Comment by kpgraham | Hacker News Reader

Comment by kpgraham | Hacker News Reader

Harp player here. When I first started playing, I had a Gindick's book, Country and Blues Harmonica For the Musically Hopeless. This was maybe 35 years ago. I would recommend that book and the tape (cd? mp3?) that comes with it, for beginners. You can't see the notes you are playing on a harmonica. You have to hear them. You start by playing clear single notes and then shaping the note by articulating eeeh-yah or something similar and the note magically bends. You have to hear the note so you can tell if the note bends. It is very organic, and I don't think an app will help much. It may confirm what is happening, but it is not going to help if you can't do it. Personally, I played along with Little Walter's greatest hits on my hour long morning commute, and eventually it was just natural to bend the notes at the right time. My advice is to look for Jason Ricci on YouTube. He has hundreds or thousands of videos on beginner to advanced subjects. He is a weird dude, but I've never known a better teacher.

Thanks for sharing that — I really appreciate your perspective and experience.

I absolutely agree: bending is a deeply organic thing that you need to feel and hear in your body. No app can replace that. The goal of my app is not to teach you how to bend, but to help you understand what you're actually playing — especially for beginners who are unsure whether their bend reached the target pitch.

It’s more like a "mirror" than a teacher: you still have to do the work with your ears, but the app can help confirm (or challenge) what you think you hear. Some folks find that helpful in the early stages.

Also — yes to Gindick and Jason Ricci! Two amazing resources. I hope my app can complement, not replace, that kind of learning journey.

Thanks again for the thoughtful input!

I also learned from that book + tape about 30 years ago. I also have to strongly agree with this. It's quite different from learning stringed instruments. I'm sure it has a lot in common with some brass instruments, but either way, seeing doesn't help. Hearing and feeling is everything. That also makes it easier than most to learn via cassette tape! :)

The app seems neat, but focused on precision in bending. Precision in bends doesn't matter a ton for most styles. It's more about feel. Build and resolve tension. Don't worry too much about hitting things exactly. That advice will eventually fail you if you go into styles that need a more complete scale, but for blues/rock/country, it's much more about intuition than precision. The best way to learn is to play along with a lot of things and build "feel" instead of trying to precisely hit notes. (though you do need to hit a clean note to start bending)

Some things are better learned organically. Lots of things actually.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com