Brendan Power & Alternative Harmonicas Forum

The tuning in Figure 5 (in the post above) could be had via Seydel's Configurator. A more economical -- though compromised -- approach would be to re-tune any standard Richter harp in the manner shown below. Re-tuning a Paddy Richter harp would be even easier, as the 3 blow would already be okay. I say "compromised" because the re-tuning shown below differs from the tuning in Figure 5 (above) in the top four holes.

We can see that the re-tuning below is very similar to Major Cross. It could even be regarded as a "modal variant" of Major Cross.

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IaNerd wrote: ↑

Sat Oct 16, 2021 10:39 pm

This tuning would definitely benefit from being extended to the right in a 12- or 13- or 16-hole harp.

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Holes 4-10 follow what chromatic players sometimes call Classical tuning, so there should be longer chroms tuned like this. You'd still have to spiral the bottom, but I thought you'd be interested to know

Thanks, Edvin!

Therefore the tuning in Figure 5 should not be called Spiral-D(oubled) L(eading) T(one). It should instead be called Spiral-Classical.

As I reconsider the "compromised" tuning shown three posts above I now see that it would be fine for mixolydian play (as asserted earlier) but would not be so suitable for dorian. The blow-draw pattern in holes 7 and 8 disrupts that octave's spiral pattern. If mixolydian and dorian play are the goal, it would be better to stick to the tuning of Figure 5.

The tuning in Figure 5 (several posts above) was optimised for Dorian play. This one (Figure 6, below) is optimized for Mixolydian play.

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Figures 5 and 6 in the posts above (Dorian and Mixolydian, respectively) place the a tonic at the 4 draw. The tuning in Figure 7a (below) also does this but for the Aeolian mode. Figure 7b (also below) shows how these three tunings can be reconsidered by instead placing their respective tonics at the 2 draw. So instead of their octaves being full-full-partial, we now have partial-full-full.

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