should I get a harmonica?

[VitalSigns]

I kind of want a harmonica. Anyone else here have one? Any certain brands to look into/stay away from?

Btw, I don't really know to much music with harmonica in it, but I plan on learning some guitar riffs on it

[Ubersheist]

I know nothing about them, but it's never a bad thing to expand your musical horizons. In two bands that I'm in, both singer/guitarists have a handful in different keys, and they bust them out in different songs. It breaks up the set nicely. One band is a Southern Rock/Americana band (like the Allman Brothers meet Gillian Welch), the other is a funk/blues band. Harmonicas get used regularly in both.

[Mirios]

I can't speak for many brands but a hohner special 20 served me well until I stepped up to a chromatic harmonica. Which I hardly ever play anymore.

The Hohner special 20 is extremely easy to play. As far as brands to not recommend I don't know but harmonicas cost as much as a pair of strings or less for me. Seems if you like it you could spend some time trying out a few.

[VixCosmicHippo]

I don't have a ton of harmonica knowledge, I know Hohner makes some good stuff I think the "Marine Band" model in particular, that's the one Howard Levy plays. If you ever want to hear some amazing, almost impossibly amazing harmonica playing check him out. He's the fourth original Flecktone, on their first three albums and their latest, he also has a wide array of solo material. Well worth a listen.

[Papa Dangerous]

I believe its Hohner Blues Harp is a good harmonica. I have one and it sounds nice. The only thing I have noticed about playing harmonica.. which I do so poorly... is that it does not really sound like a harmonica til you really get it down. It takes a considerable amount of practice to get bends and the that perfect tone out of it. The way you play notes, and chords is based on the shape of your mouth, which ends up taking time until you are comfortable with how it feels.

I recommend it definitely, but just do expect that to get that Billy Joel or Bob Dylan sound from just blowing into it. It takes practice to make it sound good.

C is the most basic/common harmonica (Like everything music...) So books and lessons are usually based on that. But it always sounds to happy for me considering I like a bluesy sound harmonica playing style.

[Mirios]

Oh I just noticed the guitar riff thing. Harmonicas as a general rule only play two keys. A harmonica in C is C blowing out and Gmin blowing in. (can one blow in?) So basically the key is the major key, and the minor key inhaling is always the 5th of the key listed on the harmonica. On standard harmonicas anyways.

So if a guitar riff has no notes outside of those keys you are good.

If you want to step up spend some more money, and a lot more time a chromatic harmonica would be good.

http://www.amazon.com/Hohnica-Educat...3954269&sr=1-1

Could be a cheap alternative. My chromatic harmonica was around 135 I think it's a Hohner.]

And Howard Levy can play 12 keys all on a C diatonic so it can be done. Not easy.

[Mirios]

Originally Posted by VixCosmicHippo

I don't have a ton of harmonica knowledge, I know Hohner makes some good stuff I think the "Marine Band" model in particular, that's the one Howard Levy plays. If you ever want to hear some amazing, almost impossibly amazing harmonica playing check him out. He's the fourth original Flecktone, on their first three albums and their latest, he also has a wide array of solo material. Well worth a listen.

My first Harmonica was a Marine Band from my grandfather. I had to clean it and replace reeds and what not. Still didn't play as well as the special 20 for me. I'm no pro though and like anything you can do metal on any kind of harmonica.

[skychief]

Dont know much about harmonicas but i always envied harp players coz they they can stick their instrument in their shirt pocket. On the downside, all the harp players i met had a huge collection of the things (1 for each key?).

Your idea with doing guitar licks on a harp is great---ive heard some really good harp players pull this off. The band i was in (wayyy back) was trying to learn a cover song from another band--- The guitar plyr in my band thought it WAS guitar he was hearing!!

[Mirios]

Originally Posted by skychief

Dont know much about harmonicas but i always envied harp players coz they they can stick their instrument in their shirt pocket. On the downside, all the harp players i met had a huge collection of the things (1 for each key?).

Your idea with doing guitar licks on a harp is great---ive heard some really good harp players pull this off. The band i was in (wayyy back) was trying to learn a cover song from another band--- The guitar plyr in my band thought it WAS guitar he was hearing!!

Most Harp players can get a case to hold plenty of harmonicas and sometimes their mic and cable. A low watt tube amp in the other hand. It does seem unfair. I kind of want to play some jazz on my chromatic now but my cat is asleep. Waking her up with reed instruments is bad for my health.

[VitalSigns]

Good info here, thanks guys.

[VitalSigns]

Oh forgot to say, this is what made want to check out harmonica.
I'd say it's worth a listen.


Barleyjuice - Drunken Sailor

[Muddslide]

I agree the Hohner Special 20 is a great place to start.

I have a few decent harps in different keys but I've yet to really learn to play them. I really want to, just haven't devoted the time to it.

Although the harmonica is an easy instrument to overplay and too much of it can grate, a skilled player can do all kinds of great stuff with them.

I really hope to find the time to work on it.

One of the greatest things about the harmonica to me is that you can get a really decent one for less than $40 (although you can sure spend tons of money if you plan to go electric and play through a mic and amp) and more than anything else, it's portable!

