Learn how to play harmonica - for beginners and intermediate players

HarmonicaMastery.com
HarmonicaMastery.com
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    • Home
    • The Program
    • Performances
    • Proof
    • Reviews
    • Reviews 2
    • FAQs
    • Apply
    • Contact
    • Value
  • Home
  • The Program
  • Performances
  • Proof
  • Reviews
  • Reviews 2
  • FAQs
  • Apply
  • Contact
  • Value

What are the 5 steps to success?

We will hold your hand and walk you through, step by step, slowly slowly!


STEP 1. Ready Steady Go... (54321) You will want to understand what your harmonica can do so you can build your higher-level skills on a solid foundation. We teach you how to hold it, how to breathe properly, how to play and use chords, how to play simple blues straight away, how and why playing in rhythm is critical, simple maintenance, care and repair of your harmonica. 'It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing' - start with rhythm!


STEP 2. Game-changing baby steps:  

The next step is getting single notes so you can play tunes. We teach you all the 8 ways to get single notes so you can start playing easy tunes immediately.


STEP 3. Playing music with other people - how? 

Practising with backing tracks (and enjoying open mic sessions) is a great confidence booster to prepare for playing live with other people. We teach you everything you need to have fun playing music in a live group setting.


STEP 4. Turbocharge your skills: 

Next you will want to gain some higher-level skills like note bending, improvising, playing in other keys, playing different styles of music, and playing more interesting tunes. We will hold your hand all the way through!


STEP 5.  Finally, you will want to think about performance and musicality. Even if you are 'just’ performing Happy Birthday, or playing at a Jam Session, you will need to know how to become confident, to stand out from the crowd, and not make a complete arse of yourself. You can do it!


An American student asked: 'Wait a minute, are you telling me you are gonna to hold my hand and kick my butt?' I said 'Yessir' he said 'Ok I'm in!' 

Frequently Asked Questions

Please reach us at ben@harmonicamastery.com if you wish 

or book a call with Ben here

Lifetime access (just one lifetime); after the first 90 days the pressure's off and you join the Graduates group where you get monthly tune-learning challenges. 


With music, and many other studies, you will never know it all, so we keep learning for life. 


Apparently, Leonard Bernstein was asked why he continued practicing the piano 2 hours a day at the age of 93 - he replied "I feel I'm making progress". So we keep going...


Of course - guaranteed progress in 3 months or your money back!


Provided you can show you have done the work. The Program can not work if you don't put in the time and effort.


If you make no discernible progress within three months of starting we will refund you. It's never happened yet, you will most likely make progress within two weeks.


We are THAT confident about this Program - it works extremely well and getting better all the time. 


But if you are not prepared to put some study time into learning with us, don't join. We only work with people who take action, roll their sleeves up, and put some effort into developing their harmonica playing. 


This guarantee agreement requires you to show that you have carried out everything as stated here and on the website page, that you have spent at least 45 hours studying harmonica effectively, you have submitted one video to the FB group most days for 90 days, you have attended most of the live sessions and masterclasses, and you've attended and played at most of the open mics. 


If you change your mind or give up you are on your own - we offer no refund under those circumstances. 


This does not affect your statuary rights. You have by UK law a 14-day cooling-off period if you want to change your mind - provided you do not use any of our services or products including our onboarding service.


If you change your mind and want a refund please write to or email Ben and get a confirmation. We reserve the right to retain reasonable setup expenses in the case of a refund.


Digital products cannot be returned to the shop if they've been used - you can't be 'un-onboarded', 'un-attend' events or 'un-receive coaching'. 




Yes, take a look at the PROOF page


Yes, at the live sessions, you will meet the people who did those testimonials - they exist! Actually, there are 29 real ones and one fake - if you don't spot the fake there's no hope for you! 


My address is on all my emails - come round for a beer if you like, or call me on 07973 284366. You can also Google 'Ben Hewlett Harmonica' and see my track record. Don't get muddled up with the male model of the same name. As I strut my stuff on the catwalks of Milan I sometimes wonder why he's got more harmonica students than me.


You can't be confident about something you can't do. We will teach you simple things and check to see if you understand them. After that, we will teach you more simple things and check to see if you understand them - that way you can build up your skills and confidence hand in hand with no pressure.


You will be invited into a Graduates Private Facebook Group so you can stay in touch with your friends in the HM90 community. 

  • You keep lifetime access to all the pre-recorded training forever
  • You will get a monthly challenge to learn a new tune or three
  • You can request to take the program again from the start
  • You can continue access to the live sessions and mentor new students as well as being able to ask questions and get help
  • So you still get great value after the 90 days are done, that's just the start of it!


How do we coach/mentor our students?

