[Harp-L] Harmonica Academy Website Review



Seasons Greetings Hipsters, Harpsters and Comb Material Lovers,

 

I was recently asked by Tony Eyers, our resident harp master from Australia,
to take a look at his harmonica instructional website and perhaps give it a
review. I had the pleasure of meeting Tony at the SPAH convention a few
years ago, besides being an incredible harmonica player he is also a very
cool dude! I have taken a few spins around the campus and here are my
thoughts below.

 

First off here is the website address: www.harmonicaacademy.com
<http://www.harmonicaacademy.com/>  

 

It is obvious that Tony is a professional educator. He has laid the site out
to be very user friendly. You really feel like you are taking a journey into
a true place of higher education. Which of course it is! What higher calling
could you be pursuing than to become a proficient player on the diatonic
harmonica. That is one point that I do need to make right away. The
Harmonica Academy specializes in teaching the diatonic harp. No chromatic
instruction is included. Perhaps this is something planned for the future.
Tony will have to fill us in on that. Since many newcomers will already have
some level of knowledge about playing the diatonic harp he makes it simple
to figure out where you should jump in. By clicking on the "course at a
glance" button you will see that he lays everything available out in the
open. This is very nice for folks that want to be sure that they will get
what they want and need before investing any money. Not that $29.95/year is
a major investment. The price he is charging is very reasonable. Actually I
would call it a bargain.

 

The site focuses on learning to play by ear. There is no reading of music
required. The method starts you off on for getting single notes is the "lip
blocking". This method is used throughout the "freshman & sophomore"
classes. Later on in "junior year" he addresses tongue blocking. Each
"class" section teaches both learning traditional tunes and blues tunes.
After your "freshman" year you can focus on one or the other if you prefer.
Tony recommends taking it all in at the same time. I agree with that because
the more different angles you take early on in your learning the better
chance that you will develop a unique and innovative voice in your playing.

 

A great feature that is used throughout the site is the convenient audio
clips. Each step of the way is written out clearly and an audio clip is
right there to back it up. They play instantly and clearly. 

 

After a student has finished all "four years" of study (not based upon real
years of time) the site actually provides a way to take a final exam and get
graded! Tony has also added some really helpful study aids and links.

 

My overall opinion is that this is a very good site for learning how to play
the diatonic harmonica. I don't think it will fit everyone's taste or style
but that is to be expected. I think the people who will really be drawn to
this site are the folks that dig the kind of music that Tony is famous for
playing. Those cool traditional tunes. If you are a real "blues head" there
are other instructional methods out there that might be more attractive.
That's not to say that Tony doesn't effectively cover the blues stuff. He
can play some monster blues and he spells out many aspects of how to play
hot blues licks. It's just not the type of course that dissects the licks
and nuances of the blues masters as some others do. Let's face it we are all
different in our wants, needs and learning abilities. That's what is so cool
about this "modern age". Back in the early 70's when I started there was
very little available for wanna be harpsters. Now we have many more books,
cd's, dvd's, the internet, jam camps, festivals, seminars, workshops out
there facilitated by a grand spectrum of instructors with incredible talent.
As I said at the start of this review; Tony makes it fairly easy to decide
if this is a good place for you to hang your hat. Click right here:
www.harmonicaacademy.com <http://www.harmonicaacademy.com/>  and he spells
out what you can expect right away. Then click on:
http://www.harmonicaacademy.com/categories/20080307_10 and you can view the
entire curriculum available.

 

I hope that this review encourages some of you to investigate further. We
need to support everyone out there doing their best to help us progress.
Labors of love aren't nearly as fun as when they help pay the bills! There
are some nice harmonica "free lunches" available out there but human nature
usually dictates that with a little investment you get a lot more out of
your endeavors.

 

Warren Bee

 

 




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