Controllable Note Bending on MIDI Harmonicas - What are the Options?
Posted: Sun Mar 26, 2017 12:40 pm
Talking of "Interesting Alternative Ideas in the Harmonica Scene", they don't come much more interesting or alternative than the new DM48 MIDI harmonica:
http://www.lekholminstruments.com/
I was honoured by the inventor Erik Lekholm to be his beta tester of the first prototype. It was a fascinating journey for a newcomer to MIDI like me, and Erik added several new menus to the on-board user interface in response to my suggestions/requests.
I made a couple of videos showing off the instrument:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwgIAFOnJVs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WDVv65SZnY
And here is the great French jazz player Laurent Maur trying it for the first time at my home:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okcHov-RDis
The first DM48s are now shipped out to customers, so we should start seeing/hearing quite a lot more online from this amazing new MIDI harmonica.
In January 2015 I wrote an article for the NHL Harmonica World magazine entitle What's Wrong with the Harmonica? It listed all the things conventional harmonicas can't do, or do badly. I think you will agree it's a long list:
http://www.brendan-power.com/images/HW% ... n%2015.pdf
But reading it now, I see the DM48 has ticked off a lot of those boxes!!
Of course many would say "Yes, but it's not a REAL harmonica". Yes and no... No reeds, but it's played like a harmonica, and can sound like one if you choose a harmonica patch. Though very expressive, one area it definitely falls behind conventional harmonicas (especially blues harps) is in the area of controllable note bending. Bending in response to breath pressure is available, but it's not controllable like a traditional blues harp bend.
To me that's too big a deficiency to accept. I'm currently working independently with a UK MIDI electronics guru to add an extra controller specifically for pitch bending. The prototype will arrive this week - will keep you posted on how it works out.
http://www.lekholminstruments.com/
I was honoured by the inventor Erik Lekholm to be his beta tester of the first prototype. It was a fascinating journey for a newcomer to MIDI like me, and Erik added several new menus to the on-board user interface in response to my suggestions/requests.
I made a couple of videos showing off the instrument:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwgIAFOnJVs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WDVv65SZnY
And here is the great French jazz player Laurent Maur trying it for the first time at my home:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okcHov-RDis
The first DM48s are now shipped out to customers, so we should start seeing/hearing quite a lot more online from this amazing new MIDI harmonica.
In January 2015 I wrote an article for the NHL Harmonica World magazine entitle What's Wrong with the Harmonica? It listed all the things conventional harmonicas can't do, or do badly. I think you will agree it's a long list:
http://www.brendan-power.com/images/HW% ... n%2015.pdf
But reading it now, I see the DM48 has ticked off a lot of those boxes!!
Of course many would say "Yes, but it's not a REAL harmonica". Yes and no... No reeds, but it's played like a harmonica, and can sound like one if you choose a harmonica patch. Though very expressive, one area it definitely falls behind conventional harmonicas (especially blues harps) is in the area of controllable note bending. Bending in response to breath pressure is available, but it's not controllable like a traditional blues harp bend.
To me that's too big a deficiency to accept. I'm currently working independently with a UK MIDI electronics guru to add an extra controller specifically for pitch bending. The prototype will arrive this week - will keep you posted on how it works out.