called “Harmonica News” - and the circular NHL logo was born. The membership was about 1000 in 1977 and rose to over 2,500 by the end of 1979. John’s big idea was to hold “Get Together” concerts in London, Birmingham and Manchester. The London ones were held in Cecil Sharp House in 1977 and 1979, and the other two were held in 1978. These concerts included many top players, including Steve Smith, Harry Pitch, Paul Jones, Johnny Mars, Steve Rye, Paul Rowan, Jimmy Andrews, Carol Axford, Paul Templar, Brian Chaplin, Fred Southern … If anyone has any programmes or tape recordings from these events, please let me know. Alongside this activity the new “Harmonica News” (A4 size) was a huge improvement. Probably one of the best the NHL has produced. It was full of topical news, articles, images and interviews with top touring players like Toots, Charlie McCoy and Sonny Terry as well as British artists. By the end of 1979 it had become obvious that all this great work was not being rewarded by a growing and paying membership. The NHL had always had an international appeal and in 1980 they decided to make the magazine more colourful and broaden its appeal. It became the “International Harmonica Magazine incorporating Harmonica News”. They published a couple of issues in 1980/81 before Hohner finally decided to call it a day. One of the main drivers, Derek Kirk, had moved on and John Tyler had done all he could. Where did the NHL go next? South Africa?
August - September 2021 • Harmonica.co.uk
35
Originally from Copenhagen, Denmark, Victor is currently studying at the conservatory of music in Amsterdam. At 26, his approach to jazz on the chromatic harmonica is already cutting a mean form in the genre. That said, as I hope will come across in the full interview, which you can see online, he is one of the most modest and mellow players I have had the good fortune to interview. How did you come to harmonica? When I was a child, a friend of mine in the Copenhagen Royal Chapel Choir had a harmonica (a diatonic) and I became fascinated by the instrument and would practice relentlessly. With my abilities as a singer in the choir, I then started transferring hymns onto the diatonic and really developed my ear.
AN INTERVIEW WITH VICTOR BØSLING Around the world with 80 great harmonica players Sam Spranger Editorial Team
How did you progress? From there I really got into the blues and roamed the blues bars. I didn’t even pick up the chromatic until I was 19. Honestly, the most important thing for players to progress is to go on stage at a jam and don’t feel afraid to make mistakes. What made you want to pick up the chromatic? I got very interested in jazz and developed an almost aggressive interest in learning it and understanding its various forms. What are you working on at the moment? Alongside my studies in jazz at the conservatory, one of my technical focuses is improving my corner switching. It’s like taking your embouchure to the gym! The classic study piece to develop corner switching is Bach’s Cello Suite No.1 Prelude, which is always fun to play! Tell me about your favourite performances? I really liked one of yours online called “Victor’s Dance”. For me, I think any performance where you “lock in” with the other musicians and everything comes together as a group is always a joy. It’s so important to support, and feel supported by, other musicians. And yes, Victor’s Dance is a homage to the great Victor Feldman. It was New Year’s Day - I recorded my version of that song with a fantastic Ghanaian rhythm section. I think I first heard Toots Thielman’s version on the Chez Toots album and had wanted to record it ever since. How did you get into the conservatory, and how are you finding it? I wrote to them saying, if Toots is one of the greats, surely there must be space for harmonica players at the conservatory! Funnily enough it was someone from the guitar department who gave me an audition and helped me get accepted.
As a teacher, do you have any tips and tricks for our readers? Absolutely, something that is often overlooked even by professionals is tone and embouchure. Putting more of your mouth onto the instrument to get a fuller tone can give you a range of sounds to work with. Likewise, it is important to intonate the note properly on the chromatic by making sure your embouchure produces the right pressure on the reed. There are so many different tones available on the instrument, for example you can even learn how to make the chromatic “whisper”. Secondly, even when playing legato, one must properly articulate the notes and activate the reeds appropriately. Indeed, if you play without proper articulation there can be a delay as the reed takes time to activate. Is there a piece of music you never get tired of playing? The Days of Wine and Roses is an absolute favourite. Bye Bye Blackbird was also the first standard I tried to play and still like to go back to. To hear more of Victor, follow his YouTube Channel @Victor Bøsling Watch the interview in full @mybrokenharp
CLASSIFIEDS Teachers and Repairers
KEY D Diatonic.
John Cook 01708 446 644 R Repairs. Certified Hohner, Suzuki and Seydel technician. Chromatic and diatonic Service repair and tuning. Repair workshops and private repair. London. Zoom. john@johncookharmonicas.com
C
Chromatic.
T
Tremolo.
U
Tuning.
R
Repairs.
Eva Hurt 07578 808 353 C Triola. Classical, folk, musical theatre. Triola. London In person, Skype, Zoom. eva.harmonica@yahoo.com
Ricky Cool 07749 918 343 D Blues, country, Roots. Birmingham. In person, Skype, Zoom. rickycool@ blueyonder.co.uk
Cathal Johnson 0834 444 980?? D C Blues, country, traditional Irish dance. Republic of Ireland. In person, Skype, Zoom. Certified Hohner technician repairs and tuning. www.harmonicasireland.com
Mike Fairbairn 01623 753 693 D C Blues. Derbyshire. In person. fairblues@hotmail.co.uk
Julian Jackson C D All genres. London. In person, Zoom. joolsj@yahoo.com
Paul Gillings 07880 324 163 C D All genres. Norfolk/Suffolk. In person, Skype, Zoom. paulgillingsharmonica@gmail.com
Moses Jones 07707 193 437 D C All genres. Bristol. In person, Zoom. moses.jones88@yahoo.com
Adam Glasser C All genres. London. In person, Zoom, phone by arrangement. adamgharmonica@icloud.com
Tony Jukes 01455 202 829 C D Blues, folk. East Midlands. In person, Skype, zoom. tjukes@hotmail.co.uk
Roy Green C D All genres, excluding jazz. Cranbrook, Kent. In person. roysgreen@talktalk.net
Steve Lockwood 07786 256 178 D U All genres. Cambridgeshire In person, Skype, Zoom. steve@steve-lockwood.com
01580 720 148
Cain Hamilton D U Custom and tuning. Holywell, Wales. sugarharmonicas@outlook.com Ben Hewlett D All genres. Bristol. In person, Zoom, Skype. benhewlett@me.com
07973 284 366
Ed Hopwood 07814 637 317 D Blues, Folk, Roots. London. In person, Skype, Zoom. info@theharmonicabarge.com
38
07930 801 344
Johnny Mars 07947 252 186 C D Four different types of tuning. The Mars Method of Harmonica Tuition. johnnymars@me.com Taunton. In person, Zoom. Eddie Martin 07974 120 418 D C All genres. All genres. (except jazz). Bristol. In person, Skype, Zoom. www.eddiemartin.com John Monaghan C U R. Widnes.
