Hello Indiana,
One of the most common things I see with harmonica players is this:
They are always learning new licks, but very few of those licks ever show up naturally in their playing.
Not because the licks are bad, but because they were never really explored.
That's what inspired my latest 10-day practice challenge, called Turn One Lick into 10.
The idea is simple. Instead of constantly adding new material, you take one lick you already like and deliberately get more musical mileage out of it.
Here's how the challenge works, day by day.
Day 1 is about choosing your starting lick. Just one. Nothing fancy. I recommend keeping it to two bars or less.
Day 2 focuses on changing the ending. A small note change can completely shift the feel of a lick. Pick notes from the Blues Scale to make things easier.
Day 3 is about stretching notes. Pick a note in the lick and hold it longer. Holding notes longer forces you to think about phrasing instead of speed.
Day 4 does the opposite. Pick a note and shorten it to create urgency.
Day 5 adds repeated notes. This is a simple way to change the groove without changing pitch. All you need to do is pick one (or more) of the notes in the original lick and repeat it (as many times as you like).
Day 6 is chopping. Break the lick into smaller chunks and pick one chunk to play as a new lick.
Day 7 introduces double stops. Pick one of the notes in your lick and play it as a double stop instead of a clean note.
Day 8 is chop and repeat. Take a small chunk of the original lick and play it multiple times in a row. This can really build intensity.
Day 9 adds bends. Take any one of the notes in your lick and turn it into a bend. Keep the bend on the same hole and experiment with what sounds good.
Day 10 is about mixing ideas together. Pick 2 or 3 of the ideas from this challenge and use them at the same time to make another new lick.
What I like about this approach is that it teaches you how to think, not just what to play.
You start hearing options instead of memorised shapes, and that's when licks begin to sound like music rather than exercises.
No pressure at all. I just wanted to share a simple idea that can make a big difference to how you practise.
Happy Harping,
Tomlin
P.S. If you'd like to take part in challenges like this, get access to a full easy-to-follow curriculum, and join a wonderful supportive (and fun) community of students and teachers you can try Tomlin Harmonica School for $1 for your first 31 days. Click here to find out more - https://www.tomlinharmonicaschool.com/tomlin-harmonica-school
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