Harmonica Workshop Tunes Into Poway

Make some licks, riffs and melodies at a workshop from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday in the Porter House Great Room at .

“Harmonicas are fun,” musician Dane Terry said. “They’re portable, they’re inexpensive and they make really pretty sounds very easily because they make chords automatically. Even children can learn how to play harmonicas. In fact, a lot of teachers use harmonicas to teach music to school kids.”

Diatonic harmonicas, or single-key harmonicas, are typically used for folk, traditional and blues songs.

“(Harmonicas are) very special instruments because you breath through it—in and out,” Terry said. “It feels so much more like one’s own voice because of that. It’s a very close and personal sounding instrument.”

The Poway Folk Circle skills workshop—designed for beginning to intermediate harmonica players—includes a lesson plan:

• Overview of harmonica types.
• Familiarization with the diatonic harmonica.
• Playing the diatonic harmonica (position, key, mode, chords, melodies, technique and tone). 
• Applying theories.
• Q&A and review.

Participants are required to bring an “A” harmonica, and can contact Terry about what harmonica models are recommended.

Terry will play an old folk song called “Sitting on Top of the World.”

“It’s also been a popular blues song because of the harmonica that we’re going to be using and because of the broad appeal of the song,” Terry said. “We’re going to work with a couple of different styles to show how harmonicas are used for that song.”

Terry received his first harmonica from his musician parents almost 50 years ago. He taught himself how to play folk, country, jazz and gospel songs. In addition, both of his parents were musicians.

He is also part of a local American dance music band called Cadillac Wreckers, which plays swinging jump blues, R&B, originals and jazz.

The workshop is limited to 20 people. Admission is $25 per person and pre-registration required. To make a reservation, email Terry at mr.chromatonic@gmail.com and pay in cash at the workshop. Attendees can also pay online via PayPal here.

There will be two performance events on the same day as well.

• There will be a at 2:30 pm on Sunday at . Veteran bluegrass musicians and teachers Janet Beazley and Chris Stuart will lead a session of classic bluegrass songs for beginning and intermediate musicians. The event is $5. Click here for more details.

• Later that night there will be a event at 7 p.m. at . The comedy-drama is about the story of a middle-aged couple who wake up in an unknown, picturesque landscape. Tickets cost $10.