Features:

The Major Diatonic Harmonica is the traditional Blues tuning, and considered the best harmonica for playing Blues, Folk, Rock, Pop and Country.

The Major Diatonic Harmonica was originally intended for playing simple Folk music of the nineteenth century and its notation layout was adequate for that purpose. The Major Diatonic harmonica is the most commonly used tuning for playing Blues, Rock, Country Folk & Jazz.

Several other manufacturers, using various names stamped on their cover plates, for marketing purposes, have the exact same notation layout as a Lee Oskar Major Diatonic harmonica.

The original style of playing, known as 1^st Position (Straight Harp), is suitable for playing simple melodies, Folk music and various other types of music that call for melody lines, along with some chords. 1^st Position (Straight Harp), is still used by many players today, but due to its simplicity of sound, it is not as popular as 2^nd Position (Cross Harp).

Model: 1910 – Labeled in 1^st Position – Orange Label
Available in 18 Keys (Listed low to high):
Low C, Low D, Low E, Low F, Low F#, G, Ab, A, Bb, B, C, Db, D, Eb, E, F, F#, Hi G

Note Layout

Key Chart

About the Major Diatonic Harmonica

The Major Diatonic is the standard Blues tuning and may be played in the 1^st & 2^nd Positions (Straight Harp & Cross Harp).

The evolution of music introduced Blues, Rock and Country and along with these new forms of music came the need for greater expression. Harmonica players began to experiment and found that when they primarily used the inhale (draw) notes, a different kind of sound was provided. This resulted in a new and more fluid style of playing, known as 2^nd Position (Cross Harp). 90% of today’s players use 2^nd Position for Blues, Rock, Country & Pop music.

2^nd Position (Cross Harp), is a Blues scale that offers a more expressive and soulful sound. Many of the draw reeds can be bent (a technique used to change the pitch of a note).

Understanding 1^st / 2^nd Position

Although it is possible to play in many keys of music on any one harmonica by using various positions, most players use only the first two positions, 1^st Position also known as Straight Harp, (starting from Blow) and 2^nd Position also known as Cross Harp (starting from Draw). For more information see: Understanding 1^st / 2^nd Position

Model:	1910-LEEOSKAR
Manufacturer:	Lee Oskar