Chromonica (chromatic harmonica) notes relating to holes
I have several chromonicas from the 50s/60s, and none seem to be 'standard'. There is only the one C/B hole in each octave, whereas it appears that standard includes two C holes (in a C instrument) next to each other. So it's blow/draw for C/D E/F G/A, and draw/blow for B/C.
They aren't be-bop or blues. classical, solo or minor tuned, and certainly not Richter, so what are they?
There's one which plays in C# when the button's out, and C when pushed in. It's stamped C, and may be 'Irish tuning', but with some delving, Irish tuned harmonicas drop from C to B when the button is used, so it maybe isn't that.
Using an interesting harminoca tag...
EDIT I just can't believe it ! I checked again, and yes, it has two C notes in holes adjacent to each other! Been playing on and off for a very long time, and honestly thought there was only the one C. Perhaps as a kid I automatically by-passed the 'other C' each time, so didn't actively think it existed. Sorry to cause any confusion - I guess the question is now null and void - except for the backwards harmonica.
Not a complete idiot - I just help them out when they're short...
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So it's blow/draw for C/D E/F G/A, and draw/blow for B/C.
This seems to fit with the standard tuning for a chromatic, "solo" tuning, which is the following repeated pattern:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10… etc.
------------------------------------
blow: |C |E |G |C |C |E |G |C |C |E...etc.
draw: |D |F |A |B |D |F |A |B |D |F...etc
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In which the blow note C is found repeated, as the end of one octave, then the beginning of the next.
On a chromatic harmonica this therefore results in 3 ways to play C, the 4 blow, 5 blow, and the 4 draw with the slide in, and 2 "C holes": one a C/D hole and the other a C/B hole.
A tuning without a repeated C would be like one of the following:
"Bebop":
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10… etc.
------------------------------------
blow: |C |E |G |Bb|C |E |G |Bb|C |E...etc.
draw: |D |F |A |B |D |F |A |B |D |F...etc
------------------------------------
F6/G6 (starting from -2 reflects the easiest way to retune from a stock harp: from an F chromatic)
(-2)(-1)1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10… etc.
------------------------------------
blow: |F |A |C |D |F |A |C |D |F |A |C |D...etc.
draw: |G |B |D |E |G |B |D |E |G |B |D |E...etc.
------------------------------------
As for the C# harp, it may simply be that the slider is on backwards, so in/out is reversed for all notes, does this fit with your experience? Is the blow chord a Db/C# major chord and the draw an Eb/D# minor 6 chord?)
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