Blues Harmonica
Playing Blues on the Guitar
The Blues is a genre of music, which has its origins in the United States of America. African American communities in the Deep South have been credited with its creation and this was back in the latter part of the nineteenth century. In those days work songs, chants, and spirituals were the source from which Blues material were drawn. The music was a means of expressing the moods of the people at the time and ran a gamut of emotions including feelings of sadness, happiness, depression, desperation, and at times humor. Often portrayed as mournful and slow, Blues Music does not always fit this stereotype and there are more than a few up-tempo and happy versions around today.
While the Blues can be sung a cappella it sounds a lot better with instrument accompaniment. Some of the musical instruments that have accompanied Blues music in the past by themselves or in unison include the saxophone, the guitar, the harmonica, the drum, and the piano. Each of these instruments has its own set of followers, who have their own particular reasons for liking it. Some like the harmonica because of the unique strains it emits and its size while others favor the saxophone for the mere fact that it isn’t an instrument that just about any individual can master. In terms of popularity however, it would appear the guitar is the musical instrument of choice on which to play the Blues.
There are a number of reasons why people prefer playing the blues on the guitar as against other musical instruments but chief among them is that it just sounds great. Another reason is that the guitar is a musical instrument that is not too difficult to learn fand doesn’t require any special skill set as could be argued in the case of the saxophone. Huffing and puffing for any length of time is by no mean an easy task and saxophone playing involves a lot of that. Mobility of the instrument is another factor taken into account resulting in more people preferring playing Blues on the guitar. Carrying around a piano or a set of drums to rehearsals or gigs is not so easy to do. And how would you get them on the bus? One more reason individuals may opt for playing Blues on the guitar as against other instruments is that they can sing while playing the guitar. Singing the Blues while blowing the saxophone or the harmonica would prove a bit challenging. The fact that strumming a guitar while crooning a Blues song looks so cool may also have something to do with why people prefer playing Blues on the guitar.
If you were to just stand up, sing, and strum some cords on any old guitar and call what you were doing singing and playing the Blues no one could say you were wrong. The truth of the matter though, is that singing and playing the Blues involves a bit more than that. This is no different from outstanding singers and outstandingly awful ones who when they open their mouths to utter a note you cover your ears and cringe. Playing blues on the guitar is not really different from those persons singing opera music who will often have packed venues to see them perform. If you are really good at it people will gladly pay money to see you in action.
While playing Blues can be done on regular guitars performers have a preference for plying it on electric or acoustic guitars. It would be helpful to if you had some basic knowledge of the guitar and know a bit about tablature. Though it may not be obvious going by the way you may see current Blues Players holding their guitars whilst performing, posture and how the guitar is held are very important. And of course getting to be great at playing Blues on the guitar does not come overnight. It takes lots of practice and up to an hour daily is not unusual. The results of this are usually reflected in the performance.
Imagine how great it will feel to learn the guitar real fast! Click here to find out about guitar lessons online and soon you’ll be strummin away.
