Christmas Carols for the 10 hole diatonic harmonica
In thanks to everyone who has tuned in to The Toot Suite this year, we would like to share some seasonal music with you. Grab your harps (and a friend with a harp) and let’s look at Silent Night, Jingle Bells and Angels From The Realms Of Glory. (more…)
How to join in your group lesson if you forget your harmonica
No need to be sad. Everyone forgets things from time to time. That’s ok. The great thing is you can still come and you can still join in!
But before we start, think hard. Perhaps you did remember your harmonica, but you just can’t find it. You’d be amazed how often we discover it was in a school bag all along.
Still not there? Don’t worry. Let’s look on our time together as a music lesson, not just a harmonica lesson. There is plenty to learn, even without a harmonica. Tell your teacher and they’ll help you join in. Here are some great ways you can still have fun..
During a demonstration at school today, the children asked us questions about the harmonica.
Normally they want to know the biggest harmonica in the world, how long it takes to learn, or what happens if you swallow one.
But would you Adam’n’Eve it? (believe it?). Today one dustbin lid (kid) asked if we could play ‘Stenders Theme (the theme to BBC TV’s EastEnders). Strangely it’s not summink we normally knock out, but per’aps we’d better oughta start.
Instructions for playing this tune are below. Remember the Purple music is for four hole harmonicas, and Orange music is for ten hole harmonicas. Roll aht the barrel! (more…)
Gaga, ooh la la!
Here’s the one we promise to demonstrate at school…. but then we go and play Twinkle Twinkle instead!
So, just to prove you can play Lady Gaga on the harmonica, here’s the chorus to her hit Bad Romance.
Instructions for playing the tune are below. Purple music is for four hole harmonicas, and Orange music is for ten hole harmonicas. (more…)
How to fix a broken 4 hole harmonica
From time to time a harmonica can stop doing what it should do. Instead of playing clear notes, one reed sounds a bit strange. It may rattle, it may not play at all or, as one of our junior players recently discovered, a duck had climbed inside his harmonica. Blow hole 4 made a beautiful quack!
Since the 4 hole Hohner Speedy does not come in its own case, the problem is usually caused by a piece of dust or a small flake that has become trapped under the reed. Occasionally a reed can just get stuck. Sometimes it goes out of tune because the metal has started to fatigue – it’s too tired to carry on and it’s ready to snap off. (more…)
When you start harmonica, it can be hard to play ten holes. So Hohner make a special harmonica with the four most important ones. The holes are bigger too, so it’s easy to play. It’s called Speedy and it’s great for learning new songs. To hear Speedy, click the green button.
Now see if you can play all the notes. Each hole has a number from 1 to 4. B is blow (breath out). D is draw (breath in).
1B 1D 2B 2D 3B 3D 4D 4B
We give each note a name too.
C D E F G A B C
You can see our tune printed on top of the harmonica! Speedy comes in blue, pink, black or yellow and is easy to carry in your pocket or in your school bag.
