Range of the Chromatic Harmonica
It is possible to play over a range of three octaves on some chromatic harmonicas, while others cover four octaves. The three octave version is more common and is used for this book. If you have a four octave harmonica, it simply gives you an extra octave of all the notes.
The distance of four octaves is shown on the keyboard as follows. The lowest note on the C chromatic harmonica is called middle C. On a piano, this is the C note in the middle of the keyboard as shown on the following diagram:
Here is the C major scale over three octaves. The third (high) octave has the symbol 8va written above the music. This means it is played an octave higher than written. This symbol is often used for very high notes, as it makes them easier to read. When the notation returns to its normal pitch, the word loco is written above the music.
Playing the major scale on the chromatic harmonica is easy because you don’t need to bend any note in any octave. However, the bigger body of the harmonica itself means that the size of the holes and the distance between them is different to that of the diatonic harmonica. Playing sequences is a good way of teaching your brain the distances.
