[Harp-L] Playing electric

["John F. Potts" <hvyj@xxxxxxx>]

David Priestley writes: "It is useful to adopt a grip on your harp  
and mic that keeps them at a fixed and constant distance from each  
other but not touching."

This doesn't make sense.  Of course, one does not want the harp  
touching the mic, and the ability to control the distance between the  
harp and the mic is important.  But, if the player is using a mic  
with proximity effect for amplified playing, one of the most  
important aspects of mic handling technique is the ability to vary  
the distance between the mic and the harp in order to vary tone and  
tonal response.  Varying the orientation of the harp relative to the  
mic grill/element can also produce interesting tonal variations. One  
loses the ability to to take full advantage of a mic's proximity  
effect by keeping a constant distance between the mic and the harp at  
all times.

In this regard, varying relative distance is like varying tightness  
of the cup.  It's something a player does to vary how the mic element  
responds which is done in order to vary the nature and timbre of the  
amplified sound.  It's an important aspect of mic handling for  
amplified playing. Playing at a constant distance from the mic is  
like always playing with a tight (or loose) cup.  it impairs the  
player's ability to exert control over the full range of amplified  
sounds that are otherwise available .

JP