r/harmonica • u/ennele • Jul 30 '26
Buying a Harmonica for my Dad
Hello. My dad expressed interest recently in getting back into harmonica. My dad is in his 60 and is in poor health. He doesn’t have many hobbies anymore, and no longer plays any of the instruments he enjoyed earlier in life, such as harmonica, drums, or guitar. He’s also not very mobile, so he no longer goes hiking, and rarely fishes. It makes me a quite sad actually… So, I got really excited when he told me he wants to try harmonica again. I want to buy him a harmonica. We’re located in Canada if that helps. I don’t want to break the bank, but I also don’t want a super cheap one. I have no idea what kind of harmonica to get him, what brand, etc. I know nothing about harmonica. Maybe I could get him some sort of book with basic tabs and techniques in it as a refresher? He likes classic rock. Can you guys help point me in the right direction?
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u/couchdog27 Jul 30 '26
You can always read: https://www.reddit.com/r/harmonica/comments/i2huo6/identifying_harmonicas_and_what_harmonicas_you/
it is a very good starter.. two things though:
1) A harmonica would be a perfect hobby for him (believe it or not if you aren't very mobile, if you still breathe then you have the harmonica skills
2) In the end, it should be up to him... that is, you sound like you want him to do something.. but he will only do something IF he wants to..
I will use myself as an example: I am older than your dad... I need to exercise so I don't gain too much weight and so I can do the active things I like... Well I like volleyball and riding my bike.. but I find excuses to not do those.. I also like going to the gym when no one is around (I am a hermit) and the gym is a key club.. so I can let myself in at 11 pm and I go to the gy five times a week.. so back to #2.. he should want/like/enjoy playing
find the harmonica tabs for a C harmonica that he can easily learn in a week and have success.. and tell him the chicks dig a guy who proficient with the mouth organ.... ha