My little boy’s attempt to play “Mary did you know”

[Jerold Paulraj]

#24719

Dear Mitch,
I wanted to express my gratitude for the tremendous impact your harmonica lessons have had on my son, Neil. Over the past six months, he has dedicated himself to practising the harmonica, and his progress has been inspiring. Recently, he was invited to play “Mary Did You Know” at a Church get-together. Though he wasn’t flawless, he gave it his all.

Neil’s improvement can largely be attributed to your invaluable lessons. However, I can’t help but wish you could be there to provide him with one-on-one guidance and support. I know that’d be a dream come true for me.

I kindly request the experts in this forum to share their insights and suggestions on how my son can further enhance his harmonica skills.

Thank you all in advance for your thoughtful contributions. Your advice will undoubtedly make a significant difference in Neil’s musical journey.

Warm regards,
Jerold Abraham

[Freddie]

#24721

Hi Jerold, thanks so much for sharing this and First and foremost…

CONGRATULATIONS NEIL!!!! 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

Wow that is super brave! I’m not sure if he was nervous to do that but I’m 42 and have been playing off and on for 22 years and I still get nervous playing in front of people… but the enjoyment of playing with people and sharing music with others always out weighs the fear. And once I start playing I remember how much I love to play and it gets easier every time.

And I would have to say that he is already doing one of the best things and that’s playing with others. I joined Mitch’s site six years ago which has helped sooo much, but I first picked up the harmonica back in college. I hadn’t thought of lessons for the harmonica, but thankfully I was surrounded by so many friends that played music. So I spent my time just jamming along with my friends for hours and hours during college. That time spent playing with others taught Me so much about timing, improvising, and ear training… just to name a few. Playing with others is absolutely priceless in my eyes when it comes to learning. So…good for him for getting a head start!

One of the best ways that I started to train my ear is by playing nursery rhymes and Christmas songs, And especially since it sounds like you are active in a church… hymns and spiritual songs are great too. In my experience I was listening to these songs before I was even aware I was listening to them so they are the easiest for me to recall the melody to. Then once you can hear the melody of the song in your head, you then try to find the notes on the harmonica. This is one of the best exercises for increasing neuroplasticity and building brain power, which is a great added bonus. Mitch has a whole section that you’ve probably seen specifically on ear training, which is such a cool resource!

And then the last and most important bit of information I will share is to find ways to make playing fun! 🤩 🎶 Whether I am playing with a metronome or playing along with a song on the radio I try to challenge myself and make it like a game and see how long and well I can stay on rhythm or I like to look at ear training and figuring out the melody of a song like cracking a code or solving a puzzle… and I get SO excited when I finally figure it out!

I think it’s really great that you’re reaching out on the forum for support for him… that’s a cool dad! And good luck Neil 🎶👏🏼

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