Get Started With: A Basic Harmonica Lesson for Guitarists

The harmonica is a wonderfully intui­tive instrument. Playing it with the guitar is as natural as singing and offers a rewarding new world of music to explore. Bob Dylan popularized the idea of using the harmonica in a neck rack, but it has been used before and since by bluesmen such as Jimmy Reed, Slim Harpo, and John Hammond Jr., as well as rockers Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen, and Jeff Tweedy.

This guide, written by guitarist and instructor Gary Lee Joyner, teaches you some harmonica basics that will help you blow harp while you keep your guitar chords pulsing. You’ll learn how to tongue-block, play in minor keys, bend notes, and more.