I love the idea of an instrument you can carry in your pocket. I keep one in a bag I carry to work and if I get stuck in traffic I can whip it out and go through the 3-4 blues riffs I know and try out other things.

[Nev375]

I don't play them, but I believe John Popper uses Special 20's. They sound pretty damn good in his hands and don't appear to be terribly expensive. Also they are available in all keys. That's where I would start.

[Execrate]

The early Moody Blues had a song called Bye Bye Bird, where one guy sang and played the harmonica. And sometimes, he did both at the same time! I found a really old (dusty) You-Tube of them doing the song.

The Moody Blues - Bye Bye Bird - YouTube

Kinda shows what can be done with the 'ol mouth harp

[VitalSigns]

So I think I've decided on this.

But I'd like to get more info on the different keys they come in. I know that C is the most common. Sorry if this is a dumb question but where would the notes on the harp be compared to the notes on my four string bass.

And more music recommendations would be nice too. Because i'm 16 and don't know too much music with harmonica in it.
Thanks again guys

[SurferJoe46]

I have over 200 harmonicas. I play a lot of blues and even some Beatles/Stones covers where they are used in the original recordings.

You need to start with a decent number of harps at first, since as it's already been said, they come in key/signatures and later on you can play in 'cross-harp' style if you get good.

I'd recommend getting a C natural and perhaps a G natural and also a Bb at first and you'll grow from there.

Bending is a trick that cannot be explained - even sometimes cannot be taught to a novice until they usually accidentally bend their first note and then they take off from there.

You WILL want to learn to bend the notes - I can go from a full note lower than the reed signature to a note above the reed signature on any one reed. But that takes years of practice to be able to bend a full three notes on a fixed reed!

Bending down is the easiest (for me anyway) and bending up is the hardest. Some harps almost refuse to bend at al. But they can be modified to work.

I re-reed some of my harps and make mods to the reed plates to get the sound I want. It becomes a passion.

I have a friend who has played harmonicas for 20+ years and has yet to bend a note at all. Go figger.

Hohners are a very good start, and I really recommend the Big River or the Special 20s as a great place to start as they are somewhat easier to bend than many other harps.

Serious for a minute here - stay far away from any Hohner from China. They just don't make a good harp. Even though it may be tempting to buy low-priced, they'll burn you out fast like a cheap guitar and you'll walk away from harps, disgusted.

And also I'd stay away from multi-packs of harps. They are usually poor quality and even if they are decent enough, they aren't going to give you the real feeling for a great instrument.

One set to avoid like the plague is one you can find at GC and a few other retailers: The Piedmont Blues Set by Hohner.

Among the lines by Hohner are a few to look for that I personally like:

The Blues Harps with natural bamboo combs - woody and raspy with a great twang to them for blues and Allman Brothers sounds.

The Marine Band - fundamentally one of the finest entry level harps that can really get you going. These typically have a plastic comb that is pretty bulletproof for a n00b. This is perhaps THE most recorded harp in the world.

The Special 20 - a great moving-on-up-to-a-pro-harpist harp. It will give you new areas of tones and you can actually bend them very easily.

The Big River - I tend to think of a calliope when I play one of these. They are rich in fundamental tones and good echo too. These have a really good vibrato ability too and a plastic comb.

I tend to shy away from Suzukis and some of the other brands - but that's like the old Fender v Ibanez argument.

Whenever I play out on my bass, I bring at least a pack of harps from Ab - A - Bb - B - C - D - E - Eb - F - Gb and up to G. That's eleven harps!

This isn't trying to scare you off harps, but you need a lot of different keys to play music, although Ab - Bb - C - D - Eb - F - G are most popular to play in many --- but not ALL songs.

Next week we can talk about my MINOR Harps. I only have a couple of dozen of them though.

Most decent harps are $30.00+ and can go out-of-sight for prices.

When/if you buy some harps - do NOT put them in the closed boxes/cases in which you bought them. That will promote bacteria and you can ruin the reeds if they stay wet.

After playing - let them dry out after you blow through them and slap them in your palm to knock out any --- can I say this on a family site? : mucus or spittle and secretions.

[arsie]

Who is gonna be laying down the low end while you're playing the harmonica?

I reckon something like a harmonica is a good secondary instrument to learn, but when performing, its probably going to be the singer, keyboards, horn players or guitarists that break them out. The drummer and bass player are too busy keeping the ship sailing straight.

Nothing stopping anyone from learning another instrument, however.

[SurferJoe46]

I put the harmonica on a neck rack and can use it that way - ala: Bob Dylan although he didn't play bass.

The worst problem I have is with my trombone when I play bass. There just isn't a good stand for a bass-playing trombonist ------------ nor is there really much demand for a bass-playing trombonist.

Funny though - I can't sing and play bass but I can play harmonica and play bass at the same time.

[Ayce]

For music, check out Sabbath's "The Wizard" AFAIK, the first use of harmonica in a metal song.

[Pop N Fresh]

I suggest do not get a harmonica. The dentist believed it was the cause to my uncle's gingervitis of the mouth