Only 12 left in stock (more on the way). As early as 1885, children were publicly pleading with Santa Claus to bring them harmonicas. But they weren’t stolen for money, since by then they were often sold brand-new for less than $2.50 in today’s dollars. The first harmonica and fiddle duet on record was recorded in 1925. In addition to posting ad-free content to YouTube, passing up more than a dollar a year in earning potential, Seth teaches old-time harmonica annually at the SPAH convention under the patronage of the great Joe Filisko (Society for the Preservation and Advancement of Harmonica), various old-time festivals, and remotely upon request. I even tried to infiltrate them, posing as a repentant child returning home from Rumspringa so as to unearth the ancient mysteries of the harmonica. Gwen Foster (of The Carolina Tar Heels and Blue Ridge Mountain Entertainers) and Kyle Wooten recorded both ways. These are the songs that will make your cowboy harmonica playing sound authentic. Due to its affordability and sheer quantity, however, it’s pretty safe to assume there were more fiddle tunes being played on harmonica than on the fiddle at some point in our history. 1871 in Bowling Green, Kentucky), was a famous performer in minstrel troupes in the USA and, for more than a decade, in England, Europe, and Russia. He has several of these arranged, in different keys, so as to give more variety to his performance; and perhaps the strangest part of it is the way in which by making a sort of artificial bell with his concave hands, he gives swell and diminuendo, the effects of echo and of distance, and in short makes it quite a new instrument. Here’s a deconstructed harmonica so you can see the inner workings. 171 Chestnut Street, has it for sale, at the price of three dollars and a half.” That’s about $94 in today’s dollars, adjusting for inflation. The Black Perspective in Music, 11(1), 22. doi:10.2307/1215141]. Like Strong and Stepp, however, there were masterful harmonica players like Freeman Stowers, Sonny Terry, Noah Lewis, and Palmer McAbee, who created masterpieces. It was a style similar to that used by Ernest Stoneman and others from the Blue Ridge area where I live who were mentioned in the article. The modern-day harmonica originated in Germany in the early 1800s. Paperback $16.99 $ 16. Top Rated Seller Top Rated Seller. Charley Patton (1887-1934) Michael Ochs Archives/Stringer/Getty Images. This is the same Whitter that old-time players might recognize from the duo of Grayson and Whitter: “a blind fiddler and a deaf guitar player.”. It’s possible to play one note at a time or more than one note to create chords. I need to learn some more tunes and head down to the Floyd Country store jam! In the strictest of Amish communities, the harmonica is the only instrument allowed. Ben Hewlett. A plus sign is placed after a number if the note is to be blown. The Marine Band harmonica is the original blues harmonica. These numbers indicate the hole to be played. Though the genre was not perfected until George Jones, country music was born with these elite players. These annotated examples are available for listening at Pat Missin’s website (www.pmisson.com) and do include some traditional material. Chromatic harmonicas will play every note, both natural and sharp or flat, on a chromatic scale. That’s what it’s supposed to be. He never parted from his harmonica playing during those years and “organized a minstrel company in the regiment” to entertain the troops [The Music Trade Review, 1911]. He switches out of cross position for Fisher’s hornpipe. I have the dbl 24 key harmonica too that I would like to learn how to play. The harmonica was the first device that could promise a thousand songs in your pocket. Absolute Beginners - Harmonica Hal Leonard Corp. 4.4 out of 5 stars 990. Perhaps one of the first harmonicas for sale in this country was advertised in a Philadelphia newspaper as such: “There has been brought to this city, from Paris, a new musical instrument, recently invented in Switzerland, and called Harmonica. In the early days, it must have been a coveted possession since the first couple of mentions in newspapers outside of advertisements are threats to expose thieves who stole them in Salt Lake City and Nashville. Place the other hand over the harmonica to make a tight seal with both hands. Some exceptions exist. Amazing article, I didn’t know of many of these guys and I’ve studied quite a bit. My father learned his rhythmic tongue blocking style of straight harp from a black playmate in the 1930’s in Halifax County, Virginia. Alternate tunings are well utilized on the stringed instruments because, when taken to their extremes, those tunings produce distinctive and impressive abilities. FOLK SONGS vs. From that failure, I had to turn to the repository of all human knowledge: Hastings Entertainment. The recording generation of players grew up in the heyday of ragtime, early blues, and trad jazz, but would still be well rooted in the oral traditions of their communities. The harmonica by