Help - The Cross harp key riddle - can anyone help?

I play in a weird tuning which I think may be open A flat to suit my voice.

My A harp works when I play blues starting at the third fret.

But I cant find a harp to work when I play starting from open position (open A flat I'm guessing?)

(basically it's open type D configuration of notes,  but up a few semi tones etc)

So logically if an A harp works when I start playing blues on the third fret, you would think an G harp may work on the open position, but it doesn't.

I think if I may be possibly playing in A flat hence would I hence need a F sharp harp, which I don't have.

Does this make sense to anyone and can they advise, bearing in mind I don't know the actual tuning?

It's a head twisting riddle I know, can anyone help?

(other than get a tuner out an figure out what open tuning it is)

Thanks for any help I can get

pic below has nothing to do with this blog..lol

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Comment by TN Twang on August 28, 2015 at 9:03am

Ron,

Thanks for the link. It's been years since I worried about this stuff and the chart is a great help. (Although, reasonable people should be warned about looking at it and trying to think about all the possibilities.)

In fairness, I believe I've heard "cross harp" used as a generic term for all of the (2 or 3?) blues variants for diatonic harmonica.

I didn't argue with Bug's use of an A harp to play in B. If you're drawing in on it, you'll get E, G#, B, and D. The chord doesn't fit the key, but isolated notes do. If you sit on the B and D, you've got (most of) a I chord with a minor 3rd. E, G#, and B give you a IV chord; and lotsa' hardcore blues never really hit a V chord anyway. Add to that, you can blow on it and get a nice A chord which is a major triad on the flat 7--good for sexy freight train effects. In theory, it could be done this way.

Bug, could we call this "Bug" tuning--to go with "cross" and "slant"?

TN

Comment by Ron "Oily" Sprague on August 28, 2015 at 8:50am
It's that thingy hanging off the head of yer neck, hehehe
Comment by BUGGY (C) on August 28, 2015 at 7:16am
It ended up as an A harp don't ask why
F sharp didn't work...

Haven't found my tuber yet..!
Comment by Ron "Oily" Sprague on August 28, 2015 at 6:51am
Delete Comment
Nope. Cross harp is the fourth, not the seventh, interval above your root note, with the root being counted as 1. "Slant" harp is the seventh above your root note. If you're sure you're playing an open Ab (check it with yer tuner, we all know you have one ;-) ), then your cross harp is a C# (or Db, as some would have it). Here's a handy guide for straight, cross and slant harp keys:

http://www.bluesharmonicas.com/cross.htm
Comment by BUGGY (C) on August 26, 2015 at 11:08am
Thanks lee Oskar doe f sharp and so do Sydel
Make f sharp harps
You can also get a low f sharp
Thanks for the help
Plan to try one let's hope it's right...
Comment by TN Twang on August 25, 2015 at 10:02am

If an A harp works with the 3rd fret, then an F# (or G-flat) harp should work with open position. Trouble is, I don't believe I've ever seen an F# or G-flat harp. Try tuning yer guitar to A instead of A-flat; suck it up and make your voice go a half step higher; and use a G harp (which is fairly common).

Sorry, but that's the best I can come up with...

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