Harmonicas

They are typically found in chromatic harmonicas, chord harmonicas and many octave-tuned harmonicas.

Other diatonic harmonicas include octave harmonicas.

There are also other chord harmonicas, such as the Chordomonica (which operates similar to a chromatic harmonica), and the junior chord harmonicas (which typically provide six chords).

An even more serious problem with wood combs, especially in chromatic harmonicas (with their thin dividers between chambers), is that the combs shrink over time.

A notable exception to the traditional reed plate design is the all-plastic harmonicas designed by Finn Magnus in the 1950s, in which the reed and reed plate were molded out of a single piece of plastic.

At that time in Vienna, mouth harmonicas with Kanzellen (chambers) had already been available for many years, along with bigger instruments driven by hand bellows.

Diatonic harmonicas main Strictly speaking, "diatonic" denotes any harmonica designed to play in a single key—though the standard "Richter-tuned" diatonic can play other keys by forcing its reeds to play tones that are not part of its basic scale.

During World War II, the War Department allotted a rationed supply of brass to Kratt's factory so they could continue to produce harmonicas that the Red Cross distributed to American troops overseas to boost morale.

Early instruments The harmonica first appeared in Vienna, where harmonicas with chambers were sold before 1824 (see also Anton Reinlein and Anton Haeckl ).

Europe and North America Early use Some time before Hohner began manufacturing harmonicas in 1857, he shipped some to relatives who had emigrated to the United States.

He and the ironworker Langhammer in the 3-mile-away Graslitz copied the instruments; by 1827 they had produced hundreds of harmonicas.

His colorful solos used the full register of his instrument and some chromatic harmonicas.

Horn harmonicas are available in several pitch ranges, with the lowest pitched starting two octaves below middle C and the highest beginning on middle C itself; they usually cover a two- or three-octave range.

In 1829, Johann Wilhelm Rudolph Glier also began making harmonicas.

In many harmonicas, the mouthpiece is purely an ergonomic aid designed to make playing more comfortable.

In the past, they were referred to as horn harmonicas.

Modern wooden-combed harmonicas are less prone to swelling and contracting.

Most harmonicas are constructed with the reed plates screwed or bolted to the comb or each other.

Orchestral melody harmonica There are eight kinds of orchestral melody harmonica; the most common are the horn harmonicas often found in East Asia.

Quite a few orchestra harmonicas are also designed to serve as both bass and chord harmonica, with bass notes next to chord groupings.