Which Harmonica Key To Buy WORK
Has it ever occured to you that you asked for suggestions in any harmonica community forum, or inquired about keys of harmonica to buy for a beginner, in a facebook group? What important elements do you need to focus on, when it comes to selecting a key for your harp? Can I play in all 12 keys using just few harmonicas? Let's disclose these all in this article.
which harmonica key to buy
After that, I would buy one F harp for high pitch screaming and crying licks, and a G harp for chord playing and train imitation. Chords sound better on low pitched harmonica, you may also consider buying a low-F harp for chugging.
As you can see, the basis of my choice for a harp is its peculiar sound and the discrete and tangible restrictions to play it. Basically a high pitched harmonica requires specific embouchure, as well as distinctive air level to play it. Some are easier to bend than others, and it really takes quite a while to get used to playing fluently on a different pitched harp. For this reason, if you get a G harmonica, a C harmonica and an F one, you will cover more or less a broad spectrum of all the required skills to play on each key.
Another dominating aspect you should never ignore while selecting a harmonica is how many different keys' songs you intend to play on: if you just play alone, every key is good and you just go and pick one gadget, but if you perform in a band or along with a singer, then you should choose your harp keeping in mind the songs you play. Let's take my case for example:
I have almost 100 songs in my repertoire and I perform a mix of minor and major songs as well as some blues style. Not to mention that I sing too, therefore, selection of harp for me depends significantly on my vocal range, but I usually tend to optimize the number of harmonicas in my seat to maximum 6. I have decided to fit all my repertoire with 6 blues harp and to rely on different playing position to cover every key.
Let's take a C harmonica: I can play it on C major songs, on G major and blues songs, on D minor songs, on E minor songs, and also on A minor song. I could also use it on F major tracks if I just play it melodically. As you see, a single harp can fit on different keys, the more you play in diversified positions, the less number of instruments you need to store in your set.
What will occur if I learn a new song that requires a certain type of harmonica which I don't have in my set? I will just rise its key one half-tone or lower it and I will play it on a key that I can manage, without changing the sound of the song much.
The harmonica is a very classic instrument to learn to play. It is one of the easiest to use and the smallest and lightest to carry. The harmonica can play music in a wide range of tones and keys. If you are interested in learning how to play the harmonica, you may be wondering which key is the most popular with players.
The most popular key to play harmonica in is also the key that is the most common, which is the key of C. Equally useful, though not as popular as the C harmonica, are harmonicas in the key of A, G, D and E.
Being easy to pick up and use lends very well to explaining the popularity and commonness of the C key harmonica. The key of C is right in the middle of the scale of notes. Additionally, most instruction manuals and tutorials are written with the harmonica attuned to the key of C.
If you are looking to play with other musicians, the harmonica in the key of C is an excellent choice. This harmonica will align best with other instruments such as guitars. And you will also be playing in tune with the other instruments as well.
A key factor in deciding which harmonica to buy is what your personal taste in music is. Each of the harmonicas listed above is good at different genres of music. For example, a diatonic harmonica is best suited for playing the genres of country, blues, spiritual and even rock.
The tremolo is the most limited in the type of music it can play, as the sound produced is akin to an organ. Chromatic harmonicas are similar to diatonics in that they can play similar genres-but they can play at a wider range of notes than the diatonic.
There are different styles of harmonica-and therefore, each harmonica will have a range of keys. This range can run from 12 keys for a traditional, or chromatic, harmonica, to 18 keys for a diatonic harmonica.
Which harmonica you opt for depends on your level of comfort with playing this instrument, as well as your personal taste in music. Additionally, each harmonica is priced based on user ability-the diatonic costs less than a chromatic, and the tremolo is usually priced between both.
The diatonic harmonica is the most popular, as well as the most common type of harmonica. The key feature of the diatonic harmonica is that it plays in 10 of the 12 keys, as those harmonicas feature 10 holes. Beginning harmonica players are suggested to buy their diatonic in the key of C.
