Jump to content

harmonica question


Recommended Posts

  • Members

Originally posted by keithwell

if i want to start playing harmonica to accompany my acoustic which should i starts with?? as in the key of the harm..


i've heard c is the "regular" key. but also a f and e. which do i need?

 

 

get a Mel Bay primer and video on beginning harmonica... that will demystify the confusion you are experiencing about the different "keys" of harmonica playing.

 

basically, you can use a harmonica to play in atleast two keys,, depending whether you play "straight harp" or "cross harp"...

 

so what key harmonica you use depends on what key the song is in,, PLUS how you stylistically approach playing it....

 

cross harp sounds more like blues,, straight harp sounds a bit more country or folky...

 

PLUS,,, some manufacturers make harps in minor keys as well,, which changes everything,, plus,, ytou gotta choose whether you want to play a diatonic scale harp, or a chromatic scale harp,, OR,, maybe even a tremelo harp.......

 

So you see, it's pretty simple, isn't it?

 

:D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

I agree with getting some instructional video or book CD. Most method books, when accompanied with a CD, will do the examples on a c harp. For that reason alone you will want a C harp.

 

If you get serious enough about playing harmonica you will end up owning one for every key.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

 

Originally posted by fingerpicker

I agree with getting some instructional video or book CD. Most method books, when accompanied with a CD, will do the examples on a c harp. For that reason alone you will want a C harp.


If you get serious enough about playing harmonica you will end up owning one for every key.

 

 

and if you get really serious,, you'll have several in every key!!! AND a bunch of different brands/styles of harps

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Our keyboard/mandolin/harmonica player uses a harmonica that is (on a guitar) five frets higher than the key we are in.

 

In other words, when WE are in G, his harp is in C. When WE are in A, his harp is D. He plays a blues style.

 

Don't ask me why, but it works.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

In my basic rudimentary understanding the reason this Crossharp solution works is that basically you are using a harp 1/4 above the root. ie. if song is in C you are using an F harp.

 

This has the effect of playing a C major scale with a flat 7th. (the b-flat from the F scale)

 

The flat 7 sounds nice with the blues.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

see

 

FAQS: Harmonica Types

 

The answer is it depends on the key of the song and the style of play.

 

There are two basic types of harmonicas (aka harp) 1) chromatic - contains all 12 tones 2) diatonic - contains 8 tones particular to a given major scale.

 

It sounds like you are thinking more of diatonic. If the song is a blues or blues rock type of thing then you want to play cross harp. As others have noted this means a harp in a key other than the song. For the venerable 12 bar blues in E, one needs a harp in the key of A...the fourth above in the E major scale or if you prefer, 5 frets up. Why does this work? For those who like a little theory, you are playing in an E mixolydian mode by using an A major scale. In particular, it gives the previously noted flat seventh (D). Another way to think of it is getting most of the E minor blues/pentatonic scale notes. It's missing the flat 3rd and flat 5th (the blue note) but these can be hit by bending technique (somewhat difficult to do on a harp). Conceptually it's the same as bending a note on guitar except that the note is flattened instead of raised.

That bending is a very important part of the sound. Really skillful players can get any of the other missing notes by bending.

 

The concept applies in any key...blues in A requires a D harp (e.g. The Pretrenders "Middle of the Road")...blues in G requires a C harp. As noted, a blues harmonica/harp player will need a variety of harps to sit in on blues songs and be able to pick up the key quickly to choose the correct harp. The most common are:

 

key of song - key of harp

G - C

E - A

A - D

C - F

D - G

F - Bb

 

If you want to be able to play blues in any key, then you have to have 12 harps but the above are the most common.

 

For a major or "country" sound (think Neil Young), then the key of the harmonica should be the same as they key of the song.

 

For a straight minor (not bluesey) sound then you need a harmonic in the key of the relative major. For example, the Blue Rodeo song "Five Days in May" is in Em and calls for a G maj harp.

