Im 19 and still pretty new to harmonica and im wondering about your storys why you started when you started, what harmonicas and who influenced you?

Thankyou bradtech

Brother Bradtech,

Many, many years ago I bought a Hohner Super and tossed it in my guitar case NEVER to play it. Twelve years ago the radio went out in my car and, due to stopping into a music store for lavalier mics for a local high school production, I figured that I could/should get back into music. Bought a Hohner Marine Band in "C". Started chasing the "Chicago Blues" sound. Today I have many diatonics, several chromatics and lots of friends via Harmonica Club and other associations.

Lately I have several adult students, a player who has overcome breathing problems, belong to a Dallas harmonica club and will begin teaching at that local music store with a friend of mine, Twobulls. Here at HC I help out with information, lessons and for the camaraderie.

I do okay with harp though I'm not as good as I hope to be. The teaching should help.

Be Blues...And Jazz,

Suave Blues Man

Wow thats the kinda answer im hoping for, by askin the question i asked or questions! Im hoping to learn what harps and players and use the people who anser and the people who inspiredthem to inspire me, thanks for the reply man

I'm in sales and spend lots of time in hotels. My 61st birthday (last year)I bought myself a MB 20 in C. Today I have 3 -20's, 3 crossover's, couple of other brands and last month picked up a Blues Harp in G. For 40 years around noisy corporate aircraft and my herring is shot some have hearing aids. I have to turn them off and a C or G is more pleasant to MY ear - screw anyone else. I know about 20 or so songs mainly the old religious song- they just seem to sound better with a harp. On of these years want to take lessons. My work takes me to theme tire state of CALIFORNIA, salt lake city and las wages - maybe I can find someone that give lessons there.

My favorite so far is the crossover in g- easy to play but hard to bend and is smaller. So far I am very happy with the blues harp by Hohner, like the size and sound but not a very smooth harp for the mouth, gonna give it a little sanding one of these days.

I actually love the MB in C but could never get one tight enough for me - I hear there are ways to seal er up and I did try one method but no change - maybe I got a leaker!

Stay safe...

i had just gotten out of rehab, was damn near totally broke and afraid to go anywhere or do anything.
i needed a hobby bad and fast.
went into a bookstore to buy a book on recovery (figured i needed the book more than food) i saw a small book w/tape and harp for $10.
at least i wouldnt spend this $10 on drugs.

after the first 5 minutes the book was right. I WAS PLAYING THE HARMONICA!!

I’m a late starter at this harp thing. It started after yet another comment at the radio about how great the harmonica sounded on (70’s Aussie band) Spectrum’s ‘I’ll Be Gone’ (from about ’74), so the missus got me a ‘How To Play Harmonica’ book and a Lee Oskar in C – way back in the late 90’s.

They gathered dust for a few years until the two eldest kids started playing some songs together (upright bass and guitar) and I knew I wanted to be part of that. I did a one day harmonica workshop and then an 8 evening course on Thu nights at the local college. The remnant students from that course (+ a few ring ins) still meet at my place every Thu night for harp practice (now four years later!). We also hijack pro harpists (locals or visitors) for lessons, workshops and/or beers (as appropriate). Workshops have been run with folks like Ian Collard (Collard Greens and Gravy), Jim Conway (Captain Matchbox, Backsliders, Big Wheel) and Mike Rudd – yep, 35 years or so after I first heard it, the Spectrum guy that played harp on I’ll Be Gone ran a harp workshop at my place!

The Thu night ‘harpening’ group (currently of 6) now plays about one (non-paying) gig a month as a harmonica ensemble (“Harpers Bizarre”). We play some folkie stuff, the odd old pop song and a fair bit of 12 bar blues. The arrangements are ‘interesting’, as the last thing you want is everybody playing the same thing on the same key harp. Half the group play both chromatic and diatonic and I’ve got a 48 chord and a 3-octave bass harp as well. We’ve played some charity festivals but usually do old folks homes etc. We also hook up with the local ukulele group and have played some quite big (2500+ punters) outdoor charity gigs with them.

I’ve got ongoing GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome) real bad, and have got three tube amps (one modern combo, and two old ‘projects’), a couple of solid state combo amps, a Smokey amp that lives in a home made cab with a 6” vintage speaker as a busking rig and a couple of PAs. And there’s a couple of mixers too, including a lovely old Boss KM60. I’ve also ‘collected’ a lot of speakers and extension cabs. And mics don’t escape my attention either – I’ve got a 520DX Green Bullet, a crystal CAD50VC, a couple of Bock SM58 clones and I’ve taken to making my own (based on the iMic on the planetharmonica site). My favourite shell is a roll-on deodorant bottle, with an old telephone earpiece (works better than the voice end) for the element. And I picked up a Digitech RP350 pedal off eBay and have loaded the Richard Hunter patch set. Add to that all the related cables (I use four different sorts of mic cables alone!), stands, adaptors, transformers etc and there is a lot of “stuff”.

Despite all that, I mainly play acoustic and have usually stuck to Lee Oskars, since that’s what I first learnt on. I’ve got a couple of other brands, but the LOs and I seem to get along best.

Cheers
Maka

These are so cool, thanks guys, definatly in the right place
Feel happy and very welcome and know im with the right crew, would also be cool if tere were workshops round here with alot of harp players, i for one know none personally

This forum is world wide! Where is "around here"?