4 Hole Harmonica

Music and information for the 4 hole harmonica

10 Hole Harmonica 4 Hole Harmonica 

When The Saints Go Marching In

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I want to be in that number

It’s time to learn some traditional jazz on the harmonica! Here’s a song that everybody will recognise. It’s called When The Saints Go Marching In. But that’s a long name, so we’ll shorten it to The Saints.

The Saints was originally an American gospel hymn that was played and sung quite slowly. But when the Jazz Bands of New Orleans got hold of it, they made it swing and they played it hot!

Listen to

At funerals in New Orleans, a marching jazz band sometimes accompanies a coffin through the city, playing in a slow and sombre mood on the way to the cemetry. Coming home however, the band jumps into Dixieland tempo, which is happy and bouncy. Let’s look at the tab and learn how to play things Dixieland Jazz style. (more…)

10 Hole Harmonica 4 Hole Harmonica Announcements Tunes to Play 

Little Leap Forward

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Little Leap ForwardA children’s harmonica classic

Here’s a wonderful, true story that features a boy called Little Leap Forward. He plays a special Chinese musical instrument called the Bawu. It looks just like a bamboo flute (sometimes it’s called a folk clarinet) but there’s a secret hidden in the mouthpiece. It has a single metal reed, which means the Bawu is actually related to the harmonica. With finger holes along the shaft, it plays like a harmonica and a flute all in one.

There are levels of interest in this story for all ages and you can watch the introductory video below; a Bawu is played on the soundtrack. For this and more books featuring the harmonica, visit our Reading Library pages. You’ll find them in our harmonica stories menu. Join us in the rest of this post, where you’ll find a video about Little Leap Forward and a traditional Chinese children’s tune for your harmonica, Zhao Peng You. (more…)

10 Hole Harmonica 4 Hole Harmonica Tunes to Play 

One Love/People Get Ready (Part 1)

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Let’s get together and feel all right

Here’s a great song to play in harmonica groups. One Love/People Get Ready was written by the great man of music and peace from Jamaica, Bob Marley.

Bob Marley’s musical style is called reggae. The reggae rhythm, or skank, uses the up-beat to create a relaxing and happy groove. We’ll be looking at this more closely in the final part of the series.

In this post we’re looking at the chorus of the song. So let’s get together and work out how a group of junior harmonica players can enjoy performing this cool instrumental. (more…)

10 Hole Harmonica 4 Hole Harmonica Tunes to Play 

Wimoweh Part 2 – Melodies

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Near the village, the peaceful village

Welcome to part two of our African extravaganza! Last time we learned where the word Wimoweh comes from and what it means. We also learned about where the song was composed.

Now we’re going to look at how one player – a soloist – can perform the main melodies. Some parts sound slightly better on a 10 hole harmonica, others work fine on a 4 hole. Purple music is for four hole harmonicas. Orange music is for ten hole harmonicas. A number tells you which hole to play. D is draw (breath in). B is blow (breath out). We’re using harmonicas in the key of C major (more…)

10 Hole Harmonica 4 Hole Harmonica Tunes to Play 

Wimoweh Part 1 – Rhythm Parts

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In the jungle, the mighty jungle

Welcome to our African extravaganza! Wimoweh comes from the Zulu word Mbube, meaning Lion. The song was composed and first recorded by Solomon Linda in South Africa in 1939. Most of us know it from Walt Disney’s film The Lion King.

Let’s look at how a group of harmonica players can perform the song. In this part, we’ll work on the rhythms. In part 2 we’ll look at the melodies, then in part 3 we’ll work out some extra fun parts to finish the job.

Some parts sound slightly better on a 10 hole harmonica, others work fine on a 4 hole. Purple music is for four hole harmonicas. Orange music is for ten hole harmonicas. A number tells you which hole to play. D is draw (breath in). B is blow (breath out). We’re using harmonicas in the key of C major (more…)

4 Hole Harmonica Hints and Tips 

There’s A Duck In My Harmonica!

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How to fix a broken 4 hole harmonica

From time to time a harmonica can stop doing what it should do. Instead of playing clear notes, one reed sounds a bit strange. It may rattle, it may not play at all or, as one of our junior players recently discovered, a duck had climbed inside his harmonica. Blow hole 4 made a beautiful quack!

Since the 4 hole Hohner Speedy does not come in its own case, the problem is usually caused by a piece of dust or a small flake that has become trapped under the reed. Occasionally a reed can just get stuck. Sometimes it goes out of tune because the metal has started to fatigue – it’s too tired to carry on and it’s ready to snap off. (more…)