Which notes can be bent on a harmonica?

Which notes can be bent on a harmonica?

A player can bend the pitch of the higher tuned reed down toward the pitch of the lower tuned reed in any given hole. In other words, on a diatonic harmonica, on holes 1 through 6, the draw notes can be bent, and on holes 7 through 10, the blow notes can be bent.

What does bending mean in harmonica?

On the harmonica, bending is a technique that allows the player to lower the pitch of a note. There are 2 reasons to learn bending: Expressiveness. Bending does well to emulate the human voice, especially the wailing, crying sounds that are well-suited for soulful bluesy harmonica playing.

How do you bend the notes on a harmonica?

Determine the correct holes for blow bending. You can only bend a note on the blow (exhale) with holes eight through ten on your harmonica. Some of these notes will bend more than others, and you may find that some holes are easier for you to bend than others.

What are the notes on a harmonica?

Harmonicas come in a variety of keys (click here for more about harmonica keys and note names). The most common harmonica key is C, the notes on a C harmonica are shown below. In the diagram blow means the note when blowing into a hole, draw means the note when breathing in.

What key harmonica to use with guitar?

The guitar’s natural key is E; so buying a diatonic harmonica in the key of E major would be ideal. The other diatonic harmonicas you should aim to add to your collection is G major and C major. Diatonic harmonicas are cheap and it shouldn’t take long before you have a collection of harmonicas that cover every key.

What is a C harmonica?

The common 10 hole harmonica is a “diatonic” instrument, meaning that it is designed to play in one key (C for a C harmonica). This also means that some notes are “missing”. For example, if you compare a C harmonica with a piano, the C harmonica can play the white key notes only.