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what does it mean to play cross harp

by Mr. Tod Bailey DDS Published 3 years ago Updated 2 years ago

Cross Harp is a common expression used to describe the way the diatonic Richter harmonica (blues harp) is most often played in a blues context. It means that instead of playing the harp in the major key to which it's tuned, where the blow chord provides the tonal center, you take the draw chord as your starting point.Jan 6, 2019

Full Answer

What is the difference between straight harp and cross harp?

They are:

  1. st position (or "straight harp"): Ionian mode. Playing the harmonica as it was intended, in its main major key. ...
  2. nd position (or "cross harp"): Mixolydian mode. Playing the harmonica in a key a fourth below its intended key. ...
  3. rd position (or "double cross harp" or "slant harp"): Dorian mode. Playing the harmonica a full tone above its intended key. ...

What does it mean to play cross harp?

Cross harp is a system where a diatonic harmonica tuned to a key a fourth (five half steps) higher than the song's key is used. This results in the harmonica playing a blues scale with a flatted seventh (in our example, the flat 7 is an F), and draw notes that can be bent for additional expression.

How to enable cross play?

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  • Open the Squad menu
  • Choose your Friends list and invite a friend to join your squad
  • Select the name of the friend you have invited
  • Pick Send Buddy Pass Token. That’s everything you need to know regarding how to play crossplay in Rainbow Six Extraction on PC and console, and add friends.

What is the best harmonica for beginners?

Top 7 Best Beginner Harmonica Reviews

  • Fender Blues Deluxe Harmonica, Key of C. ...
  • Hohner Special 20 Diatonic Harmonica C key. ...
  • Lee Oskar Harmonica, Key of C, Major Diatonic. ...
  • East top Harmonica, Diatonic Blues Harmonica Key of C. ...
  • NEUMA Harmonica Blues Deluxe Harmonica, Key of C Major. ...
  • Seydel Harmonica (Blues Classic C) – Best Beginner Harmonica Overall. ...

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What does cross harp mean harmonica?

Cross harp is a system where a diatonic harmonica tuned to a key a fourth (five half steps) higher than the song's key is used. For example, for a song in the key of G, a diatonic C harmonica would be used.

What is the difference between straight harp and cross harp?

Straight harp is the sound of the major key, happy, folk, campfire, Civil War songs, Irish fiddle tunes, and lots of straight-ahead melody playing. In cross harp, or second position, you're playing in the key of G on a C harmonica, and the low octave scale is -2 -3″ -3 4 -4 5 -5 6.

What is the cross harp for E Minor?

Let's say the band wants to jam in E-minor. Being a cross harp enthusiast, normally you'd grab an A harp and play 2nd position (cross harp) using the minor pentatonic scale (-2 -3′ 4 -4 -5 6). But when you reach into your bag, all you can find is a C harmonica!

How do you play cross harp in a minor key?

4:5114:29Playing Cross Harp against Minor Chords (DIATONIC) - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipYou always have to be thinking and you always have to like hit this half Bend if you're playingMoreYou always have to be thinking and you always have to like hit this half Bend if you're playing across that hole. So going up to hole number four blow it's also the fourth degree of the minor.

Why is it called cross harp?

Harmonica players began to experiment and found that when they primarily used the inhale (draw) notes, a different kind of sound was provided. This resulted in a new and more fluid style of playing, known as 2nd Position (Cross Harp).

What is Double Cross Harp?

3rd position (or "double cross harp" or "slant harp"): Dorian mode. Playing the harmonica a full tone above its intended key. This gives a dorian scale between 4 draw and 8 draw, though once again bends and overblows give players a variety of options. Blues players can achieve a tritone by bending the 6 draw.

What key should my harmonica be in?

First get a harmonica in C. C is the best key to get started because the length of the reeds is average and it's also the most common key in music. Out of all 12 keys a harmonica in G has the longer reeds and a harmonica in F# has the shortest reeds, C is right in the middle for reed length.

What key of harmonica should I get to play with guitar?

The diatonic harmonica is made to play in one key and is easier to learn but you will need to buy more than one. The guitar's natural key is E; so buying a diatonic harmonica in the key of E major would be ideal. The other diatonic harmonicas you should aim to add to your collection is G major and C major.

Which blues harp for which key?

Indeed, traditionally Bb is the harmonica you start on to learn playing overblows. This is suitable for playing in the key of D. It is a very low harmonica and sounds best when you are playing rhythmic chugging and slow melodic phrases. The F harmonica allows you to play in the key of C in 2nd position.

What is the easiest harmonica to play?

The Best Harmonicas for Beginners, According to HarmonicistsHohner Special 20 Harmonica Bundle, Major C. $55. ... Lee Oskar Harmonica, Key of C, Major Diatonic. $43. ... Hohner Marine Band Harmonica, Key of C. $43. ... Hohner Golden Melody Harmonica, Key of C. ... SEYDEL Blues Classic 1847 Harmonica C. ... Hohner Super Chromonica Deluxe, Key of C.

