Type of Harmonica
The type of harmonica that these lessons are intended for is, a ten hole "diatonic
harmonica". It is often referred to as a Blues Harp by players. It's the one that all the cool
Bluesy stuff is played on. Blues Harps come in about 12 different keys, depending on the
manufacturer or brand name. For the purposes of learning, it is better to begin with a Key
"C" harmonica. This is because all beginners instructional material for harmonica tends to
be in the key of "C"
Some popular brands of Harmonica are ; Lee Oscar, Hohner, Suzuki, Bushman.
The diagram below represents the front of your harmonica, the lowest pitch note being
number 1
Explanation of Tablature
For the purposes of learning and if you are not familiar with reading sheet music we are going to
use Harmonica Tab or tablature to describe the notes or holes we are playing on the harmonica.
This pictorial form of notation is used to tab harmonica a lot of songs in the List of Songs to
Learn but a more conventional form is used throughout the rest of the site.
The symbol means blow into hole number six.
The symbol means blow in to hole number four.
The symbol means inhale from hole number six.
The symbol means inhale from both five and six.
The symbol means inhale and bend the note by a semitone.
The symbol means draw bend number three by a full tone, and so on, and so on.
The more conventional form for tabbing harmonica is to use plus and minus sings and to use
commas to indicate bends
-6 would mean inhale on hole 6.
+4 would mean blow into hole number 4.
-4' would mean a half tone bend on hole 4.
-2" would mean full tone bend on hole 2.
-3"' would mean bend hole 3 down one and a half steps.
+8' means blow bend hole 8 down one semi tone.
How to hold your Harmonica
Hold the harp between
the index finger and
thumb of your left hand
and use your right hand
to create a sealed sound
box at the back of the
harp.
With your hands closed
tight around the harp
you will notice that this
dulls the sound coming
from the harp or that the
harp can't be played as
loud.
Now allow an opening at
the back of your hands
(this is not visible in this
picture, I should have
put a mirror behind my
hands) This opening will
allow the sound to
escape. When you have
this opening the right
size, you will notice that
your hands magnify the
sound of the harp and
your hands will be
acting like the bell end
of a trumpet.
These next two pictures
demonstrate the Wah-
wah effect created by
opening and closing the
hands. In this picture the
right hand is closed
against the back of the
harmonica.
In this picture the right
hand is opened away
from the harmonica.
What Notes are on a Key "C" Harmonica
There are two notes in each hole, a blow note and a draw note. Study the diagrams below
and you will notice that some notes are missing.
"F" and "A" on the lower octave, and "B" on the upper octave are missing. These notes
can be played by bending the higher pitched note in that hole, but don't worry about this
technique for now.
How to Play a Single Note
Put your mouth over the front of the harmonica covering holes 2 to 4. Then put your
tongue on the separator bar between holes 2 and 3. This should block holes 2 and 3,
leaving hole 4 open. Blow or inhale on hole number 4.
You should get a clear single note, no double notes. Practice this until you get clear single
notes every time. And then practice the "C" scale below.
Notice the change in direction at holes 6 and 7.
http://www.harmonicabreeze.com/newsarticle/26894,4007,21824.aspx
Some Basic Music Theory
The C major scale goes like this:
C D E F G A B C
This means the same as:
do re me fa sol la te do
And it looks like this on sheet music score:
There are also a lot of half notes or semi tones in between these notes. These half notes or
semi tones are also known as sharps and flats.
C# = C sharp Bb = B flat
C#, is a note half a tone above C and Bb, is a note half a tone below B. So from this we
can figure out that, C# is the same note as Db
The full range of notes and semi tones on a c scale are:
C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B, C
This can also be written as:
C, Db, D, Eb, E, F, Gb, G, Ab, A, Bb, B, C
And this full range of notes and semi tones looks like this on sheet music score:
Notice that there is only a semi tone between E and F, same as for B and C. And now
look at the G major scale.
G A B C D E F# G
And the A major scale:
A B C# D E F# G# A
Study these scales and compare them with the full possible range of notes and semi tones.
There is a pattern or sequence for major scales, the notes go up in steps.