Chromatic harmonicas differ from diatonic in that chromatic harmonicas have more variance in the number of holes from 8 up to 14. This allows a wider range of keys to be played-which is why this harmonica is best left to more experienced players. However, the best key to buy for this type of harmonica is the key of C-same as the diatonics.
To find the key, harmonica players set the scale at different positions, or harps. For any harmonica, there are four commonly used positions. Setting the harmonica to these positions sets the scale, which in turn determines which keys the harmonica will be played in. Since the key of C is the most popular key, most of these positions incorporate the key of C in different ways.
These positions are important to know, especially if you choose to play on a diatonic harmonica. Since diatonics come in many keys, it is important to know the scale and note layout. Once you know how to tune in a certain key, you can easily play in other keys using a single harmonica.
On a harmonica, first position-also called straight harp-is playing the harmonica in the actual key. So on a harmonica in the C Key, which is the most common key, will play in tune in that key. This is generally where any beginning harmonica player should start when learning how to play.
The last positions that a harmonica can play in are the third and fourth positions. Playing these positions results in the harmonica playing in a minor key, which is appropriate for more moody pieces. Hitting these tunes can be challenging, which is why these positions are usually left to more experienced players.
There are a variety of harmonicas available that play in the key of C. Additionally, learning to play in the key of C will allow you to easily join with other musicians and play music of a wide variety of genres. These factors are what make harmonicas with the C key the most popular.
Look at the top of the diagram and see C. If we move one space clockwise, we have our cross-harp key of G! To find the cross-harp key for any harmonica, find the key of the harmonica on the Circle of Fifths, and move one space clockwise.
On the Circle of Fifths, I can just find the key of the Blues song, and move one space counter-clockwise. If you know the key of a Blues song and want to find which harmonica to use, find the key of the song on the Circle of Fifths, and move one space counter-clockwise.
Thinking about it the other way, if you want to choose a harmonica for an F Blues, you need to choose the Bb harmonica. And if you want to choose a harmonica for an F# Blues, you need to choose a B harmonica.
Easy, you simply pick up another harmonica! While there are many benefits to buying a harmonica in the key of C, buying harmonicas in other keys open op a whole new world of music for you. To determine which key you should buy your next harmonica in, there are a few questions you must ask your self first.
Ask yourself whether you wish to play the harmonica alone or in a group. If you plan to play the harmonica for your own enjoyment, stress-relief, or to maybe to just advance your skill before you choose to play with others, then you are able to use any harmonica in any key. Any song you choose to learn, can be altered to play in any key you wish, and it is encouraged as you continue to advance you skill, to eventually expand your ability to other harmonica keys.
If you wish to play in a group, a duo, or even adding a harmonica to your guitar or other instrument, then the key of your harmonica will be dependent on the key of the song that you wish the play along with. While majority of songs can be played along with the harmonica in the key of C, it is important to recognize and know when to play harmonicas in other keys. In order to know which key of harmonica to buy, you must also identify if you are playing along in straight harp or cross harp positions.
One thing that is important to keep in mind is that while the notes may vary, the pattern you learn for any song will remain the same for each key of the major diatonic. This means that if you learn to play your favorite song on the harmonica, you will be able to play that song in any major key, using the same drawing and blowing breath patterns. This can be fun and exciting when first experimenting with different harmonicas and their tones.
One of the biggest selling points of buying harmonicas in other keys, is the ability to play any song in any key. The major diatonic keys in order are, C A G D E F Bb Eb, and owning these will allow you to play along with any instrument (1).
Swan is a little more well-known in the Harmonica world than Fender. They make great Harmonicas all the way from beginner to professional. Getting a set of 7 harmonicas is a fantastic way to learn to dabble in all the different keys, and begin to play with people no matter what key they might choose to play in.
East Top is Easily among the Best Harmonica Brands you can buy, which is no wonder it made our lists! This set is a little more expensive than the previous two, but it will certainly last longer than the others because of the increased quality and diligent workmanship put into the instruments. 041b061a72