now was played by everyone from paupers to presidents. superlatives fail. Kyle wooten, Deford bailey Gwen foster will slade etc… love love this article … makes me want to drag out my old harmonica CD’S. “Tonguing,” or what the kids these days are calling “tongue blocking:” the melody of a tune is played by exhaling or inhaling through a small hole between the tongue and the corner(s) of the mouth. That’s the way it started out, and it’s not supposed to be a change in it.” – Herman Crook, 1974, Old-time is like the Amish community of music with its baked-in resistance to change (outside of Ithaca and the recent adoption of plucked upright double bass). This mastery is best demonstrated with Gwen’s “Wilkes County Blues.”, Of course, this piece falls outside the category of an “old-time” tune, but he did use these techniques to accompany fiddle players on more common “old-time” tunes such as “All Night Long.”. Seth’s great-grandmother played the harmonica (a 1920s Flying Ace from the F.R. His playing is said to be remarkable, and the house of his parents is overrun with callers who come to hear him. Con-man P.T. Terrific. - stream 70 harmonica playlists including Bob Dylan, blues, and folk music from your desktop or mobile device. Best article and soundbites of old timey harmonica I’ve ever seen and heard. All afternoon and evening the jail resounded with music and merriment.” [The Girard Press, Girard KS, 3 July 1879] Quite a lot of harmonica history can be found in jails, including this scene of a multiracial old-time jam. The diatonic blues harp harmonica is one of the most common and popular types of mouth organs. Herr Wallach gave a concert in 1851 which drew a more detailed description than usual. He wasn’t a star, no known radio play, no newspaper mentions, and made a short trip to Atlanta to record his virtuosity in six pieces for Okeh in 1930 before returning to home life and dying four years later. A lot of people do not think that these little wind instruments can play actual chords, or full, unaccompanied songs for that matter. Only 4 left in stock (more on the way). He doesn’t play the piano—his performances are all on a simply toy harmonica, but although he is only a baby as yet, he handles the instrument like a master, and plays twenty-eight different tunes on it. Ernest Stoneman took fiddler Emmet Lundy with him on a trip to New York City where they recorded two harmonica and fiddle duets with “Piney Woods Girl” and “The Long Eared Mule.” In 1926, he recorded harmonica with fiddle with “Fiddler Joe” Samuels, Hattie Stoneman, and Kahle Brewer. The harmonica was the first device that could promise a thousand songs in your pocket. All of the tablature on this site is written with numbers between 1 and 10. Some chords require use of the tongue to block certain holes. The harmonica question can only be settled when the city council passes an ordinance defining the possession of one of these instruments of torture a misdemeanor, and punishable by six months.” [Salt Lake Evening Democrat, Utah, 1885] It does take some talent and practice to make the harmonica sound halfway decent, but these basic skills can be had with a mere ten hours of practice. My goal in playing the harmonica was to understand the techniques of these old masters and to recreate some of their magic. A follow-on article ought to detail its decline and the attempts to maintain the tradition: from the Great Depression to field recordings and contemporary players. Dr. Bate, the “Dean” of The Grand Ole Opry, would also make the first appearance on WSM (on a show that would later be renamed The Grand Ole Opry), followed by DeFord Bailey and The Crook Brothers band, a string band featuring duet harmonicas with banjo and two guitars. The chord can be quickly extinguished by reversing the movement. The harmonica became popular in the 1800s as a means of traveling music. There were also plenty of post cards, cabinet cards, and other media showing harmonica as a part of family making music. I would like to learn how to play “You Raise Me Up” by Josh Groban, if you can get that on for some free harmonica songs next time. This article has mostly focused on standard tuning in old-time harmonica because, in my opinion, it is the only good way to compete on volume with a strong fiddler. Others eventually caught on, and they began mass-producing harmonicas for both personal play and theater performances. See more ideas about gospel song, harmonicas, songs. At the turn of the twentieth century when Grand Ole Opry stars like DeFord Bailey and Herman Crook were still young children, the harmonica was “probably the most popular musical instrument,” and in 1904 “twenty million harmonicas were imported into this country. There were many “old time” tracks on that collection. Like the Crook Brothers, The Arkansas Barefoot Boys and The Murphy Brothers Harp Band were also string bands led by twin harmonicas, although the Arkansas Barefoot Boys had a subdued fiddle playing with them. 1864 in Miami, Missouri). With practice, the harmonica player will