The magazine for HarmonicaUK
01514 249 594
CLASSIFIEDS Gary Murray 01344 842 162 C Jazz, blues. Berkshire. Online. www.garymharmonica.co.uk
Richard Taylor 07525 256 954 D All genres. Preschool to adults. Brighton and Hove. In person, Skype, Zoom. hove.actually@ntlworld.com
Keith Parker D Blues, country, rock. Cambridgeshire. In person, Zoom.
07966 471 734
Will Pound D C Paddy Richter speciality. Caernarvon. In person, Zoom. will@willpound.com
07884 222 356
Mat Walklate 07725 479 148 D C T All genres. Manchester. In person, Skype, Zoom. mat.walklate23@btinternet.com
Adam Pritchard 07429 126 120 D All genres. Cheltenham. In person, Skype, Zoom. pritchharp@gmail.com Aidan Sheehan 07812 143 226 D All genres, excluding jazz. Cwmbran. In person, Skype, Zoom. aidenharpsheehan@gmail.com Sam Spranger 07815 538 888 C D All genres. London. In person, Skype, Zoom. sam.aspranger@gmail.com
Editorial policy
Joff Watkins 07980834 002 D C All genres. London. In person, Zoom. joffharp@yahoo.com Will Wilde D All genres. In person, Skype, Zoom. willharmonicawilde.com
07854 591 413
Harry Pitch 3 CDs @£11 01628 622895 haru.harmonica@talktalk.net David Hynes finest Irish Traditional harmonica CDs £7 davesharmonicas.com Bass Harmonica for sale, in good condition, box a bit used organbeal@hotmail.com Bargains New/Used Harmonicas For Sale - please ask for list - davetaylorbluespiano@gmail.com Wanted. Chord harmonica in good playing order. Please contact rickycool@blueyonder.co.uk
Editorial policy is to let the enthusiasts write about their interests, with the aim of providing a balance of interest in the magazine that caters for all tastes. Editorial changes are made only if absolutely necessary, in order to retain the contributor’s own style of writing. Members are invited to submit articles of 300, 600 or 900 words with relevant photographs, which should be JPEG files at 300 dpi and minimum 148mm wide. All photographs should include a credit and permissions to use in the publication. Harmonica World checks the ownership of all submitted images to the best of its ability. If you believe your copyright has been infringed, please contact us. We reserve the right to edit or defer articles, and they might not always be used. Articles should be submitted either in an email or attached as a Word or similar format. Photographs can be sent as attachments or via WeTransfer. The editor’s decision is final in all matters relating to this publication. All the contents are copyright, and no part may be reproduced in any form without the prior permission of HarmonicaUK and the author, and the source must be acknowledged. The contents of the magazine do not necessarily reflect the views of HarmonicaUK, and it accepts no responsibility for any errors, misrepresentations, or opinions expressed by the contributors. Harmonica World is published six times a year by HarmonicaUK, at the beginning of Feb, April, June, August, October, and December. The copy/advertising deadlines fall on 1 January, March, May, July, September, and November. The magazine is printed in full colour on FSC silk art paper.
August - September 2021 • Harmonica.co.uk
39
JUST HOLES – NO SLIDER
WWW.SEYDEL1847.COM
THE NONSLIDER CHROMATIC DE LUXE STEEL – PLAYING CHROMATICALLY RE-THOUGHT. A CHROMATIC HARMONICA WITH DIRECT TONE RESPONSE LIKE A BLUES HARMONICA, THAT WORKS WITHOUT SLIDER AND WITHOUT VALVES, ON WHICH TECHNIQUES LIKE BENDING OR OVERBLOW ARE PLAYABLE. WE CALL IT NONSLIDER CHROMATIC DE LUXE STEEL, A DESIGN STUDY THAT OPENS UP MANY NEW POSSIBILITIES FOR THE PLAYERS TO PLAY CHROMATICALLY, NO MATTER IF THEY HAVE PLAYED CHROMATIC HARMONICA BEFORE OR IF THEY PLAYED DIATONIC BLUES HARMONICA! THE NONSLIDER CHROMATIC IS A VERY RELIABLE INSTRUMENT THAT IS VIRTUALLY MAINTENANCE FREE. 48 TUNING STABLE STAINLESS STEEL REEDS GUARANTEE A GREAT SOUND AND A LONG PLAYING PLEASURE. FURTHERMORE, STUCK VALVES OR A JAMMED SLIDER ARE THINGS OF THE PAST. YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES LESS CAN BE MORE. ALL PARTS OF THE NONSLIDER CHROMATIC ARE MADE FROM ANTI-CORROSIVE MATERIALS.
