Double Blues Harps: 10-Hole Richter-Tuned Slide Diatonics & How To Use Them (Trochilus Harmonica – Educational Materials)

This guide is written for intermediate to expert players, who want to get the most out of this unique harmonica, and is also written for teachers who want a reference guide to the possibilities of the Trochilus. Endorsements from notable voices in the harmonica community: “A fabulous job of laying out the musical roadmap for this Trochilus/Game Changer/BLUES Harmonica. I can’t imagine any serious harmonica player curious about this instrument, not having this compendium on their music stand.” -Kinya Pollard The Harpsmith “Very thorough dive into the Trochilus. My initial approach has been to “oh, I can hit overblows reliably with the button.” This book is an eye opener. I’m rethinking my approach. Great work, Pete.” -Steve Hayes “Great Book.” David Kachalon There are 12 sections to this book: Introduction. High level overview: Why use this harp? How should it be used? FAQ. Frequently asked questions I’ve received, and answers. Characteristics & Capabilities, History & Future. Construction, & general information on what this harmonica provides from a technical perspective. Light history and directions for the future. Harmonica Tabs & Scale Degrees. This section explains the way this book shows which hole/slide/breath combination to use, and how this book refers to notes in a key. All Notes Map. A map of every note, organized by note name. Intonation Practice Exercise. How to use this harmonica to improve your intonation on-the-go. Relationships Between Positions. By essentially having (in the C harp) both C and Db Richter-tuned diatonic harmonicas onboard, you can leverage overlap in their positions. This gives you two very different ways of playing with the same root note. Key Notes: Positions 1, 2, and 3. The most important section of the book. Provides tabs for the major, major pentatonic, minor, and minor pentatonic & blues scales, and, perhaps most importantly, outlines the “money notes” and tips for using them in positions 1, 2, and 3. Beyond 1, 2, & 3. Overview of positions 4-12. Outlines both scales and key notes. Chords and Octaves. A brief overview of chords and octaves. All Key Position Reference. This book’s tabs apply to a C harmonica. If you buy harps in other keys, this section contains a chart that will help you apply these tabs to them. Appendix. Includes terminology (since this book uses some common music terms), a review of scale notes & scale degrees, and Roman Numerals as chord symbols. Also includes note maps for the red and yellow versions of the 10-hole slide diatonic harps. This is not a lesson book. It is a reference guide, akin to a manual, that you can use to apply traditional blues harp skills to a new instrument. There is a LOT of information- I recommend taking it a little bit at a time. But this harmonica offers a lot of low-hanging fruit, and this book will help you pluck it. For performers, the 10-hole Richter-tuned slide diatonic offers incredible additions in expression and phrasing. As an educator, I’m also excited about a blues harmonica that will make some critical music fundamentals (scales, arpeggios) more accessible to intermediate and advanced harmonica players.