learn different techniques such as the pucker, the lip-block, and the U-block to play notes and chords. Meanwhile, a fever of nationalism must have been sweeping the nation because the United States was growing its own crop of harmonica virtuosos, including African American pianist Blind Boone (b. DeFord’s experiences were captured through interviews by David C. Morton and a great biography was written as a result [D.C. Morton and C.K. He also includes a refresher on the finer points oldtime bowing, applicable to many other tunes as well. Vernon Dalhart, as far as I know, didn’t record fiddle tunes. Immigration laws being what they were at that time, Barnum had no trouble importing little Bathman to America and putting him to “work” in his American Museum in New York City. $16.99. A list of lyrics, artists and songs that contain the term "1800s" - from the Lyrics.com website. It is a free reed instrument used in many music genres such as jazz, bluegrass, country and rock. In addition to being a fine harmonica player and multi-faceted musician, singer, and comedian, Pete recorded commercially more than any other contemporary African American, with over 150 hit tracks. That’s not an easy thing to accomplish, but speaks to the versatility of the instrument in this genre as well as its popularity at that time. Others include The Blue Ridge Mountaineers (Clarence McCormick), The Blue Ridge Entertainers (Gwen Foster), Gid Tanner and his Skillet Lickers (Fate Norris), Luke Highnight’s Ozark Strutters (Luke Highnight), The Red Fox Chasers (Bob Cranford), The Floyd County Ramblers (Walter Boone), the Aiken County Stringband (unknown harmonica player), Herschel Brown & His Washboard Band (unknown), the Carolina Ramblers String Band (unknown), the Cherokee Ramblers (Skinny Anglin), Da Costa Woltz’s Southern Broadcasters (Price Goodson), and Richard Cox & His National Fiddlers (unknown). The musician places the mouth on the mouthpiece over specific holes to play desired notes. While it is impossible to determine whether Pete learned these techniques from his elders and peers growing up in Kentucky, it is known that all of the harmonica techniques used in this recording were ubiquitous across racial lines and geographic boundaries. A generation before the Rat Pack, there was the Old 97 Wrecking Crew. Stainless steel coverplates rounded at the mouthpiece ABS comb with recessed German Silver reedplates Stainless steel rivets and screws The Seydel Session Steel is a perfect harmonica for playing blues songs. The harmonica and fiddle were only recorded together once for Dill Pickle Rag, though never playing at the same time, likely due to the unique melodic variations each invented. The original intent of the instrument was to use it as a pitch pipe in conjunction with other instruments. It was easy enough for even the youngest children. As a child in the 1870s he entered the music business, playing from town to town with his trio: Boone on harmonica accompanied by a tambourine player and a triangle player. A draw is incidated with a number by itself. In 1887, a reporter saw fit to write: “For several days two small boys have been going around the streets picking up stray nickels to live on by playing a banjo and French harp. Also, the curve on the cover plate and slightly smaller size might make it feel strange to some players. Americans fell in love with the wide variety of notes and music that they could produce from the harmonica. FREE Shipping on orders over $25 shipped by Amazon. Pre-Owned. After splitting off from Barnum to join a minstrel troupe, Bathman traveled up and down the Mississippi tooting his harmonica for river town audiences. In the middle of the 19 th century, Crain says, harmonicas were little more than glorified pitch pipes, but by the late 1800s, harmonica makers in Germany, some from families of clockmakers, had figured out how to turn the devices into actual instruments. At first, he played harmonica duets with his brother for six years and then, when his brother left the band to become a police officer, Herman incorporated a fiddle into the band to share the melody line. The modern-day harmonica originated in Germany in the early 1800s. For example, saying the sounds “too wee” into the mouthpiece creates a distinctive train whistle sound with the harmonica. Whitter, Thompson, and Stoneman each recorded fiddle tunes on harmonica. Some variation of this mouth organ dates back approximately 1,000 years to Asia. ... is in itself a thoughtful composition of the different showpiece styles popularly played on the instrument in the late 1800s. 8tracks radio. This so startled the young musician that he could not be prevailed upon to play more that evening.” [The Times, Philadelphia, April 22, 1888] What did the harmonica sound like back before ragtime gave privileged white males like little Charley Shenett something exciting to appropriate? There are so, so many great Irish songs to choose from! The harmonica was a common tool to test new audio technologies. The guitar/harmonica self-accompaniment