David's Tip of the Day: Major Scale & Folk Songs

Playing folk songs can be a great way to build facility on your instrument. Folk songs commonly use the Major Scale, and the Major Scale is the scale our harmonica uses for its tuning. Here's a simplistic way to think of this scale... each note of the scale represents the next higher or lower note available on your harmonica. When you're copying another harmonica player's solo and you hear the next note go up, you know where that next higher note is. This also happens when improvising... your minds ear hears the next note of the melody you're creating and with knowledge of the Major Scale you know where to move next. The more you practice this scale, the more likely your muscle memory (subconscious mind) will take you where you need to go without spending time looking around for that next note. Play the following octaves of the Major Scale and the folk melody that inhabits the middle range of the harmonica.

Low Octave: 1+ 1 2+ 2" 2 3" 3 4+

Mid Octave: 4+ 4 5+ 5 6+ 6 7 7+

High Octave: 7+ 8 8+ 9 9+ 10 10' 10+

When the Saints Go Marching In
4+ 5+ 5 6+, 4+ 5+ 5 6+, 4+ 5+ 5 6+ 5+ 4+ 5+ 4, 5+ 5+ 4 4+, 4+ 5+ 6+ 6+ 5, 5 5+ 5 6+ 5+ 4+ 4 4+