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Top half blows, bottom half draws.

Hold a reed to blow or draw it. To bend, drag a draw note down — or a high blow note up — into the notes marked beside it. On a keyboard, ↓ sets a bend for the keys.

SongsMo Li Hua · Jasmine Flower (茉莉花)
Play a different song (34)

2 more songs need notes this instrument does not have. Changing the key brings some of them into reach.

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  1. 8
  2. 8
  3. 9
  4. -10
  5. 10
  6. 10
  7. -10
  8. 9
  9. 9
  10. -10
  11. 9
  12. 8
  13. 8
  14. 9
  15. -10
  16. 10
  17. 10
  18. -10
  19. 9
  20. 9
  21. -10
  22. 9
  23. 9
  24. 9
  25. 9
  26. 8
  27. 9
  28. -10
  29. -10
  30. 9
  31. 8
  32. -8
  33. 8
  34. 9
  35. 8
  36. -8
  37. 7
  38. 7
  39. -8
  40. 7
  41. 8
  42. -8
  43. 7
  44. 8
  45. -8
  46. 8
  47. 9
  48. -10
  49. 10
  50. 9
  51. -8
  52. 8
  53. 9
  54. -8
  55. 8
  56. 7
  57. -6
  58. 6
  59. -6
  60. 7
  61. -8
  62. 8
  63. 7
  64. -8
  65. 7
  66. -6
  67. 6
  68. ·
  69. ·

Chinese traditional, Jiangsu region; the tune dates to the Qianlong era (1735–1796) and was first printed in the West in 1804. Public domain.

20 reeds · 10 holes · 12 bent notes · C harmonica · Every reed on the piano’s pitch. Melodies sound the way you expect; chords beat a little.

Tap a reed, or slide along the holes to run through the notes in one breath. On a keyboard the letters on the reeds are the ones to press — the number row blows holes 1 to 10 and the row under it draws them.

HarmonicaFree · printable · plays in your browser

Mo Li Hua (Jasmine Flower) — Harmonica Tabs

Mo Li Hua · Jasmine Flower (茉莉花), written out for the harmonica as hole-by-hole tab with every blow, draw and bend and set up above on the Equal tuning, an octave higher. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time — the harmonica waits for you — or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes67, 8 pitches
  • RangeG5–C7
  • Key hereC major
  • Tempo84 bpm · about 40 s
  • LevelIntermediate

Can a harmonica play Mo Li Hua (Jasmine Flower)?

Yes — every one on this page plays it. The check is made note by note against what each one can actually sound. Where the tune does not fit as the library writes it, another key or octave is tried, and the table says which; where nothing fits, it names the notes that are missing.

  • Equal tuning↕ Plays, movedPlayed an octave higher: C major, G5–C7 · loaded above
  • Just tuning↕ Plays, movedPlayed an octave higher: C major, G5–C7 · load it

Mo Li Hua (Jasmine Flower): harmonica tabs

The large line is the hole — a minus means draw, each apostrophe a semitone of bend; the small line under it is the note it sounds. A dash holds the note another beat, an underline is half a beat, and a dot beside a note makes it half as long again. Each line is one phrase.

▶ Play it above

Mo Li Hua · Jasmine Flower (茉莉花) — harmonica tabs (Equal tuning) · tonalics.com

The 8 notes it uses

Lowest to highest, with how many times each is played. Learn these 8 and you can play the whole tune.

  • 6G5×2
  • -6A5×3
  • 7C6×8
  • -8D6×9
  • 8E6×14
  • 9G6×17
  • -10A6×9
  • 10C7×5

What to expect on a harmonica

  • It runs from G5 to C7, an octave and a fourth, using 8 different notes. Its top note is the highest this instrument has.
  • 62% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a fourth, C7 to G6, at note 50.
  • 46 of its 67 notes are blown and 21 drawn, in holes 6 to 10.
  • No bends: every note is a plain blow or draw.
  • The breath changes direction 40 times.

About the tune

A folk song from the Jiangsu region dating to the Qianlong era of the 18th century. It was the first Chinese melody to become widely known in Europe, printed in London in 1804 by John Barrow, and Puccini used it throughout his opera Turandot.

Chinese traditional, Jiangsu region; the tune dates to the Qianlong era (1735–1796) and was first printed in the West in 1804. Public domain. More about Mo Li Hua (Jasmine Flower) →

Mo Li Hua (Jasmine Flower) on other instruments

The same melody, in each instrument’s own notation. It is not offered for the handpan or ocarina, which do not have the notes.

More songs for the harmonica

All 36 harmonica songs · Christmas songs for harmonica · The online harmonica on its own

Playing it on a real harmonica?

If it sounds wrong, check the instrument before the notes. The harmonica tuner listens through your microphone and names what each note is actually sounding.

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