Waking Up Wendell by April Stevens
Here’s a great bedtime story book for Pre-School, Reception and Key Stage 1 children (3-7 years).
Wendell Willamore lives at number 10 Fish Street. Each morning his neighbours are woken by lots of different noises.
Early in the morning, a bird begins to sing at No.1 Fish Street, waking the man next door and his dog, and before long, as one noise leads to another, everyone on the street is awake. Continue reading
Happy Birthday to you!
If it’s your birthday today, you’re probably wondering how we knew. Well actually we didn’t. But since you’re here, many happy returns and we hope you have a lovely day! Go ahead and click the green button.
When other people know you have a harmonica, there’s a good chance that one day you’ll be asked to play the Happy Birthday song. But why wait to be asked? It also makes a lovely surprise! So let’s learn to play it on a 10 hole harp…
“My son would like to learn the Harpsichord”
From time to time we hear from parents who are eager for their children to learn the Harpsichord. Which is nice.
Here is a Harpsichord. It’s a keyboard instrument from the Renaissance and Baroque period of the 1700-1800′s. It was very fashionable in its day. As were powdered wigs and knee britches.
While there is a Harpsichord Society in the UK, we find that parents are normally confusing a 
Harpsichord with the short name for the harmonica – the harp or mouth harp. Here is a picture of our harp. It’s a member of the reed instrument family.
It wasn’t around when the Harpsichord was popular, but you could try wearing a wig and knee britches when you play it. Why not investigate inside the harmonica, how a harmonica is made, different types of harmonica, or the harmonica’s closest relatives?
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Morning Has Broken
Here’s a beautiful Springtime tune to play on the harmonica in C. It’s called Morning Has Broken and it’s been sung in schools for many years.
It became popular in 1972, when Cat Stevens took it to N0.6 in the pop charts. But the melody was originally a folk tune from Scotland. Let’s investigate some more, and then learn how to play along on the harmonica.
Should old acquaintance be forgot..
The Toot Suite would like to wish all its fans a very Happy New Year 2012. It’s been a successful first year at the Suite, and we thank you all for continuing to drop by.
Fittingly, here’s our final offering of 2011.. Auld Lang Syne on a 10 hole harp
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Josh Cooper from Sussex, UK
Congratulations to Josh Cooper (9 years) for participating in the UK’s annual National Harmonica League (NHL) Championships 2011, where he was awarded 1st Prize in the Junior Section!
Josh attends regular HarpsCool group sessions at his Primary School in Sussex and was coached by HarpsCool Sussex Director, Richard Taylor. Here’s video footage of his performance..Â
How did the harmonica get its name?
The answer is, it was a name first used by US President Benjamin Franklin in 1762. He was an avid inventor – false teeth, lightning conductors, odometers and bifocal lenses to name but a few of his inventions. He also took the habit of rubbing a wine glass rim with a wet finger to make a ringing sound, and invented a new musical instrument. It was of a series of glass bowls in a shallow case of water, that could be turned by a handle… Continue reading
Silent Night
Here’s a classic Christmas tune in two parts, which sounds great performed a cappella on the harmonica (without backing music).
It was written in a village near Salzburg in Austria, where it was called Stille Nacht. Why not learn the tune and play it at School, in Church or to your family for Christmas? Continue reading
Little Leap Forward by Guo Yue & Clare Farrow
Here’s a musical story  which doesn’t actually feature a harmonica! It was written by someone who plays a Chinese relative of the harmonica called a Bawu.
The Bawu looks just like a traditional Chinese flute, the Di-Zi. It is made from a long piece of hollowed bamboo, it has finger holes and just like the Di-Zi, you blow the Bawu to make it sing.
So how on earth could the Bawu be related to the harmonica, how is it different to the Di-Zi and what is the story of Little Leap Forward?
Come with us on a magical journey to China and all will be revealed.. Continue reading
Harpbox jam hot
You’ve heard of beatboxing right? You take a microphone, some attitude and make like loose change in the tumble dryer. Well what if you threw in your harmonica?Â
The answer is you’d be harpboxing. Here’s our main man Yuri Lane taking harpboxing to the people of Chicago.