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Beginner Blues Harmonica Lesson – Blues Harp
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And On The 8th Day God Created HARMONICA Mug for Coffee / Hot Beverage (choice of sizes and colors) T-ShirtFrenzy offers over 30,000 designs on tons of products to offer millions of variations. You can search our store for something for everyone on your gift list or shop for yourself (our personal favorite). Please contact us with questions…. |
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BEWARE OF THE HARMONICA PLAYER Mug for Coffee / Hot Beverage (choice of sizes and colors) T-ShirtFrenzy offers over 30,000 designs on tons of products to offer millions of variations. You can search our store for something for everyone on your gift list or shop for yourself (our personal favorite). Please contact us with questions…. |
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His Best  Little Walter)The Chess 50th Anniversary Collection$4.67 Marion “Little Walter” Jacobs is perhaps the most influential harmonica player on contemporary blues, and his collection is a great place to start. He was trained by Muddy Waters, but brought a more swinging feel to blues. Muddy and his band accompany Little Walter on many hits, as do Robert “Jr.” Lockwood, the Aces, and other Chicago greats. In the 1950s, Little Walter’s popularity eclipsed even … |
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The Trinity Session $4.25 No Description AvailableNo Track Information AvailableMedia Type: CDArtist: COWBOY JUNKIESTitle: TRINITY SESSIONStreet Release Date: 11/15/1988… |
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Harmonica:Introduction to the Basic $6.76 HARMONICA:INTRODUCTION TO THE BASIC – DVD Movie… |
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An Evening of the Blues with Gary Moore and the Midight Blues Band Includes perforance of 12 songs: Oh Pretty Woman, Walking by Myself, All Your Love, Still Got the Blues, Too Tired, Farther on Up the Road, Texas Strut, Moving On, Midnight Blues, King of the Blues, Stormy Monday & Caldonia… |
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Play Blues and Country Harmonica Overnight [VHS] $14.49 … |
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John Sebastian Teaches Blues Harmonica [VHS] $19.95 … |
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Wallmonkeys Peel and Stick Wall Decals – Harmonica – Removable Graphic WallMonkeys wall graphics are printed on the highest quality re-positionable, self-adhesive fabric paper. Each order is printed in-house and on-demand. WallMonkeys uses premium materials & state-of-the-art production technologies. Our white fabric material is superior to vinyl decals. You can literally see and feel the difference. Our wall graphics apply in minutes and won’t damage your paint or l… |
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10 Easy Lessons Blues Harmonica $47.88 Peter Gelling, Manufactured by Ltp Publications,Other Format,Series: 10 Easy Lessons Series, English-language edition,Pub by LTP Publishing |
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10 Easy Lessons Blues Harmonica Bk/CD $139.19 Used – Specifically designed for students who wish to play Blues Harmonica, either in a group or for fun. The emphasis is on making music immediately. Includeds note bending, train whistle and rhythm sounds, vibrato and improvisation. |
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10 Easy Lessons Blues Harmonica Bk/CD $40.09 Used – Specifically designed for students who wish to play Blues Harmonica, either in a group or for fun. The emphasis is on making music immediately. Includeds note bending, train whistle and rhythm sounds, vibrato and improvisation. |
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10 Easy Lessons Blues Harmonica Bk/CD $139.19 New – Specifically designed for students who wish to play Blues Harmonica, either in a group or for fun. The emphasis is on making music immediately. Includeds note bending, train whistle and rhythm sounds, vibrato and improvisation. |
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10 Easy Lessons Harmonica Bk/CD/DVD $65.49 New – This full size book, CD & DVD will teach how to read and play harmonica using the Easy Read Harmonica system. Learn techniques such as hand vibrato, train whistle and note bending. Covers Folk, Rock, Blues etc. |
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10 Easy Lessons Harmonica Bk/CD/DVD $2.27 Used – This full size book, CD & DVD will teach how to read and play harmonica using the Easy Read Harmonica system. Learn techniques such as hand vibrato, train whistle and note bending. Covers Folk, Rock, Blues etc. |
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10 Easy Lessons Harmonica Bk/CD/DVD $0.99 Used – This full size book, CD & DVD will teach how to read and play harmonica using the Easy Read Harmonica system. Learn techniques such as hand vibrato, train whistle and note bending. Covers Folk, Rock, Blues etc. |
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100 Percent Blues CD $25.89 2009 five CD set. 100% Blues presents 100 tracks of early masters like Robert Johnson, female singers led by Bessie Smith, the best of Jump Blues artists like Louis Jordan, completed with harmonica… |
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101 Harmonica Tips: Stuff All the Pros Know and Use $9.31 Used – Ready to take your harmonica playing to the next level? This book presents valuable how-to insight that harmonica players of all styles and levels can benefit from. The text, photos, music, diagrams, and accompanying CD provide a terrific, easy-to-use resource for a variety of topics, including: techniques, position playing, soloing, accompaniment, the blues, equipment, performance, maintenance, and much more! |
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101 Harmonica Tips: Stuff All the Pros Know and Use $9.31 New – Ready to take your harmonica playing to the next level? This book presents valuable how-to insight that harmonica players of all styles and levels can benefit from. The text, photos, music, diagrams, and accompanying CD provide a terrific, easy-to-use resource for a variety of topics, including: techniques, position playing, soloing, accompaniment, the blues, equipment, performance, maintenance, and much more! |