songster format was recorded by Henry Whitter, Ernest Thompson, Ernest Stoneman, and Vernon Dalhart (Marion Try Slaughter) within months of one another. Pete Hampton had a harmonica style very similar to Dr. Humphrey Bate that appears in each of his recordings of “Dat Mouth Organ Coon,” a tune in which he mimics the harmonica stylings of a stereotypical African American. These influences can all be heard in the playing of the harmonica masters of the 1920s and 30s. One was African American Sam “Stovepipe No. Reeds are typically made out of brass, steel, aluminum, or plastic. Ernest V. Stoneman made it into the Country Music Hall of Fame without having to change his name, accent, or birth country. In 1879, an article from Girard, Kansas notes such a scene: “Gay Times in Jail – For about two days last week the little jail back of the court house was filled to its utmost capacity. This little detour should really lay to rest any claims that Bob Dylan’s mouth-breathing was the beginning of traditional harmonica playing. There was considerable cross over of blacks and whites who influenced each other I would say. This effect can be repeated and controlled to have rhythm on, off, and between the beats of a simple or syncopated melody. The mouthpiece of the harmonica helps the musician by making blowing and drawing air through the reeds more comfortable. He passed on that style to me used for playing song melodies. Musicians like Little Walter, Bob Dylan and John Lennon have played it, among many others. It has a wooden comb, which may swell or shrink. Pete Hampton, an African American (b. Thanks Seth for all the rare clips and information on the players whose music was preserved in those recordings for us to be inspired by now. Licht, “Harmonica Magic: Virtuoso Display in American Folk Music,” Ethnomusicology, Vol. Today’s analogy to Vernon Dalhart would be a Suzuki-trained violinist going to a high-dollar music school to learn how to play the “authentic old time.” (https://countrymusichalloffame.org/artist/vernon-dalhart/) Perhaps Dalhart was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame to pave the way for other insurgents like the Canadian Shania Twain or Australian Keith Urban, two artists with stage names conjured up in a board room somewhere in Nashville. Of course, in oldtime there are no "right" answers, but Craig's combination of experience and technical knowledge is surely a great place to start. The fiddle is, of course, the main instrument in old time music. It was invented in the early 1820s and reached the basic format we know today by 1825. Great stuff! Among the inmates were two darkeys, one of whom got a banjo, and the other one a mouth organ, while another inmate had a fiddle. My teacher told me of you [Santa] the other day. Stevie Wonder even played the harmonica in some of his recorded songs. Quite a few old-time harmonica solos were also recorded. Jim Couch had a medley of “Dill Pickle,” “Turkey in the Straw,” and “Swanee River.”, Some more accompanied harmonica players also recorded instrumentals. There was plenty of old-time harmonica action happening outside the Opry as well. And… back to fiddle tunes on harmonica. The harmonica was invented in the 1820s as an aid for tuning pianos. Christian Bauschmann was a musician and inventor in Germany, and in 1822, he designed a … I enjoyed this super informative article and all the sample clips of the players considered ‘old-time’ as opposed to ‘blues’. Buy It Now +C $4.95 shipping. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. They both play well considering their tender age.” [Wichita Daily Call, Wichita KS, 26 May 1887]. In some such way He played “Home, Sweet Home” so well that the old veterans fairly raised the roof with their applause. . The harmonica was firmly established as a cultural icon by the 1870s, for better or worse: “The youths of Salt Lake are preying upon neighboring settlements under the guise of giving “harmonica” concerts. (A double stop means playing two different notes at the same time.) Hotz company) and was one of six people known to be recorded playing the quills (a precursor to the harmonica predominantly played in African American tradition). Many recordings and other artists were omitted. Paperback. After a few years, like many unwitting immigrants, he enlisted with the Union during the Civil War. This is a classic tune which every fiddler learns - it’s a good beginner's way of getting to sound fiddley.You play the melody on one string, and use the open string next to it as a drone, which creates a double stop. “It has changed a lot, but it shouldn’t have changed. A special slide on a chromatic harmonica enables sharp and flat notes. You’ve unearthed a treasure trove here, thank you so much! Luther Strong and Bill Stepp come to mind as fiddlers who created masterpieces outside standard tuning. “Diatonic” means that the instrument plays in a standard scale and specific keys such as the key of C. Diatonic harmonicas have 10 holes with notes arranged in a special pattern. Mr. Willig, No. >> Sign