By Zoe Hebert
NATCHITOCHES – Long-time teacher and performer of American roots musician Ed Huey will be giving a harmonica workshop at this year’s Natchitoches-NSU Folk Festival on July 22.
In addition to sharing basic harmonica techniques with festival attendees, Huey will also teach core skills like breath control and rhythm. Beginning at 12:30 p.m. on the East Stage, the workshop is open to all ages and skill levels. Anyone who is interested in learning more about the harmonica and how to play it is welcome to join the workshop. Festivalgoers are invited to bring their harmonicas if they have one, and Huey will be giving away 50 Hohner harmonicas to those who attend the workshop.
Huey was already skilled with the guitar when he got his start playing harmonica after hearing Jimmy Reed playing. Having already learned a few Reed songs on guitar, Huey wanted to learn harmonica so he could play both simultaneously. He is self-taught, and over time, he has picked up tricks from other players.
“People show you a trick or two, and you go home and practice that trick until you learn how to do it yourself,” Huey explained.
He went to Davis and Elkins College for Blues Week at the recommendation of a friend, and he was amazed at the skill of the professional harmonica players there. His perspective on playing harmonica shifted when he met Joe Filisko, a renowned blues musician and teacher. Huey explained that Filisko taught him to be an independent learner and to synthesize several different styles of playing into his own unique style. Huey now specializes in early blues guitar and harmonica styles, having studied both at the Augusta Heritage Center. Huey received a Lyndhurst Foundation Grant and gathered field recordings of Mississippi Delta bluesmen. In 2017 he was honored by the Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser and the Louisiana Folklife Commission as a Louisiana Tradition Bearer sustaining the distinct culture and contributing to the rich diversity of living traditions. He has played harmonica and guitar with several groups, including the Snake Doctors and the Hardrick Rivers Revue. Adera Causey, Curator of Education for the Hunter Museum of American Art, has said that “Ed Huey is a phenomenal performer and perfectly reflects American Art in its musical form.”
Continuing traditions is all about finding people who are interested, Huey says. His aim in teaching his workshop is to teach people something they’ve never tried before and, hopefully, spark an interest in music. He provides his students with not only instruction on building the skills they need to make music, but something to practice on and a goal to reach. He plays his own harmonica for his students to show them an example of what they’re working toward, and then gives them a harmonica of their own to play on. The harmonica is portable and easy to learn, making it an ideal instrument for anyone looking to learn how to make music.
“Everybody needs to learn how to express themselves musically,” Huey explained. “When you play by yourself, it’s like you’re doing a monologue. When you play with other musicians, you’re having a conversation.” To Huey, music is a type of communication that goes beyond language and can teach people a different way to think. The music acts as a uniting force that brings people together in a way that conversation doesn’t. The beauty in music is that it’s meant to be shared. Huey added that “When you play that music, and you share that music, all of the joy, and all of the work, and all of the entertainment that you learn, you get to share that with everybody else when you play.”
The harmonica is a great instrument for beginners, according to Huey.
“It’s a really wonderful instrument. If you can breathe, you can inhale and exhale, you can play it.” Huey starts with the basics in his workshop, making it a perfect learning opportunity for beginners and an excellent review for higher-level players. He emphasizes the importance of the movement of air through the instrument, stating that “The music rides the air.” He plans to teach a song called “The Train Song,” which is simple and beginner-friendly while also employing techniques that are important to practice. He is looking forward to sharing his love of the art of harmonica playing and music at the festival.
The 43rd annual Natchitoches-NSU Louisiana Folklife Festival will be held in air-conditioned Prather Coliseum, located at 220 South Jefferson Street at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches. The festival’s curated showcase of Louisiana folk musicians, food vendors, and traditional crafts persons will open at 9 a.m. with live entertainment scheduled for 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. A collection of dozens of craftspeople displaying and selling their works, and several live demonstrations and panel discussions will be held throughout the festival. The family-oriented festival is fully wheelchair accessible. Children 12 and under are admitted free. Tickets are $10 at the door for all events, or $6 for an evening pass to all events after 5 p.m.
Support for the festival is provided by grants from the Cane River National Heritage Area, Inc., the City of Natchitoches, the Louisiana Division of the Arts Decentralized Arts Fund Program, the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, the Louisiana Office of Tourism, the Natchitoches Historic District Development Commission, the National Endowment for the Arts, the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation, the Shreveport Regional Arts Council and the State of Louisiana.
