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with Howard Levy

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Harmonica Lessons: 4th Position C Harp: Introduction

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[MUSIC]
Well now we're moving through

the C harmonica, we're going to go up yet

to another key, yet another fifth.

Because that's the way the positions go,
remember the first position is C,

Second position is G,
C is the major scale,

G is the Mixolydian mode,
the major scale with the flat seventh.

The next one, a fifth up, is D,
which is the Dorian mode,

it's a minor scale with a raised sixth.

And the next one up, we have to go
up five notes from D to find it,

and so I'll do it on the harmonica.

So, where's D?

What hole is D in?

Think.
It's the first hole draw.

[MUSIC]
But we don't have all the notes there,

so now I'm gonna go to the next D
,which is the fourth hole draw.

[MUSIC]
I'm gonna go up five notes.

Which creates the interval of a fifth,
[MUSIC]

One, two, three, four, five, and low and

behold we're at the sixth hole draw,
which is?

Don't everybody tell me at once,

it's A,
[MUSIC]

I bent a note or two.

So now we're in the key of A.

[MUSIC]
And on the harmonica it's a very funny

position, because there is
no A in the first octave.

So, I'll play the scale, but

it goes really high because I have
to start on the sixth hole draw

to get the scale to go all the way
up to the next A, which is ten draw.

Its hard to play up there.

[MUSIC]
And you might find yourself having

a little trouble
differentiating those notes.

Because the notes are vibrating so
quickly,

that sometimes it feels like the holes
are actually closer together, or

the reeds are smaller or
something's going on.

[MUSIC]
In actuality,

the reeds are smaller.

[LAUGH] The reeds are getting very,
very short up on top of the harmonica.

And another amazing thing.

I'm not sure how every harmonica company
does it, but with Hohner harmonicas

from the sixth hole on up, the reeds
themselves are actually narrower.

Narrower.

Even though the holes that you're
playing into are the same width.

So it feels like, gee,
these reeds are harder to find.

And it's because they are narrower,
as well as getting shorter.

So you're not imagining all of that.

[SOUND] So the A scale,
if you look at it on the piano,

it goes [SOUND] It's really high
on this particular octave here.

[MUSIC]
So it's a minor scale, it's totally minor.

It's called the natural minor scale.

Or the Aeolian mode.

So it starts on six draw
[MUSIC]

right away goes to seven draw

[MUSIC]

Seven blow.

[MUSIC]
And then eight draw,

because the instrument's backwards.

[MUSIC]
Eight blow, nine draw.

[MUSIC]
Nine blow.

[MUSIC]
Ten draw.

[MUSIC]
Sometimes you might have trouble

finding ten draw.

So this is kind of a tough key to play in.

However, if we play the scale going down

from the A, which is six draw,
[MUSIC]

all the notes are there except for the A.

[LAUGH] Which is one of the reasons
why very few people play in this key,

cuz you like to have the actual note
of the key that you're in to start on.

But you can do a lot of
playing without that note.

[MUSIC]
That was some sort

of combination of Bach and

Autumn Leaves, I think,

that I was just making up.

[MUSIC]

Playing:		Looping:		Adjust:
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←	back 10 secs	O	set loop end point	]	move start forward 1 sec
→	forward 10 secs	L	start/stop looping	SHIFT-[ or ]	move end
↑	rewind to beginning	C	clear loop	CTRL-[ or ]	move both
H	this help	F	full screen toggle	ALT-[ or ]	next/prev section

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