Tuning Layout Diatonic

[iarwain]

I play several different instruments and I've suddenly become curious
about harmonica. I'm wanting to get me some diatonic harmonicas. I
was looking at the way the notes are laid out on the diatonic, and it
seems a bit weird. Could someone explain to me the purpose of the way
the notes are laid out?

[Elmo' 7#9]

Post by iarwain
Could someone explain to me the purpose of the way
the notes are laid out?

The bedrock of the diatonic harmonica layout is to have the notes of the
Tonic chord in all the blow notes.

With that accomplished, the rest of the major scale tones need fitted into
the draw notes.

This is achieved completely in the middle octave (holes 4-7), requires one
bent note in the top octave (holes 7-10)
and requires some more bending in the bottom octave (holes 1-4).

The layout also gives you a selection of chords and partial chords to spice
up your playing with.

It's not perfect (and other layouts and tunings are available) but most of
the classic harmonica licks
are the result of players operating within the confines of the diatonic
layout.

If your harp was tuned and laid-out differently, you'd play different
material
- much like different open tunings for guitar have specific strengths and
weaknesses
that encourage some things and make others difficult.

Elmo' 7#9

[iarwain]

Thanks for the reply.
So it sounds like maybe most melodies are played on the middle holes
of the harp? Are the other sections mostly for chords relevant to the
scale or do they get used for one note melodies just as often?

[Keith Adams]

Most are played on 2 through 6. Thats in second position playing
anyway.With the diatonics layout its damned near impossible to hit a wrong
note after you've been playing a while. The scale goes up. The scale goes
down. I'm pretty sure that the diatonics note layout was arraigned that way
to make Polka music easy to play. As we all know it works well with all
types of music though.

Post by iarwain
I play several different instruments and I've suddenly become curious
about harmonica. I'm wanting to get me some diatonic harmonicas. I
was looking at the way the notes are laid out on the diatonic, and it
seems a bit weird. Could someone explain to me the purpose of the way
the notes are laid out?

[iarwain]

Polka?

[Robert Reynolds]

It was invented in Germany.

Post by iarwain
Polka?

[iarwain]

Post by Robert Reynolds
It was invented in Germany.

I remember we used to visit relatives in Wisconsin when I was a kid.
They used to have polka shows on Saturday mornings, they would play
polka and people would be dancing. Sort of like an American Bandstand
of polka. I'm assuming surely these shows must be extinct be now.
Surely.

Anyway, was the harmonica really designed for polka, or was that just
a joke? Kind of funny if it was. If not, I had no idea.

[milwaukee slim]

The polka will never die in Wisconsin

--
Mike "Milwaukee Slim" Rocheleau



"iarwain" <***@hotmail.com> wrote in message news:2cac2134-4349-4ea4-be5a-***@e6g2000prf.googlegroups.com.
..

Post by iarwain

Post by Robert Reynolds
It was invented in Germany.

I remember we used to visit relatives in Wisconsin when I was a kid.
They used to have polka shows on Saturday mornings, they would play
polka and people would be dancing. Sort of like an American

Bandstand

Post by iarwain
of polka. I'm assuming surely these shows must be extinct be now.
Surely.
Anyway, was the harmonica really designed for polka, or was that just
a joke? Kind of funny if it was. If not, I had no idea.

[SB]

Post by Robert Reynolds
It was invented in Germany.

Post by iarwain
Polka?

Wrong. The polka was originally a Czech peasant dance, developed in
Eastern Bohemia (now part of Czechoslovakia).

[Robert Reynolds]

Post by SB

Post by Robert Reynolds
It was invented in Germany.

Post by iarwain
Polka?

Wrong. The polka was originally a Czech peasant dance, developed in
Eastern Bohemia (now part of Czechoslovakia).

I meant that the harmonica was invented in Germany.

[Keith Adams]

No it was no joke.

Post by iarwain
I play several different instruments and I've suddenly become curious
about harmonica. I'm wanting to get me some diatonic harmonicas. I
was looking at the way the notes are laid out on the diatonic, and it
seems a bit weird. Could someone explain to me the purpose of the way
the notes are laid out?