Music Lesson Marathon: Harmonica

David Kachalon is a singer, visual artist, teacher and harmonica player who runs the continuing education harmonica program at the College of DuPage and also at Harper College in Palatine, IL. He also teaches online on Tunelark. He has taught hundreds of players of all ages to successfully play music and have fun on the harmonica. Playing for over 16 years and teaching for around 9, David focuses on the Filisko Tongue Block Method and the building of a solid foundation of techniques. He has led workshops around the country and taught at SPAH (Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica) for the past four years. David starting out playing in bands during high school, and has played in the Spanish blues band Azul De Noche, the multi-tournament winning jug band Strictly Jug Nuts, the Muscovy Ducks Cajun Harmonica Ensemble, and the Three Kings Harp Trio. He also has an acoustic duo project called Hal and Dave, but mainly spends his time fronting The Frozen Ground Blues Band. They play covers of Chicago blues standards, as well as some original songs around the Chicagoland area. David chooses to play exclusively with the Hohner Marine Band Crossover and Thunderbird harmonicas.

Enamored with traditional styles, Pittsburgh-based harmonica player and singer Charlie Barath plays blues, Americana, folk, and Cajun music. He started his musical journey when he purchased his first Marine Band harmonica in the late 70s and began playing in the traditional Straight Harp style in which the diatonic harmonica was designed to be played. As time progressed, Charlie discovered more paths to travel with his instrument and continues to explore these options today. Blues became a major focus in his playing and performing but he is always delving into other traditional flavors. Charlie stays busy performing with many of the amazing musicians in and around the upper Ohio Valley in duo, trio and band projects, not to mention the occasional solo set. Teaching experience includes a 4+ year stint for Calliope House of Pittsburgh as well as seminars at various events and private lessons for individuals of all levels.

Ronnie Shellist is the consummate entertainer and harmonica teacher. His dynamic playing style ranges from soulful to blistering and everything in between. As a teacher, he has a gift for giving the student exactly what they need to progress and develop their own style whether you are a day one beginner or an advanced player. Ronnie Shellist is a Hohner Artist and plays Marine Band Deluxe, Crossover, Special 20 and Rocket Harmonicas.

Ever since moving to New-York City from his hometown Paris, France, composer and educator Yvonnick Prené has fast become one of the rising stars in the harmonica world. He has recorded with top Jazz artists like Scott Tixier, Pasquale Grasso, Peter Bernstein and toured in the USA, Europe and Africa. Prené is an endorser of Hohner harmonicas. Prené runs the New York Harmonica School where he instructs New Yorkers on how to play the harmonica, with an emphasis on blues and jazz. He has performed and recorded with a wide range of artists, including Donald Brown, Klingande, Romeo Santos, Rich Perry, Steve Cardenas, Jon Cowherd, Vic Juris, Peter Bernstein, and Chris Potter among many others. Prené has played major jazz clubs in New York City including the Blue Note, The Iridium, Dizzy’s Club, Birdland, The Jazz Gallery and Smalls. He has also toured world-wide and has performed most noteworthy jazz festivals including Bern Jazz Festival (Switzerland), Festival Emoi du Jazz (Ivory Coast), Lamentin Jazz Festival (Martinique), SPAH Harmonica Fest 2019 (Tulsa), Hyde Park Jazz Festival (Chicago) and Jazz Sur Seine Festival (Paris). He is currently based in Brooklyn, New York.

Legendary for his dirty tone and scorching technique, Dennis Gruenling is an unstoppable force. Dennis’s bona fides impressively include winning Best Modern Blues Harmonica Player three years in a row by Real Blues Magazine and Blues Music Award for Instrumentalist – Harmonica. Currently Dennis performs worldwide with the Nick Moss Band who recently won the Traditional Blues Album of the Year for their exemplary album “Lucky Guy”. As the owner of Bad Ass Harmonica company, the leading purveyor of vintage harmonica microphones, Dennis is known throughout the world as the expert in amplifying harmonicas. Dennis is a Hohner Artist and plays Marine Band Crossover Harmonicas.

Boaz Kim is a harmonica teacher and performer based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His love of the harmonica is shared with his grandfather, who played for homesick US troops during the Korean War, and with his father, who taught 12 year old Boaz the single note basics. Boaz soon started to imitate classic Chicago Blues recordings on his diatonic. While finishing his Music Education degree, he began a chromatic approach that has led to many recording sessions and performances, most notably at a Phillies baseball game and at the SPAH harmonica conferences. Since then, his repertoire has expanded to chromatic, chord, and bass harmonicas playing in various genres. When not performing or teaching, he repairs and customizes harmonicas for clients around the globe. In 2021, Boaz Kim has proudly joined the legendary Hohner team as a performing artist.

Nic Clark is the emerging star of the Colorado blues harmonica scene. He began playing harmonica at 12 years old and took to it immediately. As a student of Ronnie Shellist his technique and personal style has been honed to take the world by storm. Nic Clark is a Hohner Harmonica Artist. Nic’s lesson is for Day 1 Beginners. No experience is necessary, but all participants will need a harmonica in the key of C.