Learning to read...

[Steve Jennings <100010.1152@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Goobs:
It takes as long as it takes, I guess - it's the old principle, the
more you work at it, the faster you go, and the easier it gets.  I'm
still learning little tricks after 30+ years, which is just as it
should be. For those of my students who show an interest in learning to
read, I recommend "How to Read Music" by Roger Evans, pub. IMP, ISBN -
0-241-89916-8. OK, it doesn't acknowledge the existence of the harp,
but it covers the basics pretty comprehensively, and doesn't try to
blind you with science. To get it work with harmonica(s) all you need
is to know where the notes actually live on the instrument, such
"maps" are widely available (in Steve Baker's book for one, though
that's only major diatonics), and Hohner often publish layouts in their
catalogues. Lee Oskar do handouts covering the layouts of all their
tunings, and I'm working on sets for the more farout stuff that I use
at present.

Hope this helps - good luck!

Steve Jennings
Editor, Harmonica World