How to read harmonica tabs
Harmonica tabs tell you which hole to play and whether to breathe out or in. That’s all you need to start. Here’s how to read the tabs on this site.
The numbers are holes
A standard diatonic harmonica has 10 holes, numbered 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest). The numbers are printed on the cover plate. In a tab, 4 means hole 4.
Blow and draw
A plain number means blow (breathe out) into that hole. A number with a minus sign means draw (breathe in). So 4 -4 5 is: blow 4, draw 4, blow 5. On Harmonica Song, blow notes are blue and draw notes are red. Some tabs write blow as +4; it means the same thing.
Playing one hole at a time
Most melodies need single notes. Pucker your lips as if whistling, or block the holes you don’t want with your tongue. Breathe gently: a harmonica needs far less air than you think.
Bends
A ’ after a hole means bend the note: draw while dropping your jaw and shaping your mouth as if saying “ooh”, which pulls the pitch down. One mark (-4’) is a half step. Two marks (-3’’) is a whole step, and hole 3 can go down three half steps. On a diatonic, draw bends happen on holes 1 to 6 and blow bends on holes 7 to 10. If you’re starting out, pick a tab marked no bends.
Overblows and overdraws
An o after a hole means an overblow (on holes 1, 4, 5 and 6) or an overdraw (on holes 7 to 10). These are advanced techniques that give you the notes a diatonic is missing.
Chromatic harmonica tabs
Chromatic harmonicas have a slide button on the side. A < before a hole number means play it with the slide pushed in, which raises the note by a half step. Most chromatics have 12 holes.
Which key of harmonica?
Unless a tab says otherwise, it’s written for a harmonica in C. You can play the same holes on any key of harmonica: the tune will just sound higher or lower. If your harmonica isn’t in C, set My harp is in on the coach and it will listen for the right notes.
First and second position
Playing a C harmonica in C is called first position, and suits folk songs and melodies. Blues players mostly use second position, or cross harp: on a C harmonica you play in G, built around draw notes on holes 2 to 4. If a tab mentions a position, that’s what it means.
What tabs don’t show
Tabs don’t record rhythm. Listen to the song, or press Hear the notes on any tab to hear them in order, then slow it down until you can follow along.