Do you need a harmonica for every key?

As always, you need a harmonica which matches the key of each blues song. However, most blues harmonica is played in second position, where the harmonica key is different to the key of the song. Details about second position blues harmonica are in the lessons at my Harmonica Academy site.

What is the lowest key harmonica?

So, in order of pitch, from highest to lowest, the keys look like this: Low F#, Low F, Low Eb, Low D, Low Db, Low C, Low B, Low Bb, Low A, Low Ab, Low G, Low Low F. It's worth noting that the lower the pitch of the harmonica, the harder it is to bend notes effectively.

What is the major scale for the cross harp?

Cross Harp Major Scale (Mixolydian Mode) Now play the G cross har p major scale, also known as the Mixolydian mode. It’s different from the standard major scale. Aside from the difficulty of bending accurately on hole 3, listen to what happens from F to G at the end.

What is a straight harp?

Straight harp is the sound of the major key, happy, folk, campfire, Civil War songs, Irish fiddle tunes, and lots of straight-ahead melody playing.

Is a straight harp a cross harp?

Powerfully emotional. Straight harp can trigger powerful emotions, too, and when deployed strategically, it can sound every bit as unhinged as cross harp, but they really have different strengths.

What is the major diatonic harp?

The original style of playing, known as 1 st Position (Straight Harp), is suitable for playing simple melodies, Folk music and various other types of music that call for melody lines, along with some chords.

What is a harmonic minor?

NOTE: The Harmonic Minor is a unique “modal music” tuning with different Minor/Major scales. Please refer to the Harmonic Minor Key Guide Chart to learn more.

What are the two positions on a harmonica?

About Keys and Positions: Although it is possible to play in many keys of music on any one harmonica by using various positions and techniques, most players use only the first two positions; 1 st Position (also known as Straight Harp) and 2 nd Position (also known as Cross Harp ). NOTE: It is important to know that 1st Position (starting ...

What is straight harp?

Playing straight harp means playing in the actual key labeled on the harmonica. In this position, the expressive upper register is exploited to play folk tunes, ragtime and many other types of melodies. Harmonica wizard Gwen Foster recorded some really amazing first position tunes in the 1920s and 30s. His recordings are really worth listening and studying. Other important straight harp players worth listening to are Rhythm Willie and Jimmy Reed.

What is the 4th position on a harp?

Fourth Position. On a C harp, fourth position would be in the key of A. Like third position, fourth position also produces minor music, and it can be used for playing minor key tunes. The basic starting and ending place in fourth position would be the 3 draw bent down two half-steps.

What tuning is used for a diatonic harmonica?

There are unlimited ways to tune a diatonic harmonica. The standard is Richter tuning. Most harmonica instructions and compositions are based on the assumption that this tuning is in use. While Richter tuning is the most popularly used tuning, it isn’t necessarily the most practical layout for playing all types of music. There are a lot of altered tunings which can make playing certain types of music easier (e.g. Irish, Country, or Jazz). Let’s have a look at some of them:

What is harmonica position?

Harmonica positions are basically how harmonica players describe the way in which they play different scales on a harmonica. “Position” is a useful term because diatonic harps come in several harmonica keys. The relative note layout for each key is the same.

What scale is the harmonica tuned in?

On a Richter tuned harmonica, these are the notes of the major scale. The complete diatonic scale can be played in the second octave, but in the first and third octaves, some of the notes are missing. By using techniques such of bending, it is possible to obtain many of the missing notes.

What is the lowest note on a harmonica?

On a C harmonica, the lowest note is a C note (hole 1 blow). The C note is the central pitch, the natural tonic. Therefore, this harmonica can be said to be tuned in C Major. There can also be other ways to determine the key of harmonica. Let’s consider this new type of harmonica:

How many different positions are there on a harmonica?

Different playing positions allow us to play in different keys on a single harmonica. Since there are 12 keys (G, A, Bb, B, C, etc), there are (in theory) 12 different positions on a harmonica. To play in the key of C on a C harmonica (straight harp), you’d just have to start and finish all the scales on the note of C.

What chord is the F sharp note in blues?

It should be made explicitly clear with respect to the F note that when the blues progression comes on the fifth degree chord ( as in the case of a G blues, it's the D7 chord) we are free to play the F sharp note owing to the reason that it's the third degree of the chord in question.

Where is the G note on a harmonica?

The G note is located on holes 2 draw, 3 blow, 6 and 9 blows. When we play these holes we will always be tuned to the song. The second important note to play in second position is B: third degree; although we already recognize this as the one that determines the mode of the song. Since we are on a major track, the harmonica makes this note ...

Can you play a minor song on a harmonica?

In short, we can play a minor song in the second position of the harmonica without much difficulty. Nevertheless, if we do not possess a good hold over the instrument, we may end up restricting line of action for us. Let's evaluate harmonica notes to play the blues in the second position.

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