Announcements

Announcements 

Special Guest This Week: Winslow Yerxa

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Is it a trill, or is it a warble?

Find out by joining our Zoom workshop this Wednesday 13th September at 7.00pm (UK), when we welcome Winslow Yerxa live from California.

Winslow is the author of our favourite harmonica encyclopedia, Blues Harmonica for Dummies. Be sure to order your copy online!

We normally meet on Tuesdays, but this week is an exception. For details on how to join our session this Wednesday, go to our Workshop page here or click our Harp Workshop toggle.

We all thought trills and warbles were the same thing, but we’re open to persuasion. Every day’s a school day down at the Harp Surgery! See you at this week’s Workshop.

Announcements 

Tuesday Evening Online Workshop

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Schedule : We meet every Tuesday evening
Time : 7.00pm-8.30pm (UK)
Platform : Zoom
Fee : £10.00 GBP payable in advance
Sign up : paypal.me/harpsurgery

What do workshops include?
Styles from Blues, Americana, Folk, Celtic, Latin, Pop, Rock, and World Music. Breathing and musical warm up exercises. How to identify the key of a ‘mystery’ song. Work on chosen study pieces. Focus on specific harmonica skills and techniques. Jamming. Q&A, advice and information exchange. We use a combination of harmonica tabs and standard notation, but you won’t need to read music in order to join in. All ability levels are welcome.

How to sign up
Harp Surgery sessions are pay-as-you-go. To confirm your attendance and receive our unique weekly password please transfer £10.00 in advance by PayPal. Simply type paypal.me/harpsurgery into your web browser and follow the instructions. Please ensure you include the Workshop Date and Your Name in the ‘What’s this payment for?’ window. (more…)

Announcements 

In Memorium – Mark Hughes of Split Rivvit

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Mark Hughes (right)

Dear Harp Surgery, I’m Mark Hughes’ sister Isobel. It’s been over 20 years since he died, and there is still rarely a day that passes without me thinking of him. Today would have been his 65th birthday. It’s heartwarming to read about Mark and the rest of the the band, bringing back the happier memories.

My siblings and I have only a couple of photos of Split Rivitt, so I was excited to read that Charlie has lots (hi Charlie!) – it would be wonderful to have some copies. I hope all is well with you, Dave W, Chris and Dave L. It would be lovely to hear from you. Isobel x

Thanks for your message Isobel – here’s some footage from the BBC’s Nationwide programme back in the day, featuring Mark in the studio with Johnny Mars, Mark Feltham and Skid Stuart. Sending you love and best wishes from everyone at the Harp Surgery.

If anyone has any memorabilia we can add to our Split Rivitt archive, please message us through our contact page. Harp Surgery visitors can enjoy the Split Rivitt archive here.

Announcements 

Richard Teaching Harmonica Live On The Radio

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Early on Friday morning at this year’s Harpin’ By The Sea harmonica festival, Richard Taylor, launched proceedings in the company of BBC Radio Sussex reporter Hanna Neter.

Hanna was challenged by Breakfast Show host Alison Fearns to learn and perform her first ever harmonica tune live on air. Richard and Hanna duly got to work and within half an hour Hanna was playing When The Saints Go Marching In! You can hear what everyone got up to right here…


If you’d like to learn the harmonica for yourself, or improve your existing skills, contact Richard Taylor now. Details of lessons are right here.

Announcements Reviews - Harps 

Hohner PentaHarp

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The harp beginner’s and guitarist’s new friend
The PentaHarp has finally reached the UK and we have been busy putting it through its paces. With an attractive electric blue ABS comb, the PentaHarp is essentially a special tuning in a Special 20 shell. An addition to Hohner’s Progressive Series, it comes in a sturdy flip-top box and is packaged in an eye catching outer carton featuring Nashville singer song-writer, Payton Taylor. The packaging explains:


“The PentaHarp simplifies the harmonica by giving players easy access to one of the most useful scales in rock and blues music without the need for advanced techniques. The tonal layout is the Blues Scale, which is a Minor Pentatonic scale with the added ‘blue’ note. Create expressive melodies and solos quickly and easily, and never play a wrong note!”

(more…)

Announcements 

Harmonica Lesson Gift Vouchers

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Birthday VoucherSimple Gifts
If you need a special Christmas or Birthday gift for your aspiring harmonica player, look no further. Whether it’s for a particular occasion or just for fun, everyone enjoys a special surprise. Pay for the lesson in advance and we will email you a Harp Surgery gift voucher.

Need a harmonica too?
We can supply you with a harmonica to help get things underway too. Visit our harmonica store page and select the best harp for your budget. If you’re unsure which one to go for, email us and we’ll be happy to lend some advice.

Harmonica Gift Cards
If you need a card to go with the voucher, let us know and we’ll mail one to you.

Price list
Christmas VoucherLesson prices are on our lessons page (Services Menu). You can opt for private 1:1 lessons here at the Harp Surgery, or a virtual lesson on Zoom. Lessons are 1 hour. If you’d like a course of lessons, a discounted rate is available and we can customise your voucher accordingly.

Terms and conditions
Your first lesson must be taken within 6 months of the date of purchase. Remaining lessons must be used at a rate of one (or more) per consecutive month thereafter. For faster development we recommend booking lessons at fortnightly or weekly intervals. We regret that vouchers are non-refundable.