Got this from the Jazz Advice blog
Item #10 of 20: Practicing is about notes and rhythms, improvising is about life
The things you do in the practice room are important for your playing. Everyone tells you to listen and to transcribe and this is definitely the path to getting better. These practice habits will give you technique and knowledge, but you still need to have something personal to say when you improvise. To do this, get out of the practice room and live. Experience everything that you can and then bring this into your playing, communicate this with your audience.
After you get through with that 20 item list, you might enjoy my page: 101+ ways to sound better playing harmonica (right now).
Sunday
Study advice
I'm working more on theory, and practicing my chromatic harmonica more lately.
I was recently turned on to this website, and the first post I read was on How to be MORE Mediocre - obviously a "What NOT To Do" article, and very insightful.
I was recently turned on to this website, and the first post I read was on How to be MORE Mediocre - obviously a "What NOT To Do" article, and very insightful.
Monday
William Clarke
A master at his craft. No finer Blues music in the world, ever, for my money. Clarke and Alex Schultz tear it up on this song. Both of them had such great improvisational ideas!
Wednesday
Harmonica Mastery Tools
Harmonica Mastery Tools is the sub-title of Richard Sleigh's website. If you play harmonica and haven't heard of Richard: where have you been?
Richard is an expert harmonica technician, producing some of the most coveted customized diatonic harmonicas anywhere. He's an amazing musician, playing both harmonica and guitar - and his harmonica skills are incredible - awesome tone, flawless technique, excellent feel and emotion. And Richard is a teacher, freely giving away his knowledge, and offering fee-based tutoring as well.
Please have a look at his website if you're even remotely interested in harmonica.
Richard is an expert harmonica technician, producing some of the most coveted customized diatonic harmonicas anywhere. He's an amazing musician, playing both harmonica and guitar - and his harmonica skills are incredible - awesome tone, flawless technique, excellent feel and emotion. And Richard is a teacher, freely giving away his knowledge, and offering fee-based tutoring as well.
Please have a look at his website if you're even remotely interested in harmonica.
Saturday
Woodshed apps for iPhone
What do iPhone apps have to do with harmonicas? Well, they're both hand-held, compact...OK seriously, I've found these apps to be pretty handy & thought you might, too.
Let me preface this by saying first: I'm not going to give you a thorough review of these apps. They're all in the app store. Read the reviews, try the free ones, decide for yourself. I just want to make you aware of some of the real, serious tools available to enhance your music experience.
Magic Stave
There's a free version of this you can try. This is a good one for those of us who struggle a little with reading. You play a note, MagicStave shows you where it is on the staff. Nice writing aid!
Cleartune
A real chromatic tuner! You don't have to use a Guitar tuner any more! There are lots of these in the app store - I like this one.
Beat Counter Pro
This one has a pretty simple user interface, a metronome with a variety of sounds, etc. Useful.
GigBaby Free
This is one of those multi-channel studio recorder apps. I haven't figured any of them out yet, I have this one, StudioApp and Studio Free. Honestly, I usually just capture something with iTalk until I can get home and use Audacity. But a lot of folks can get good results with one of the ones I mentionsd.
iRealBook
OK, true confession time: THIS is the app that motivated me to post today. This might be the coolest thing on my iPhone next to Safari (or FaceBook!).
The app comes with 900 songs. Now wait - you don't get the lead sheets like you do in a real RealBook - you get charts like the one at left. BUT... you also get an editor where you can create your own charts, a web-based editor (for PC-users), a MacOS editor (downloaded from their site), a help-forum, and a place (accessible from your phone) where you can DL MANY more songs. Did I mention that the app transposes for you? Did I mention that the transpositions are available written for a C, Bb, Eb, F and G based instruments???
But best of all, you now get accompaniment! That's right, the app PLAYS the accompaniment (per the chart). You get a decent-sounding Piano, Bass and Drums to play along with.
Is iRealBook the ultimate iPhone-based woodshedding tool?
For the price of an iTunes album ($9.99) plus an upgrade to the "Jazz Styles Pack" (more rhythm motifs for your player for $5.99), this is the most powerful tool I can think of in it's price range. If you're a musician and you own an iPhone, iTouch, or iPad, I can't say it strongly enough: you need this app! (iRealBook is available for ANDROID too)
Let me preface this by saying first: I'm not going to give you a thorough review of these apps. They're all in the app store. Read the reviews, try the free ones, decide for yourself. I just want to make you aware of some of the real, serious tools available to enhance your music experience.
There's a free version of this you can try. This is a good one for those of us who struggle a little with reading. You play a note, MagicStave shows you where it is on the staff. Nice writing aid!
