Basics of Music Theory for the Blues Harmonica Player Harp Positions

Here is the other way to easily control whether you're playing bluesy or light in 2nd Position. The 3 (B on the C Harmonica) is light and the 3' (Bb) is bluesy. So... if you want your licks to sound bluesy, choose the 3' over the 3. If you want your licks to sound light, use 3 over the 3'.

The ability to play the 3' at ANY SPEED and in ANY DIRECTION (ascending or descending) is paramount for the harmonica player.

Any key of diatonic harmonica can play in any key or mode. Some keys and modes are very far from the key of the harmonica, making them impractical to play in. Seven of those modes can be played without any change to pitch (bending). We call the modes you can play in on the harmonica "Positions." You can extrapolate from this that for 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, etc., positions that you use the same blow and draw notes, it's just the ordering that makes the difference. This is a correct statement. continue reading...

Our next position starts on the 6th Scale Degree of the Major Scale and is called 4th Position... this is playing in the key A on the C Harmonica. The Mode created is called the Natural Minor Mode (also known as the Relative Minor of C).

The notes are as follows:
A B C D E F G A (same notes as the C Major Scale, just starting from A)

Intervals:
Whole | Half | Whole | Whole | Half | Whole | Whole

Scale Degrees (Relative to its equivalent Major Scale):
1 2 Flat-3 4 5 Flat-6 Flat-7 8

Full Scale:
1+ 1 2+ 2" 2 3"
3" 3 4+ 4 5+ 5 6+ 6
6 7 7+ 8 8+ 9 9+ 10
10 10'+ 10+ continue reading...

Our next position starts on the 6th Scale Degree of the Major Scale and is called 4th Position... this is playing in the key A on the C Harmonica. The Mode created is called the Natural Minor Mode (also known as the Relative Minor of C).

The notes are as follows:
A B C D E F G A (same notes as the C Major Scale, just starting from A)

Intervals:
Whole | Half | Whole | Whole | Half | Whole | Whole

Scale Degrees (Relative to its equivalent Major Scale):
1 2 Flat-3 4 5 Flat-6 Flat-7 8

Full Scale:
1+ 1 2+ 2" 2 3"
3" 3 4+ 4 5+ 5 6+ 6
6 7 7+ 8 8+ 9 9+ 10
10 10'+ 10+ continue reading...

Join me for our fourth lesson on Music Theory for the Blues Harmonica Player, where we explore melodic development… how chords and scales work together to create great solos. In this lesson you’ll learn about chord tones, scale tones, outside tones, active tones, non-active tones, passing tones, upper and lower neighbor tones, appoggiatura, the hierarchy of note selection, chord scales, sequences and chord-tone soloing. This lesson is for intermediate skill level players. You'll need a C Harmonica for this study. continue reading...

Join me for our second lesson on Music Theory for the Blues Harmonica Player, where we explore modes and positions. In this lesson you'll learn: what modes are associated with each position; how to figure out what key you and the band are playing in for the various positions; and how to make your own harmonica position chart. continue reading...