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Most players of the chromatic harmonica if they were asked what is the least reliable feature of the instrument, would probably name the slide. It sticks, it clicks, it leaks and it generally misbehaves at any given opportunity. Perhaps valves [AKA windsavers] would come a close second, but if there were some way to get rid of the slide assembly, the valves would be a lot less necessary, as the whole instrument would be a lot more airtight. It would also be possible to play it in a rack, as you would no longer need your hands to push the button.

Well, there are chromatic harmonicas that do not have slides or valves. For a start, there are the Polyphonia and Chromatica types. These are either all-blow instruments, or the draw notes and blow notes in each hole are the same pitch. Each adjacent hole contains a reed one semitone higher than the reed to its left. Although there have been a few talented players who are able to utilize them well, they are mostly relegated to the role of special effects instruments [often being used to accompany a cartoon character falling downstairs!], as melodic phrases are quite difficult to play cleanly. Besides which, I think the only instruments of this type currently in production are the Hohner 263 Chromatica and the Tombo Glissando. [You may be lucky to pick up an old Chromatica 261 or 262, or the Polyphonia V, VI or VII at a garage sale, or perhaps on eBay.]

Related to the Polyphonia and Chromatica types is what I call the simple wholetone harmonica. In this instrument, adjacent notes are tuned a wholetone apart and draw reeds are tuned a semitone higher than the corresponding blow reeds. This layout has several advantages, but as there are currently no commercially made models like this, there's not too much point in discussing them here.

Then there are the Pipe Horn harmonicas made by Tombo. These are all-blow instruments with two rows of holes, laid out somewhat like a piano keyboard. The lower row plays the notes of the C major scale and the upper row adds "the black notes" [but not the E# and B# like the solo tuned standard chromatic]. They are made in Alto and Soprano models, as well as what Tombo call a Contrabass, although it is actually a baritone instrument. They are extremely well made instruments that are used quite a bit in the Far East, but which are somewhat expensive and quite hard to find over this side of the world. Suzuki have recently introduced the SS-37 Soprano Single and the AS-37 Alto Single which are essentially the same basic idea as Tombo's Pipe Horn harmonicas [see this page for reviews of these instruments] and there are also similar Chinese-made instruments.

Hohner also made some some similar instruments as part of their Educator series some years ago, including bass, alto and soprano models [the bass covered the same range as the Tombo Contrabass, the alto and soprano the same ranges as the Suzuki versions]. They are long discontinued, but they sometimes turn up on eBay. The basic idea, however, dates back even further. In 1898, Christian Weiss was awarded German Patent 95610 for such a design, although he placed the sharps and flats on the lower row:

The next option for a slideless chrom is simply to remove the slide assembly from a standard chromatic. I first read about this in Richard Hunter's book "Jazz Harp", where he suggests that the loudest way to play a chromatic is to take off the slide and mouthpiece of a 64. It should be noted that if you do this with any of the currently produced Hohner 64s, you will find that the cross tuning makes it very difficult to play the thing, as the alternating layout of the notes will seem somewhat illogical. Of course, this isn't a problem with older straight tuned 64s, Hering four octave chroms, or standard three octave chromatics. However, you might need to do some smoothing of the exposed surfaces before the instrument is comfortable to play. The basic technique of playing then becomes a matter of learning to play one row of the instrument at a time swapping between the rows as needed to get the sharps and flats. On a regular C chrom, the upper row of holes gives the C major scale and the lower row gives the "slide-in" notes. Some players have experimented with making one-piece mouthpieces to make this playing style a little more comfortable and in 2021, Seydel produced the first commercially made instrument with such a mouthpiece, the Seydel NonSlider:

In Asia, especially Japan, there is a style of harmonica often called "chromatic singles" and are frequently used in music education, as well as in harmonica ensembles. Tombo produce one called the S-50:

This harp covers a three octave range starting on middle C, but Tombo also make one called the Violin Scale 1577, which has an extended range starting from the G below middle C, giving it a compass the same as a violin, although it is not commonly found for sale outside of Japan. Yamaha make make similar instruments including the SS-220, SS-440 and AS-440, the first two covering a three octave C to C range like the Tombo S-50 and the latter covering a range an octave lower. There have also been some Chinese-made chromatic singles, although I am not aware of any that are currently in production.

In all of these harmonicas, each reed is given its own chamber. The lower row covers the C major scale and the upper row the C# major scale [although it doesn't have the repeated Cs and C

s of the typical solo tuning, it does have the E# and B#]. The mouthpiece of these harps is slightly convex and you can switch between rows by tilting the harp very slightly. It takes a little practice to get used to this, but when the Harp Start Scheme was running in the UK, students who started on these harps gained proficiency at least as quickly as those who started on standard slide chromatics. The fact that each reed has its own chamber allows certain things that are impossible on other instruments. If you isolate each reed, you can get bends similar to those obtainable on valved harps, as well as being able to get overblows on all the draw reeds and overdraws on all the blow reeds. Also, if you position your mouth so that you get a C when you blow and a D when you draw, you are able draw bend the D down to Db, just like 4 draw on a blues harp in C. If you now move your mouth so that you still get the D when you draw, but now get the E when you blow, you can blow bend the E down to Eb [see FFAQ16]. Similar possibilities lurk all over the instrument and make it well worth exploring.

A Chinese variation of the slideless chromatic that looks something like an overgrown tremolo harmonica, has been produced under the brand names of Victory, Shanghai and Kaine.Z. The lower row of notes gives the C major scale in a typical tremolo-style layout, however instead of the upper row adding the same notes tuned slightly higher, it adds the sharps and flats.

I have reviewed the Victory Chello here, but again, to the best of my knowledge, there are no examples of this style of harmonica currently in production.

What is the best chromatic harmonica for the money?

The German made Hohner Chromonica 48, Seydel Saxony and the SCX range from Suzuki in Japan tend to be the best selling chromatic harmonicas, and represent excellent value.

What is the most common chromatic harmonica?

The most popular choice is the 12 hole chromatic in C. Alternatively you can try a solo tuned diatonic like the Seydel Orchestra. These are like a mini chromatic harmonicas. Whilst the techniques are very similar in playing most harmonicas the note layout is slightly different.

What is the difference between chromatic and diatonic harmonica?

Diatonic – which only contains the notes of a specific scale [usually a major scale], and is mainly used in Blues, Rock, Country and Pop music. Chromatic – which contains all notes in the chromatic scale, and is mainly used in Jazz and Classical music.

Why do some harmonicas have double holes?

Tremolo Pros Tremolo harmonicas produce a distinctive “beating” sound effect, made possible by vertical double holes each with two reeds, one a little sharp and the other a little flat.