I know NOTHING about harmonicas. but I want to play the blues?

What harmonica do i get. And what key, like C, F, G...

Start with a C. I'm not being a wise guy- just stick it in your mouth and start playing. Play as much as you can, whenever you can. Have fun with it.

Any harmonica made by Hohner is good. A ten hole blues harp or marine band are fine. You'll find that the tones are created by inhaling.

You can read about technique and other stuff later.

But above all, have fun with it!

I don't know anything about harmonicas either, but what I do know:

"You've gotta pay your dues if you want to sing the blues"


:) good luck!

Corrosion is correct, and I will only add to LISTEN to a lot of blues harmonica as well. Do your best to copy the riffs - if you get one out of 10 right, that is still progress!

Join a club if you have a one nearby or your local Tafe might have a begginers course i know Newcastle Has courses or if you want to learn at home go to youtube type in harmonica lessons you will never have to pay for lessons Beginners to advanced lessons try Adam Gusso OR John Ginndick the best Harp to Practice Bending on is,,,a D Harp on hole 4 try this////4 Drawwwww stop----4draw--4blow--3Draw--2Draw and on a C harp hole 4 Drawing in say the word Took Took Took Took Toooooook say it fast at first then slow it down//// notice your toungh is starting at the roof of your mouth and going down to the bottom i bit like a Hooler dancers hand motion Have fun i hope this helps out NASTYOLDDOG Bark Bark Barkin Atcha

all these guys have given great answers. My old blues mentor told me to listen to a train, listen to a baby cry, and listen to the wind, hear the tone changes in each of the above, if your sad, keep the notes long and drawn out, with wavering from putting your palm over your harp hand, if your happy and jumping and the song is, play short and giddy notes good luck youll love this

You don't have to play the harmonica to play the blues. You can play it on keyboard. The basic blues format in the key of c is c,eb, f, f#,g, Bb,c

You must feel blue to play the blues .
Your wife needs to runover your dog , get caught cheatin , get drunk and start a bar fight , your wife deliver a half breed , your truck catches fire , your doctor tells you your organs are all broke and nuthin can be done , you catch your best friend with your dog .
After using the toliet you find NO PAPER BLUES !
You gettin blue yet ?

Sorry for the shameless self promotion, but try my beginner harmonica lesson on youtube. Just search for "12gagedan". Also, there are MANY awesome lessons on youtube by better players than me. Try Ronnie Shellist, Adam Gussow, and Jason Ricci. You'll see what blues harp is capable of and learn some real masters' secrets.

Other ideas include books by Jon Gindick (great way to start), or Dave Barret (harmonicamasterclass dot com)

You want to get a C harp since a lot of beginner material teaches on that key. I like Hohner Sp. 20s, but there are many good harps available.

In the beginning you want to pick up basic tunes (use harp tab) and some easy licks. By practicing things that sound good to you, you'll want to play more. Over time, you will learn bending, scales and blues progression/soloing etc. but at first, (as mentioned above) just play.

It takes time, but you should set a goal of playing clean clear single notes as soon as possible. These are your building blocks to success on the harp.