J.D. McKay
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Music!

Aside from being an author, I'm also a musician and music teacher.
Piano and Saxophone as a kid got me started, but finding guitar as a teenager was magic. 

I lost track of my music for years after a car accident, but I've come back to it as a singer and harmonica player!

I've long been more of a "music to feed my soul" person, but I enjoy performing and working with others. You can see some of my recent performances below. 

I've found a new passion over the last year as head teacher with Empower Through Music, teaching youth with physical and mental challenges and finding accessible ways for them to find their musical voice. 
​(Click for a video explaining the program) ​
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"The Flame"

Click to check out a live performance of my newest song!

Harmonica Reference Notebook

The Harmonica is one of the most intuitive instruments out there. Breathe, and you make pleasant sounds. 

When I dove into this instrument, I found a variety of tunings and setups to explore, and resources scattered around the internet. I'd buy a notebook, print and copy references to glue in, fill the notebook and have to do it again.

So I put together​ this reference book. 40 pages of references, starting with the circle of 5ths and harmonica position selection chart, followed by Scales in various positions, note layouts, and scales for a variety of tunings.

Finally, 60 pages for notes. I mixed in pages for planning songs, pages with mixed harmonica tab paper and staff paper.

Available now through amazon, but I'm also giving away a pdf of the booklet if you just want to print the reference charts. This version only includes one page of tab paper to keep the file small, but you can print as many as you want. If you're downloading the book free, I'd appreciate an Amazon review to help the algorithm push the book out to people who might find it helpful!

Finally, copyright applies, so please don't distribute the PDF to others without permission, direct them to this website.
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Buy on Amazon
Download free PDF

If you don't wish to buy the book, but want to thank me for the work, consider donating to Empower
Through Music. We work with neurodivergent and disable youth to bring adaptive tech and modified instruments to help them find their music!
https://www.empowerthroughmusic.org/make-a-donation


Here are a few of my recent performances with friends!

You can spend hundereds of dollars on a harmonica and it comes nearly perfect from the factory. Or
you can spend $20-$60 and it'll do. But there's plenty of ways to take a cheap harmonica and make it play waaaay out of it's league. Here's me attempting to do so.

Create your own backing track in minutes with Garage Band for IOS!

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  • Home
  • Mr. Yoyothrower
    • Yoyo Tutorials and Lessons
  • Books
    • The Duck: How to Make The Pay
    • The Anti-Vax ABCs
    • How To Run A Boutique Yoyo Business
  • Music
  • About
  • Contact