Shake/trill



Various comments have been posted.

Must admit I thought a Shake/trill was an Irish horror film.

Tommy Reilly and a number of classical players use a  trill between holes (C-E,
Eb-F# etc).  All that happens is ... hold instrument LOOSLY, left hand. firmly
right hand.  Using left hand as guide rails push pull instrument left to right
with a flexible right wrist. Keep head still and lips well oiled. (Do not start
a thread on lip oils please)  At first this technique feels fairly gross but it
is fairly easy to make it very smooth.  This technique can also be extended to
very rapid arpeggios (like Popper perhaps????) but I haven't seen it in any
harmonica specific music (don't mean it ain't there though).

Just a thought, the trill is just an ornament and really an expansion of a true
vibrato, a means of making a long note a little more attractive.  However, on
the mouthorgan we (a lot of players) don't do  a true vibrato which is a
variation in pitch (look at a fiddle player or a guitarist, actually even a
guitarist 'does it wrong' ) A normal vibrato, vocal or instrumental ,is a shift
in pitch above and below the note, fiddle & voice do this, guitarists   go from
the note upwards unless they are very experienced.  Harmonica vibrato in general
is a volume vibrato.  I know all the arguments about percieved pitch change with
volume change but that is a side issue.  Lip vibrato and some throat vibrati (!)
can produce  a similar pitch change to a guitar but in the other direction.  The
Lord have mercy on harmonica & guitar duos with a penchant for vibrato,
its'orrid.

Any thoughts on vibrati???

Douglas  





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