Obtaining Single Notes

Single Notes by "Tongue-Blocking"

Traditionally, harmonica players have used the method known as "tongue-blocking" to get single notes. This method involves covering four holes with the mouth, and then blocking the three left-most holes with the side of the tongue.

In the past, all beginners were forced to learn this difficult way of single-noting, and many instructional methods still require it.

However, tongue-blocking, although essential for very serious classical harmonicists, is really not appropriate for those beginning students interested in playing blues music, as it makes the use of bending very difficult.

If you have already learned to get single notes in this way, please learn to also use the easier "pucker" method described below. If you can’t tongue-block now, don’t consider learning it now.

Eventually all serious or professional players will want to be able to obtain single notes both ways, but for beginners and intermediate players the pucker method is both simpler and more versatile.

The "Pucker" Method of Single-Noting

Whistling, or drinking liquid through a straw, provides a mouth position similar to the mouth position needed to get single notes with the pucker method.

Simply make a small hole with your mouth, approximately the same size as one hole on the harmonica. Tighten the muscles that circle your mouth to form a round, tight, hole as pictured.

"Pucker Method"

Tongue Blocking

Cover the number 1 hole of the harmonica with your "puckered" mouth. You should not be "reaching out" towards the harmonica with your lips. Instead, make sure that the harmonica is well in between your lips, with your upper lip well on top, and lower lip well beneath.

This will put the harmonica in contact with the wet, inner part of your lips, not the dry, outer parts. The muscle between the bottom of your nose and your upper lip should be shortened, as if you were curling your upper lip in an upwards direction. Gently exhale into the number 1 hole to produce a single note.

If you aren’t sure that you’re getting a single 1 note, you can put your finger over hole 2. Although having to cover both the hole and your finger with your mouth may feel awkward, this will allow you to hear exactly what the single 1 hole should sound like. Remove your finger, and try again.

After you’ve worked with exhaling on hole 1, try inhaling on it. Most people find the inhaled single notes harder at first. If you want to try something really difficult now, begin working on the single notes from holes number 2 through 9. Holes 1 and 10 are the easiest, since they only have neighboring holes that must be avoided on one side. However, hole 6 is a tremendously important blues note, so you may wish to begin working on obtaining it as a clear single note now. The recording will demonstrate the sound produced by first exhaling, then inhaling, on holes 1, 6 and 10, in that order.

It’s Not Easy

Getting single notes is not easy for most people, so don’t allow yourself to become discouraged, or spend more than five or ten minutes on this today at most. Fortunately, all of the Part One material will work reasonably well even if you cannot obtain clear single notes at first.

Do keep practicing single-noting for a few minutes each day, and eventually you’ll be able to get clear single notes when practicing. Of course, it is far simpler to locate and play a single note during a practice session than it is during a song. But as time passes, you will be able to locate just the note you want more and more often. The ability to consistently hit any single note at will can take months of diligent practice.