Brendan Power & Alternative Harmonicas Forum

Yes! Stock has finally arrived and we're just getting the webpage up. Hopefully tomorrow

Piro39: I'd love to hear some music you're playing on your Hijaz harps. Do you have any you'd like to share?

Sorry Gerhard! I assume this is a tuning that repeats every 5th hole (like Diminished-tuned, Solo, PowerChromatic etc)? That is indeed a nice tuning variation which I don't think we've seen before. Edvin has the sharpest eye for that kind of thing. It's the same as the one I used for Sweet Bulgarity...

BALKAN and MIDDLE EASTERN SCALES on DIATONIC HARMONICA This is an interesting area that's been explored by only a few players (Roland von Straaten and Howard Levy come to mind), but they used standard Richter harps. There's a lot of scope for optimising the expressive feel of this wonderful music us...

Here's an easy way to reshape coverplates, at front and rear: silverline-sheet-metal-clamps-40962-p.jpg I have one whose jaws happen to be almost exactly the length of the front of a typical harmonica tabbed coverplate. Simply grip the front lip of the lower cover and apply bending pressure, so it b...

Thanks for the message. I'll talk to Easttop about it to see of we can get some deeper bottom covers. It could take a while, however! In the meantime, here are some quick solutions: 1. If you're the handy type and are willing to be proactive, it is possible to induce a higher clearance at the bass e...

Low low reeds swing a lot more than standard reeds, so they will always be more airy. The valves on the Mk2 models are intended to counteract this. You say 'some' of your harps are more airy. Maybe you bought a mix of the new harps with low end valves and the older ones without? Without photos it's ...

Could you post s couple of photos of your harps Steve? Especially close ups of the bass end, to see if they have valves.

Thanks, BP

Thanks Edvin for your interesting-as-always insights and suggestions. And now you have invented a new Theorem to boot! Maybe we should call it Wedin's Law? Plus a new tuning variation for Crazy Bob's harp based on your Law - wow, a good days' work! As you say, it has advantages and disadvantages, li...

You got me scratching my head there Edvin. Not for the first time! Damn, you're right again! It's because in my suggested tuning the intervals between holes alternate between a small and a larger one. I hadn't spotted that - thanks. Hmmm... My wholetone-based tuning scheme for this harmonica, whilst...