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From: theo~X.NETCOM.COM (Jimbeau)
Date: Fri, 27 Jun 1997 16:52:18 -0500 (CDT)
Subject: Re: What is it?

Paula wrote:

>My boyfriend found an old harmonica when he was visiting his parents and
>brought it home for me. . . It has the "Opera made in US
>Zone Germany" written on the coverplate.

>So... my questions are:
>
>What kind of harmonica is it?

Sound like it's either a tremelo-tuned or octave-tuned diatonic -- probably tremelo
judging from what you say (vibrato).

>What is US zone Germany?

Right after World War II, Germany was occupied by 4 armies: US, British, French, and
Soviet Union. This label indicates that it was manufactured probably in the late
1940s. Probably Trossignen (spelling?), home of Hohner, fell into the US zone.

My guess is that your boyfriend had a relative who served in the Army in that time
period and was stationed in Europe, which was a nasty time as far as the East-West
Cold War, and bought that harp in Germany and brought it home when he returned.

It's also possible that it was exported for sale to the US, and, to play down
anti-German sentiments prevalent after the war, was labelled as US Zone Germany to
make it sound more American.

>Can I throw it in a glass of water with a denture tablet to clean it?

The fragile type of wooden comb these harps use, plus the fact that it has probably
been stored in a very dry environment for as long as 50 years, makes wetting it a
bad idea. It will probably warp or even crack if it gets wet and then dries out
again.

>Is there a different way to play it? I already have figured out that
>each hole makes two distict sounds.

Depends on how it's tuned. Some tremelo harps are tuned diatonic, which allow them
to be play in cross harp and other positions. These diatonics are "moved" over one
hole -- that is, rather than the first blow note being C, instead it's E. This also
moves your G from the second draw hole to the first draw hole.

In any case, these harps are better suited for playing folk-tune melodies rather
than blues because they really can't be used for bending without some innovative
tongue blocking techniques.

Perhaps Rick Epping can shed some more light on this.

Jimbeau