3 pillars; training, feedback, live zoom sessions (blended learning)

  1. Study with Ben's video courses and tuition books (daily 30 mins?)
  2. Log your daily progress via the practice diary and video diary in our Private FB group to get Support/Mentoring/Feedback/Encouragement
  3. Attend Ben's Group Zoom calls/Buddy Groups (Mon/Wed/Fri 7pm)


***BONUS access to regular Guest Masterclasses and Open Mic Sessions


If you follow the program, and do what you are told, success is inevitable. 


Remember, resistance is futile!

Welcome

There's much to see here. So, take your time, look around, and learn all there is to know about us. We hope you enjoy our site and take a moment to drop us a line.

Book a call with Ben

Group Coaching Sessions (3 per week)

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Training Videos and Books are all included (lifetime access)

HARMONICA MASTERY TRAINING  90+ hours of video tuition and 20 books


Milestone 1 - Breathing, Chords, Rhythm, and Chugging

  1. HARMONICA BASICS - all you need to get started
  2. How to practice - here's where you build your daily routine and 5-part practice schedule - aim for 1% improvement every day
  3. Train sounds - breathing, chords, and rhythms in a locomotive setting
  4. Get Chugging - breathing, chords, and articulations in musical settings
  5. Get Chugging Book - This is a stand-alone version containing a 'pdf and backing tracks' 
  6. Blues level 1 - basic blues chugging using chords in a '12 bar blues' structure/sequence. Ignore the latter part with single notes - come back to it after you've done the 'Five ways to play single notes' course
  7. Cleaning and maintenance - workshop with Kinya Pollard many ways to clean your harmonica
  8. Tone masterclass - 27 ideas to help you work on your tone
  9. Horn Lines for harmonica players. Audio and visual help for learning horn lines featuring Sean The Horn as a guest teacher on sax and harp. 
  10. Where can I play my harmonica? It's a joke. 
  11. How to play 15 tunes just using chords - this shows you how easy it is to play chordal tunes and to transition towards single note playing - on which more in Milestone 2 


Milestone 2 - Single Notes (one note, one hole):

  1. Five ways to play single notes (we keep finding new ways - up to 8 now)
  2. Search for the Single Note
  3. 17 Simple Scales
  4. Blues level 2
  5. BLUES JAM FACTORY - BOOK 1
  6. Love me do
  7. FUNKY NURSERY - BOOK
  8. How to hack your harmonica using 'masking tape'
  9. Drum Rudiments for harmonica
  10. Impro from scratch
  11. MASTERMIX - BOOK
  12. Harmonica hooks and hits


Milestone 3 - Bending Notes (lowering the pitch of draw notes to increase your range):

• Note-bending basics - draw bending

• Tunes - learn 11 great tunes

• Basic 12 bar blues

• Sonny Terry - 19 licks

• Dummies - this is a recap of many techniques you have learned in this section


Milestone 4 - Blues focus:

• Blues chromatic (no chrom? We can send you one)

• BLUES JAM FACTORY - BOOK 2

• One harp, 2 tunes, 3 positions

• 101 BLUES RIFFS - BOOK

• Blues 12 bar bassline

• BONES OF THE BLUES - BOOK

• Bones of the Blues - the movie

• Fresh simple blues

• Blues licks 101 new riffs

• Sugar Mama - Sonnyboy 1 (John Lee)

• Spokey Dokey

• Fox Chase - Deford Bailey, Henry Witter

• Tramp groove

• Easy - Big Walter

• Trouble in Mind - Sonny Terry

• All my love in vain - Sonnyboy 2 (Rice Miller)

• My Babe - Little Walter

• Whammer Jammer

• Learning Lost John


Milestone 5 - General techniques:

• All the basic techniques again - a quick refresh to roar through - The original title is '30 day challenge', but for you, this is just a recap to see if you missed anything -you might pick up something new

• One harp, 2 tunes, 3 positions

• Note-bending advanced - blow bending, overblow and overdraw

• Tongue-blocking, splits, octaves, flutters, warbles

• Minor tune, major harmonica

• Just play

• Seven showstopping tricks

• Turbocharge your harmonica

• Twenty awesomely different ways to play tunes

• Seven tips on improvising

• Nine smart ways to play with a band

• Music workout

• Seven amazing new skills to learn

• 1st position

• 2nd position

• 3rd position

• Learn Harmonica Part 1 - BOOK

• Learn Harmonica Part 2 - BOOK

• Learn Harmonica Part 3 - BOOK


Milestone 6 - Increasing Non-Blues Repertoire

• Yesterday

• Hallelujah

• Georgia On My Mind

• Cajun 

• Country

• Celtic 

• Reggae 

• Rock 

• Bluegrass 

• Old Time

• Jazz 

• Funk

• Indian Classical

• Folk

• 'World music'


Guest Masterclasses recorded live - look at all the famous names! :

