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Tomlin’s Harmonica Podcast · September 28 · 16 min

How Do I Learn a New Song on Harmonica? | Ask Tomlin

You find a song you love, put it on and play along, and hope it sticks. In this episode Becky asks how I actually learn a new piece of music, and I walk through my whole process step by step. I start with a lot of listening and no harmonica anywhere near me - two or three times through just to get a feel for it. Then I count through the music, mark the bars and hear the changes between the one, four and five, and decide what I actually want out of the song. The whole thing, the head, or just one lick. After that I do a rough transcription and start with whatever is hardest, learning the solo out of order and leaving the easy bits until last. We also talk about getting off the page as quickly as you can, drilling the transitions between licks rather than the licks themselves, and then moving the tune into new contexts - a bare backing track, a different tempo, a different key - before pulling licks out of it to build your own improvising vocabulary. Becky then asks how you capture the feel of a song, so we get into dynamics, what each technique actually feels like, and why knowing the lyrics changes how you play. If you're an adult player who wants a proper method for learning tunes rather than just playing along, this one is for you. ⏱ Audio Chapters 0:00 – Becky's question: how do you learn a new song? 1:27 – Step one: listening before you play 2:38 – Counting the bars and hearing the changes 4:08 – Why I start with the hardest lick 5:51 – Getting off the page and playing from memory 6:37 – Practising the transitions between licks 8:21 – Playing it in a different key and context 10:22 – How do you capture the feel of a song? 11:57 – Dynamics, and knowing the lyrics 14:10 – Working out the key and position This episode is brought to you by the ever-growing Tomlin Harmonica School - where you get a proper step-by-step curriculum, real feedback from real teachers on your own playing, and a genuinely warm community of fellow Harmonicats. Try it free for 7 days at https://bit.ly/4iiEbup

0:00-16:00
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show notes

You find a song you love, put it on and play along, and hope it sticks. In this episode Becky asks how I actually learn a new piece of music, and I walk through my whole process step by step.

I start with a lot of listening and no harmonica anywhere near me - two or three times through just to get a feel for it. Then I count through the music, mark the bars and hear the changes between the one, four and five, and decide what I actually want out of the song. The whole thing, the head, or just one lick. After that I do a rough transcription and start with whatever is hardest, learning the solo out of order and leaving the easy bits until last.

We also talk about getting off the page as quickly as you can, drilling the transitions between licks rather than the licks themselves, and then moving the tune into new contexts - a bare backing track, a different tempo, a different key - before pulling licks out of it to build your own improvising vocabulary. Becky then asks how you capture the feel of a song, so we get into dynamics, what each technique actually feels like, and why knowing the lyrics changes how you play.

If you're an adult player who wants a proper method for learning tunes rather than just playing along, this one is for you.

⏱ Audio Chapters

0:00 – Becky's question: how do you learn a new song?
1:27 – Step one: listening before you play
2:38 – Counting the bars and hearing the changes
4:08 – Why I start with the hardest lick
5:51 – Getting off the page and playing from memory
6:37 – Practising the transitions between licks
8:21 – Playing it in a different key and context
10:22 – How do you capture the feel of a song?
11:57 – Dynamics, and knowing the lyrics
14:10 – Working out the key and position

This episode is brought to you by the ever-growing Tomlin Harmonica School - where you get a proper step-by-step curriculum, real feedback from real teachers on your own playing, and a genuinely warm community of fellow Harmonicats. Try it free for 7 days at https://bit.ly/4iiEbup

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