Some tips for the new player:
You have progressed, and are about to be playing three notes. Don't rush! As with all wind instruments, you need to learn how to breathe, and that takes time. Try to practise breathing while playing, at the end of musical phrases, with quick short breathes that don't stop your playing.
Although it is best to breathe at the end of a phrase, if you find you don't have enough air, you can take a breate before. Try not to pass out, it is not recommended for your health.
Breathing through your mouth is performed by lifting your upper lip, without removing the Harmonica from your mouth.
When Playing:
All the notes in following exercises are played byblowing. The line of numbers below the notes denotes the number of the hole on the Diatonic Harmonica, while the line of numbers below that denotes the number of the hole on the Chromatic Harmonica.
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G Note
6 Hole - In the Diatonic Harmonica
7 Hole - In the Chromatic Harmonica |
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Exercise 5
In the following exercise we will go up and down the notes slowly. Try to keep an even tempo and produce clean individual notes.
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Exercise 6
The next exercise is a Triplet exercise. This means there are three beats in every bar.
There is no need to move your mouth for each new note, just slide the Harmonica in you mouth.
Try adding Vibrato to the long notes, it adds beauty and intrest to you sound.
Bars:
These aren't only places to drink!
A bar, or a measure, is a rhythmic grouping of notes taht contains a fixed number of beats. It is represented by a vertical line between groups of notes.
In the following example you will see a kind of division into bars where in every bar we count four beats:
Time Signature:
Time signatures specifys how many beats are in each bar (or measure) and what note value constitutes one beat.
It is made up of two numbers one above the other at the begining of a piece.
The top number signifies how many beats we should count in each bar, and the bottom number signifies what value that beat has (what note it is).
For example, in 4/4 time, we will count four beats to a measure, while each beat is a quarter note:
The Dotted Note
A note with a dot by it's side is longer by half.
For example, a half note (that normally lasts two beats) with a dot lasts three beats. See the following example.
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Exercise 9
Three quarters 3/4 time:
In the following example, the time signature is 3/4, meaning you count three beats to a bar and each beat is worth a qurater note
Congradulations !
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You have finished your first steps towards learning to play Harmonica !
We hope you have had fun, and are showing off your new skills to friends and family at every opportunity. You can continue to the next stage
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