 

Alternatively, you can go with a chromatic harmonica which can cover all keys with one instrument (think Stevie Wonder). It is very hard to get a blues sound from one of these although I've read it can be done.

 

More on point for this board...the most common microphone is the Shure Green Bullet in combination with an old Fender amp to get that gritty and blues distorted sound. A friend of mine uses a Pignose guitar amp to get a nice honk. In a band situation this has to be mic'd for the PA.

 

Have fun, a little "Mississippi saxophone" can add some nice tonal variety to the usual instrumentation and is the poor man's horn section.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 9 months later...
  • Members

What brands of Harmonica [blues harp] are the best?

I play guitar.

I prefer a deeper sound from my harps.

I didn't know there were harps in minor keys.

I play a lot in the keys of E, A & G but my E & A harps are kind of shrill. I much prefer my C harp - which is lower in pitch. Can I get the others in lower pitches?

Thanks

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

I think his original question was which harmonicas should he buy. If he's going to be doing mainly blues, rock, and country, he's probably best getting an A, C, D, F, and G; that way he can play cross harp in E, G, A, C, and D respectively. Since these seem to be the most common keys for guitar players in the above-mentioned genres, those 5 harmonicas should cover about 95% of what's played (unless the guitar player does something exotic, like tune down half-a-step, then you're screwed).

 

Michael D.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 years later...
  • Members

 

Originally posted by crowekd

see




The answer is it depends on the key of the song and the style of play.


There are two basic types of harmonicas (aka harp) 1) chromatic - contains all 12 tones 2) diatonic - contains 8 tones particular to a given major scale.


It sounds like you are thinking more of diatonic. If the song is a blues or blues rock type of thing then you want to play cross harp. As others have noted this means a harp in a key other than the song. For the venerable 12 bar blues in E, one needs a harp in the key of A...the fourth above in the E major scale or if you prefer, 5 frets up. Why does this work? For those who like a little theory, you are playing in an E mixolydian mode by using an A major scale. In particular, it gives the previously noted flat seventh (D). Another way to think of it is getting most of the E minor blues/pentatonic scale notes. It's missing the flat 3rd and flat 5th (the blue note) but these can be hit by bending technique (somewhat difficult to do on a harp). Conceptually it's the same as bending a note on guitar except that the note is flattened instead of raised.

That bending is a very important part of the sound. Really skillful players can get any of the other missing notes by bending.


The concept applies in any key...blues in A requires a D harp (e.g. The Pretrenders "Middle of the Road")...blues in G requires a C harp. As noted, a blues harmonica/harp player will need a variety of harps to sit in on blues songs and be able to pick up the key quickly to choose the correct harp. The most common are:


key of song - key of harp

G - C

E - A

A - D

C - F

D - G

F - Bb


If you want to be able to play blues in any key, then you have to have 12 harps but the above are the most common.


For a major or "country" sound (think Neil Young), then the key of the harmonica should be the same as they key of the song.


For a straight minor (not bluesey) sound then you need a harmonic in the key of the relative major. For example, the Blue Rodeo song "Five Days in May" is in Em and calls for a G maj harp.


Alternatively, you can go with a chromatic harmonica which can cover all keys with one instrument (think Stevie Wonder). It is very hard to get a blues sound from one of these although I've read it can be done.


More on point for this board...the most common microphone is the Shure Green Bullet in combination with an old Fender amp to get that gritty and blues distorted sound. A friend of mine uses a Pignose guitar amp to get a nice honk. In a band situation this has to be mic'd for the PA.


Have fun, a little "Mississippi saxophone" can add some nice tonal variety to the usual instrumentation and is the poor man's horn section.

 

 

My suggestion for starting off, using a rack plus guitar, definitely get ONE diatonic harmonica. First learn to play 'straight' e.g. play G major on a G harp, C major on a C harp etc. Pick the key in which you can most easily play guitar and sing. All that other good stuff e.g. bending, cross harp etc. comes later (I am still trying to learn it). I think most chromatics have a button you need to press, which would not be easy to do if using both hands to play your guitar

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...