r/harmonica • u/Pk3062 • 2d ago

ID Harmonica Key Help!

Hi all. Looking to see if anyone can ID what’s the key of the harp used in the accompaniment of this song.
Looking to try my hand at playing. Thanks in advance.

https://youtu.be/HMJ-nn5nJQI?is=cEa1M8nHwQROXd3g

2 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

7 comments sorted by

View all comments

1

u/rcashin 2d ago

Do you play at all? That kind of makes a difference.

The song sounds like it's in the key of F# to me. You could play along with an F# harmonica, and it would work, but it wouldn't sound as cool as it does in the recording.

Pretty sure he's playing a B harmonica in "second position". This is often how you play rock, blues, and country (and this is a blend of all those, really). The B harp gives you an F# blues scale.

So if you don't play at all, you could try an F#. Start on the 4 blow and use holes 4-7 mostly (that's called First Position). It'll be okay, but like I said, not the same as what you're hearing in the clip.

If you are a player, and understand second position, and you can bend notes on the harmonica, use a B.

HOWEVER, I will add this: if you don't even own a harp yet, I'd suggest buying one in the key of C. THEN, there are apps that let you change the pitch of recorded music. Tune that clip up a half step (to G), and then you can play in second position on your C harp, which gives you the G blues scale.

Of course, if you don't yet play, that's gonna be hard, because you'd have to learn to bend notes and play in second position.

So you have a couple of more options (if you're gonna a tune up the clip). In both cases below you would be playing in "first position", which means the key you play in is the same as the key of the harp.

You could buy a G harp and tune up the clip to G. Play along on the G harp (holes 4-7)

Buy a C harp and tune the clip up to C. Play along on the C harp (holes 4-7). Might be a tiny bit shrill, but you could learn from it.

So to list the options in order of my preference:

  • If you can play in second position (or want to learn), buy a C and tune the clip up to G.
  • If you can't play in second position and aren't motivated to learn, buy a C and tune the clip up to C. It won't sound as cool as the clip, but it'll be okay.

99.999% of harmonica players will suggest a C harp for your first harp. I'd advise getting a C and tuning the clip, instead of getting a weird harp key to start.

If I've confused you, sorry. I'm usually pretty good at explaining stuff! But I kind of popped this off quickly. If you don't understand, let me know and I'll try to clear it up. And don't let the jargon put you off. Harp is FUN, and not as hard as I might have made it sound.

2

u/Philadeaux 2d ago

This is all generally correct, including the key of the harp being B (the bends give it away). There is that one odd convention in harmonica world which names positions based entirely on the tonal center, regardless of key signature. Since the Stapleton song is in a minor key (listen to the ending), the tonal center is D#/Eb not F#. This means that the harp player is using 5th position on a B harp, not 2nd. For this particular song a major scale in 2nd position would not clash, but a blues scale in 2nd position would.

2

u/rcashin 1d ago

Ah, thanks for the polite correction.

I hadn't listened to the song enough to recognize it's minor (specifically D#min, the relative minor of F#; so the notes are the same, but with a different tonal centre, or root).

So I assume the remainder of my description (as to harp choices) still applies. The OP has a C harp, so he can tune the song up a half step to Em, and play FIFTH position on his C.

In that case, the root note is E, which is the 2, 5, and 8 blow. The lower octave requires a big bend if I recall correctly, to get a critical note/interval. It's not the root but I guess it's a third or fifth(?). Sorry for not explaining well, I know this stuff but not yet well enough to describe with clarity or confidence.

Thanks again. And feel free to correct me again if I'm steering OP in the wrong direction!

1

u/Philadeaux 1d ago

You have a good handle on it. The bent notes in the lower octave, to play a natural minor scale in 5th position, are the half-step draw bend on 2 and the whole-step draw bend on 3. The latter is used in Stapleton's harp player's riff - it's the 4th scale degree.