Things I wish I had learned when I first started learning to play the harmonica:
- How to hold the harmonica: Grip it in your left hand between the thumb and forefinger and cup it with the right. For many years, I gripped with my right and cupped with both hands.
- How to bend notes while tongue blocking: For years, I would only bend notes while puckering.
- How to chord from both sides of the mouth: I usually play the note on the right and chord from the left, but you can play the note on the left and chord on the right too. And switch between the two.
- Blow-bending: For quite a few years, I didn't realize you could blow-bend on a harmonica. I wish I had learned that earlier.
- Overbending: I knew about this for quite a while, but considered it beyond what I could do. Now that I am more comfortable gapping my harmonica, and with a great deal of practice, I am finally starting to be able to overbend.
- Charlie McCoy style arpeggios, plant the tongue, and shift your lips.
- Bending notes to a specific pitch, like hitting the A on a 3 draw bend (C harp)
- Throat vibrato: I can do it now, but it could be better.
- Alternate tunings, especially the Melody Maker. My Melody Maker sat in my case for decades before I learned what you were supposed to do with it.
- Pucker-bending: Very fast and easy.
- Learning a large number of songs. I must have learned hundreds of different songs over the years.
- How to trill. My trills were originally very fast. I'm still trying to get used to slowing them down.
- Chording: I learned this early on, and it has helped me adapt to other tongue-blocking techniques.
- Octaves: I learned this very early, along with chording.