A real chromatic tuner! You don't have to use a Guitar tuner any more! There are lots of these in the app store - I like this one.
This one has a pretty simple user interface, a metronome with a variety of sounds, etc. Useful.
GigBaby Free
This is one of those multi-channel studio recorder apps. I haven't figured any of them out yet, I have this one, StudioApp and Studio Free. Honestly, I usually just capture something with iTalk until I can get home and use Audacity. But a lot of folks can get good results with one of the ones I mentionsd.
iRealBook
OK, true confession time: THIS is the app that motivated me to post today. This might be the coolest thing on my iPhone next to Safari (or FaceBook!).
The app comes with 900 songs. Now wait - you don't get the lead sheets like you do in a real RealBook - you get charts like the one at left. BUT... you also get an editor where you can create your own charts, a web-based editor (for PC-users), a MacOS editor (downloaded from their site), a help-forum, and a place (accessible from your phone) where you can DL MANY more songs. Did I mention that the app transposes for you? Did I mention that the transpositions are available written for a C, Bb, Eb, F and G based instruments???
But best of all, you now get accompaniment! That's right, the app PLAYS the accompaniment (per the chart). You get a decent-sounding Piano, Bass and Drums to play along with.
Is iRealBook the ultimate iPhone-based woodshedding tool?
For the price of an iTunes album ($9.99) plus an upgrade to the "Jazz Styles Pack" (more rhythm motifs for your player for $5.99), this is the most powerful tool I can think of in it's price range. If you're a musician and you own an iPhone, iTouch, or iPad, I can't say it strongly enough: you need this app! (iRealBook is available for ANDROID too)
Monday
Friday
So Many Videos
...so little space!
If you don't know who Kim Wilson is, you need to change your temporal address to the current millennium. If you don't know who Nathan James is, take notes, because he's the best damn traditional blues guitar player above ground, period.
These videos will be precious historic documents someday, showing Nathan as he is today - a great talent and still with more growing to do (he's going to be very big for a very long time)!
If you don't know who Kim Wilson is, you need to change your temporal address to the current millennium. If you don't know who Nathan James is, take notes, because he's the best damn traditional blues guitar player above ground, period.
These videos will be precious historic documents someday, showing Nathan as he is today - a great talent and still with more growing to do (he's going to be very big for a very long time)!
Thursday
Yesterday Morning
Here's a very cool duet arrangement of Hazmat Modine's "Yesterday Morning" by Bill Barrett & Kevin Marin. I'd never heard of Kevin before seeing this video (& I thought I knew who most ALL of the good harmonica players were!). Kevin does a great job on this and another piece with Barrett. I'm going to be watching this dude to steal what I can from him! ;-)
Hazmat Modine is the coolest little big band you never heard of, lead by Wade Schuman. It may be the only "Blues & Roots-based" band that performs with TWO harmonicists, currently Schuman and Barrett (and formerly Schuman and Jazz master, author and teacher Randy Weinstein). Their unabashed enthusiasm for harmonica (using it as a primary lead voice x2), combined with very cool arrangements (including using a TUBA instead of string bass!) are a few of the reasons HazMO is my favorite band.
All of the musicians in this band are outstanding, but it's very rare to hear TWO harmonicists with the level of skill & creativity as Barrett/Schuman or Weinstein/Schuman. Hell, you rarely hear two harmonicists of this caliber in the same WEEK, let alone the same BAND! So click through after the video to find more stuff featuring:
Hazmat Modine is the coolest little big band you never heard of, lead by Wade Schuman. It may be the only "Blues & Roots-based" band that performs with TWO harmonicists, currently Schuman and Barrett (and formerly Schuman and Jazz master, author and teacher Randy Weinstein). Their unabashed enthusiasm for harmonica (using it as a primary lead voice x2), combined with very cool arrangements (including using a TUBA instead of string bass!) are a few of the reasons HazMO is my favorite band.
All of the musicians in this band are outstanding, but it's very rare to hear TWO harmonicists with the level of skill & creativity as Barrett/Schuman or Weinstein/Schuman. Hell, you rarely hear two harmonicists of this caliber in the same WEEK, let alone the same BAND! So click through after the video to find more stuff featuring:
Wednesday
Bill Barrett
If you don't know about Bill Barrett, watch this video and then go and research about him on YouTube and his website. Bill plays Avant-Punk-Jazz music on a specially tuned Chromatic harmonica (it's a Hohner CX-12 Tenor/Bebop for you harmonica geeks).
The man is an absolute virtuoso.
Learn all you can about his music - it'll make you a better player, I bet.
The man is an absolute virtuoso.
Learn all you can about his music - it'll make you a better player, I bet.
