Hey, welcome to my series of blues harp lessons, this is something I’ve been meaning to do for quite some time and finally got round to it! The blues harp is a unique kind of instrument going by many names: diatonic harmonica, mouth-organ, gob-iron, Mississippi saxophone. It has a very direct connection to the player and is a bit like a second voice meaning every player tends to have subtle differences in sound and style. The other curious thing about blues harp is that the harmonica its self wasn’t originally designed to be played in the blues style – it was originally designed to be played quite melodically and set up for playing chords, many of the techniques that make that neat blues harp sound were probably stumbled upon accidentally!
I first picked up a harp because I wanted an instrument to take with me on my travels around the world, such a small and portable instrument, it has deceived many folks in to thinking there’s nothing much to it. Truth is there’s a whole world going on though these ten holes, oddly enough it was the humble harmonica that lead me to the blues and into the world of music.
Anyway, I’d like to share some of my ideas about playing harmonica, hope you find it usefull and enjoy.
