Women Who Play Harmonica

These incredible woman harmonica players speak for themselves. I could blah… blah on all day about how much I love their soulfulness but I’m going to let their harmonica playing speak for itself.

Christelle Berthon

I guess if I was asked to pick a favorite woman harmonica player, Christelle would be a candidate for the crown:

‘Big Mama’ Thornton

Willie Mae (Big Mama) Thornton is probably the most highly recognized blues harmonica player of all time.

An amazing but little known fact is that she was the original artist who recorded “Hound Dog”. Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller wrote the song exclusively for Big Mama, but, of course, it was popularized later by Elvis Presley who turned it into a huge hit. Check this out Big Mama singing with conviction on this live recording:

Madonna – Say What?!

Madonna? No way. Can she actually play harmonica? I love to hear your verdict in the comments section below. I actually really don’t know if she can play or not and I decided not spoil the fun researching the issue. But I would love to hear your thoughts. She’s definitely more than musically talented enough to play the harmonica but whether she really does is another question.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UdB60lCIc4

Why the heck has Harmonica been such a male dominated instrument?

Truth is… I don’t know. I’ve been confused about this since the day I picked up harmonica. Women are not known for having less musical talent or wind power than men.

After doing a bit of research, I was delighted to find out there are quite a few woman who can blow with the best ’em.

Nothing is more sexy to me than a woman of any age who is fully in her power…authentically expressing her soul and owning the spot light.

Here’s a quick list of the some of the greats.

Sandra Vazquez, Geneva Red, Kat Baloun, Mildred Mulcay, Cheryl Arena, Big Nancy, Kellie Rucker, Tracy K, Sandra Vazquez, Wildsang, Octavia, Annie Raines, Louise Hoffsten, Maria Coyote, Mattie Phifer, Roxy Perry, Trina Hamlin, Beth Kohnen, Lynn Ann Hyde, Heidi Newfield … the list actually goes on and on…