up for the Oldtime Central newsletter and get: You have entered an incorrect email address! A cover plate surrounds the reeds, usually made out of metal or plastic. Sousa’s marches would be booming in their ears as well. THE BLUES. Vintage Chromatic Koch Slide Germany and Silvertone Professional Harmonicas. Dad held his harp only while like Ernest I learned to use it on a frame while backing myself up with guitar or banjo as well. Harmonica, French Harp, and Mouth Organ contests began popping up in the 1870s as well. This young scholar was likely a sophomore [Evening Star, Washington DC, 18 Dec 1885]. what a great run down of old time harp masters! Playing the diatonic harmonica involves holding it between the thumb and index finger and curving the remaining fingers around the case to create a little space for sound resonation. This completes the tour of the vibrant life of the harmonica in old-time music. With a harmonica, you can do just that. or Best Offer +C $22.89 shipping estimate. Dr. Bate played on the Opry until his death in 1936, Bailey played on the Opry until he was controversially fired in 1941, and Herman Crook played breakdowns on the harmonica on the Opry for over six decades. Even a beginner with very little musical background can enjoy playing a harmonica. Unfortunately Lundy was upset that the harmonica was too loud in the recording and never made more commercial recordings, but he was recorded in Galax by Lomax in 1941. Listeners, omitting the first commercial recording of harmonica in history would mean diminishing Pete Hampton’s lived experience as he came of age in the peak popularity of the “Coon Song” genre. Other artists capturing American life including Thomas Hart Benton and Norman Rockwell often featured harmonica in their art. Between the three of them (Dr. Bate and his Possum Hunters, DeFord Bailey, and The Crook Brothers) 21 78-rpm recordings were issued 1928. A number of famous musicians have incorporated the harmonica into theater stage performances and recorded music. Let’s start with a bit of history, written by winners and people of authority and high moral standing in their communities. Herman Crook of the Crook Brothers certainly found a niche with this and laid track with that style professionally for six decades on the Grand Ole Opry. These books typically include cowboy favorites that have been around since the 1800s. The music was frozen in time and documented with the commercial recordings of the 20s and 30s and with the field recordings that followed. Online, everywhere. This article distills how the harmonica was used in old-time music during the first third of the 1900s. In the old-time music world, all one needs is a single piece of anecdotal evidence from a ten-year old to prove that the fiddle was barely available to the poor people of the nation: “I am in the fifth grade and go to the High school building. DeFord Bailey, Herman Crook, Henry Whitter, Will Shade (leader of the Memphis Jug Band), Noah Lewis (of Cannon’s Jug Stompers), could also switch back and forth between “bluesy” cross position and more melodious standard position. Diatonic: Easily the most popular type of harmonica out there, diatonic harmonicas – like the Seydel 1847 Silver, Lee Oskar C Major Diatonic and Hohner Marine Band 1896 – employ a single reed to achieve a tone, and typically have 10 holes, although they can have as few as four and as many as 16. Barnum acquired a nine-year-old boy by the name of Chris Bathman in 1849 to provide harmonica entertainment during the interludes of Jenny Lind’s European tour (making about two dollars a week). Give me a shout if you need any help please. A chromatic harmonica uses a sliding bar either on the mouthpiece or on the back of the instrument to direct airflow across the desired reed. Wolfe, DeFord Bailey: A Black Star in Early Country Music, University of Tennessee Press, 1998]. In 1916 Berea, Kentucky, one newspaper describes, “a novel musical treat in the form of a string orchestra, consisting of fiddle, harmonica, banjo and guitar, played by Messrs. Steve Johnson, John Finley, Green Bailey and Stewart Farr, respectively” [The Citizen, Berea, Kentucky, Jan 7 1915]. So in 1904, the same year as the first old-time harmonica playing was recorded commercially by Pete Hampton, some millions of harmonicas landed in the Christmas stockings of the century’s youngest generation. George Jackson teaches the classic Emmett Lundy version of the Seydel Session, a must-have for every blues player decades. Couple of campfire songbooks invented in the United States the 1800s harmonica songs instruments because, when taken to their,... 70 harmonica playlists including Bob Dylan, blues 1800s harmonica songs and between the beats of simple. Very little musical background can enjoy playing a harmonica player is Dave Rice Ohio! So well that the old 97 Wrecking Crew absolute Beginners - harmonica Hal Leonard 4.3... Was likely a sophomore [ Evening Star, Washington DC, 18 Dec 1885 ] to the! 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