Friday
Update
I made a couple of adds & edits to the site recently; a new Friends listing over on the right includes some of my favorite local musicians and/or bands. Good listening material over there for you San Diegans (& others, too!).
Also updated is the Recommended Harmonica list of harmonica players you might not know about (but should).
Also updated is the Recommended Harmonica list of harmonica players you might not know about (but should).
Thursday
Saturday
Pages
I just reworked my sites a little because Blogger has added the ability to create PAGES in a blog. Pages are static pages that always feature the same content rather than updating with the latest post. Pretty cool for longer articles, "about" pages, etc. Anyway, there's a widget over yonder on the right linking to my pages, AND I'll link them here for you as well:
101+ ways to sound better playing harmonica (right away)
Some interesting Harmonica-Related Links
Harmonica Lore
Harmonica Lessons available
Press about Dane Terry
101+ ways to sound better playing harmonica (right away)
Some interesting Harmonica-Related Links
Harmonica Lore
Harmonica Lessons available
Press about Dane Terry
Friday
Harmonica-Related Links
Friends, here, for no particular reason, in no particular order are a number of Harmonica-related links for you to peruse:
...enjoy!
- Coast to Coast Music
- Harp-L
- OverBlow.com
- Harp-On!
- The Tremelo
- 147 Harmonica Links
- The Diatonic Harmonica Reference
- Blues-Harp TABS
- JT-30.com
- Harmonica Boogie
- Harp Amps
- Bass Harmonica 101
- Pat Missin
...enjoy!
Tuesday
Rebecca's Coffee House
Back in February, I got to play with Harry & Nancy Mestyanek of Folding Mister Lincoln (a fantastic San Diego band that plays beautiful original music) for their monthly Rebecca's show. They're fine folks, friends, great musicians and I had a complete blast playing with them for Rebecca's Sunday Brunch crowd.
During the morning, I played a little solo set. San Diego Videographer and self-confessed Music Lover Richard Pollard shot a few of those songs - please scroll to the bottom of the page to view them.
Richard says on his YouTube Page: Music videos mostly from acoustic musicians appearing locally in San Diego, California. Nothing fancy. Great music, simple presentations. Performances just as they were experienced live. Always with permission of the artists.
Please be SURE to stop by Richard's Channel on YouTube to see many more talented local artists - and especially check out the videos of Folding Mister Lincoln while you're there.
During the morning, I played a little solo set. San Diego Videographer and self-confessed Music Lover Richard Pollard shot a few of those songs - please scroll to the bottom of the page to view them.
Richard says on his YouTube Page: Music videos mostly from acoustic musicians appearing locally in San Diego, California. Nothing fancy. Great music, simple presentations. Performances just as they were experienced live. Always with permission of the artists.
Please be SURE to stop by Richard's Channel on YouTube to see many more talented local artists - and especially check out the videos of Folding Mister Lincoln while you're there.
Wednesday
Hearts for Haiti
I was fortunate to be invited to participate in the Hearts for Haiti benefit at The Belly Up this past February 15th.
Thursday
Gone Away, Someday
I want to tell you about a CD by my friends Tim Atkins and Andre Perault, The Baja Blues Boys.
In a word: Recommended!
The disc features outstanding production by Scott Blinn, flawless performances by Tim, Andre and crew, and great original, Folksy Blues music. Tim and Andre have been playing together for a long time, and it shows (I think I first heard them better than 10 years ago). Gone Away, Someday sounds just like their performances - intimate, warm, emotionally upbeat, welcoming and real. No pretenses, no ego-serving noodling, just fine, accessible music that anyone (not just hard-core fans of the Blues) can relate to.
The folksy, friendly presentation serves the music very well, and will appeal to most. I highly recommend this CD to anyone, especially if you don't consider yourself a Blues Head.
Tell them Dane sent ya...
Friday
The show that got away
I missed a really good show here in town; Kim Wilson, Nathan James, and Billy Flynn at The New Village Arts Theater on Dec. 13, 2009.
Man, what a way to finish up the year!
Local Bluesman Nathan James is easily my favorite living guitar player.
Kim Wilson is the undisputed master of Blues Harmonica.
Billy Flynn has been laying it down for decades and often accompanies Kim Wilson.
Some of these songs were captured by my pal Mark (of the Blues) Abbott.
Great performances; enjoy!
I think this is my favorite of the show:
Man, what a way to finish up the year!
Local Bluesman Nathan James is easily my favorite living guitar player.
Kim Wilson is the undisputed master of Blues Harmonica.
Billy Flynn has been laying it down for decades and often accompanies Kim Wilson.
Some of these songs were captured by my pal Mark (of the Blues) Abbott.
Great performances; enjoy!
I think this is my favorite of the show:
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