How To Clean A Hohner Special 20 Harmonica

Keep Your Harmonica Lukewarm - As a general rule of thumb, don't play your harmonica cold. Your instrument should be warmed slightly in your hands to prevent moisture build up. That being said, never use a heater to warm your harmonica, as a harmonica that's too hot can burn or become permanently warped. Also, be sure to keep your mouth clean and free of food or drinks before playing the harmonica.

Harmonica Buyers Guide

What to look for when buying a Harmonica?

After seeing the dozens of options available out on the market, choosing one single harmonica can seem like an impossible feat. After all, you want something that sounds good, but also something that motivates you to keep playing every day.

This means that deciding on one single instrument can feel like being cornered. Since we know that making a single decision is hard, we compiled a guide of features that each harmonica has so that you can better understand it features.

Hopefully, through this way, you will be able to choose which harmonica fits all your needs by being thoroughly informed about how a harmonica works and functions.

Budget

Harmonicas are generally cheap instruments. They can range to cost anything from $5 to $50. If you are a beginner, then we recommend buying a harmonica priced below $10. This way, if you don't like it, you won't feel like you spent a big fraction of your budget on something that will lay around gathering dust.

This can be hard to do, since we naturally want to presume that we will be professional players and professionals play with professional instruments, however that's simply not beneficial. You won't want to drag around an expensive harmonica everywhere in fear that it may get damaged. Having a cheaper harmonica will allow you to take it anywhere, anytime, without worrying about how many scratches or bumps it will get along the way.

If you are an intermediate player, we actually recommend the same. Having one harmonica for home-outside use and one harmonica for performances can be very beneficial. Whether these two harmonicas are both expensive, both cheap or cheap and expensive, will remain up to you.

Sound

Man playing Harmonica Every harmonica sounds differently. There are usually seven Harmonica keys to choose from when buying the harmonica, too. Usually, the C-Key is the most common and widely used among harmonica players, however when purchasing your instrument you will always have the chance to also buy a harmonica in one of the other Harmonica keys. The seven keys are : C, Bb, A, D, E, F and G.

This can get confusing, since as a beginner you want to be able to explore and play in every key to see which suits you most. Unfortunately, most of the time, that's not possible, and you will be left with a handful of YouTube videos that depict the differences between all of the keys on different harmonicas for you.

C Key

If you are going to be using online instruction or books to learn the harmonica, at least 95% of the learning materials will assume that you have a C harmonica, unless stated otherwise.

This is where another piece of knowledge piece comes in: having a harmonica in only one key, in this case the C-Key, means that it's diatonic. Diatonic means that if you have a C-Key harmonica, it's designed to play in a C-Key only. This also means that certain notes won't be playable on a C harmonica. If you compare it to a piano, it would be like only playing the white keys.

If you will want to play different songs in different Harmonica keys, then we are afraid that you will just need to purchase different types of harmonicas. Usually, each harmonica player has a set of different types of harmonicas in different Harmonica keys that they can use whenever the time arises.

As you advance, you will discover which keys you will need to purchase and which you will use most. This, however, requires time, patience and some extra budget spendings.

Chromatic vs. Diatonic

While most players stick the the diatonic C-key harmonica, some venture out further. You may have noticed that most of the harmonicas available out on the market are in the key of C, and are diatonic. As we explained before, diatonic means that the instrument can only play in one scale that it's designed to play.

Diatonic

The diatonic harmonica is predominantly used for playing blues, rock, and folk music. People such as Mick Jagger, Bob Dylan and Neil Young are known for using these kinds of harmonicas during their performances.

With some practice, you can also learn to play and 'bend notes' on the diatonic harmonica. This means that you can, theoretically speaking, play all the black keys of the piano along with the white Harmonica keys. Bending, however, as a technique to bend notes, needs a lot of practice. Regardless, it's 100% possible to achieve those notes that are not by default included in the diatonic harmonic by learning the 'bending' technique

Chromatic

A chromatic harmonica, on the other hand, is a harmonica that allows you to play in any scale you desire. It allows you to do this by pressing a button that is located on the side.

This button allows you to change the Harmonica keys, and when you press it half-way, you get all of the half-notes. This may sound like a dream-come-true harmonica that is the solution to all problems. That may be the case for some people, however the chromatic harmonica doesn't have the same 'blues' feel when you play it, since you can't use the distinct bending technique that generates that style.

It can also be extremely hard to find pieces of music that are specifically written for a chromatic harmonica.

The chromatic is mostly used for play jazz, classical and pop music. If you are interested in these music genres, then we can definitely recommend taking a longer look as to what a chromatic harmonica has to offer.

Features

Most harmonicas come in sets. This means that the product will come with a case, and usually a cleaning cloth, too. On rare occasions you will also get a user's manual, a learn how to play harmonica booklet or an instruction manual that will help you get started with your learning.

It's important to note that most expensive harmonicas don't come with cases, and if they do, they you should probably look for something more durable that will ensure that your prized possession is 100% protected.

How To Clean A Harmonica?

It's important to take good care of your harmonica, since most are irreplaceable due to health regulations. Regular, careful cleaning will ensure that you won't see any deterioration in tone when you play. Rinsing your harmonica (only do this if it's a plastic comb, otherwise it can provoke corrosion in metal/steel instruments) in luke warm can be the first step you can take to keep it clean and fresh.

If you want to go further with the cleaning, you can always purchase isoprobyl, which is a rubbing alcohol that comes in a small spraying bottle that helps disinfect and keep your harmonica clean and shiny.

When you open up the harmonica, be majorly careful to not disrupt the reeds in any way. It's vital to handle them carefully, and when cleaning, gently rub them with the alcohol. When you finish, wipe off the alcohol residue lightly with a soft cloth.

How to Hold a Harmonica?

To hold a harmonica properly, you will need to make a C shape with your left hand, while leaving the thumb and first finger of your left hand straight and parallel to each other. Now, put the harmonica in your left hand, and align your right hand pinky to either go under your left hand, essentially cupping the bottom of your hand and harmonica, or put it on the side of the harmonica.

Best Harmonica for Beginners?

For a beginner we recommend the Swan 10 Hole. Diatonic. It's a great budget harmonica, comes in the C-Key, has a durable case, cleaning cloth, a rich sound quality and overall a very responsive and powerful performance.

How Does a Harmonica Work?

Harmonicas are air instruments, and this means that we need to use air to make them sound. With a harmonica, the sound is made by reeds, which are thin pieces of brass that vibrate and make sounds when they make contact with air.

Where to Buy a Harmonica?

Harmonics can be purchased in various stores, both online and offline. Usually, people go to Amazon, to real-life retailers and/or music shops or simply to the official site of the company that is selling the harmonica that they want if they want to purchase one.

Expert Tip

Don't underestimate the power of consistency; practicing 10-20 minutes twice a week can get you a long way, and it will help you develop a steady practice schedule.

Did you know?

The first harmonica was made in 1821, when free-read designs became popular. Christian Buschmann is considered the founding father of the harmonica, however other musicians also came up with similar-looking instruments at the time. Find out more about the harmonica and it's ties with blues in this study.

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