  • Rohan Singhal - Indian Classical on diatonic October 2022
  • Roly Platt - playing FUNK on diatonic Sept 2022
  • PT Gazell How to approach Jazz on Diatonic August 2022
  • Steve Weston Canvey Island Blues Expert July 2022
  • Niki - iReal Pro demonstration June 2022 
  • Ed Hopwood May 2022 Country Grooves and Rhythms 
  • Sean The Horn April 2022 Horn Line Workshop 
  • Gerhard Muller 37 years at HOHNER! Product manager
  • Phil Henry - Folk Music and Beatboxing Tutorial
  • Brendan Power Feb 2022 - the new modular system reed system
  • Rob (Blues Brothers Frontman) Paparozzi Performance Masterclass
  • Rachelle Plas 11.9.21 Country Music Masterclass
  • Ed Hopwood 20.8.21 (132:10) Old Timey Style
  • Aidan Sheehan 17.7.21 (61:36) Cajun Music on harmonica
  • Paul Lennon 10.7.21 (73:04) Music Theory
  • John Cook 3.7.21 (78:38) Maintenance and engineering
  • Johnny Cope 26.6.21 Harmonics Jaws Harp, Throat Singing Didgeridoo
  • Paul Lamb 19.6.21 (63:18) Sonny Terry Master
  • Joe Filisko 12.6.21 (86:46) The Master Talks 
  • Jimi Lee 5.6.21 The groove master talks
  • Kinya Pollard 8.5.21 (59:06) Cleaning and maintenance
  • Keith Parker 27.3.21 (56:14) Blues Blues and Blues
  • Will Wilde 13.3.21 (57:09) Rock Harmonica Star
  • Rachelle Plas 27.2.21 (45:29) French Harp Star
  • Brendan Power 13.2.21 (45:52) Celtic music, looping and music tech
  • Ed Hopwood 30.1.21 (132:10) Old Timey Style

Harmonica Factory tours and chats:

  • Hohner Harmonica Factory in Trossingen, Germany
  • Dabell Harmonica Factory - wonderful video
  • Interview with Benny Yoon - owner of Dabell Harmonica Company
  • Easttop Ben's visit to Easttop and Kongsheng
  • Bertram Becher Seydel Harmonica Factory in Klingenthal

Lockdown 2020 guests

  • 5.4.20 Ed Hopwood, Keith Parker, Filip Jers 
  • 12.4.20 Will Wilde, Lars from Seydel, Richard Taylor 
  • 19.4.20 Joe Filisko, Jerry Fierro, Rob Paparozzi 
  • 26.4.20 John Cook, Roly Platt, Brendan Power 
  • 3.5.20 Rohan Singhal, Johnny Cope, John and Yuki Vaughan
  • 10.5.20 Paul Lamb, Giles Robson, Simon Joy 
  • 17.5.20 Beata Kosovska, Steve Baker, Adam Gussow 
  • 24.5.20 Lee Oskar, Moses Concas, Steve Lockwood 
  • 31.5.20 David Barrett, Kinya Pollard, Greh Heuman HEUMANN 
  • 7.6.20 Jason Ricci, Tom Halchack, Rob Paparozzi
  • 21.6.20 Rick Park, Mark Cole, Dave Walker, Jimi Lee

All Ben's 20 Books are also all included

Overview

If you would like an overview of Ben and Paul's Books, and to watch a video about each one, please visit https://harmonicaworld.net/collections/all-products. There's no need to buy them as they are all included in the Harmonica Mastery 90 Day Program.

How does this Facebook thing work?

It's a 90 day video diary challenge to help you document your success

  1. It's a private group - invitation only, no dickheads allowed
  2. We give you the opportunity to post a 1-minute video every day
  3. You get instant feedback from fellow students and our group experts
  4. You will be heard, listened to, congratulated and encouraged
  5. You might get your arse kicked as well - but in a nice way!
  6. You get the chance to help your fellow students on their journey
  7. You will document your harmonica journey every day for 90 days
  8. You will want to do a farewell performance on day 90
  9. You make friends for life and watch their harmonica careers unfold
  10. After 90 days you go to the Graduate Facebook group
  11. You might become a group expert or get another job hosting/helping
  12. After that - we might invite you to do the 90 day journey again...
  13. It's a little bit of pressure - not too much, just enough
  14. Don't forget - you get lifetime access to all this


Private Facebook Group Daily Mentoring



Private Facebook Group Daily Mentoring









Practise diaries







Show More

'Want to learn harmonica? Study with Ben Hewlett' Paul Jones, Manfred Mann, BBC R2 Blues Show, President of HarmonicaUK (Ben's line manager!)

'If you want to learn from a harmonica expert, we've got Ben Hewlett coming in to the studio for the next five weeks to teach you' Cerys Matthews BBC Radio

'I respect your hard work educational aims with teaching the harmonica' Larry Adler 1999 (yes, THE Larry Adler) Past President of HarmonicaUK

Ben on Radio 4 Saturday Live

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