Q&A for How to Bend a Note on Harmonica

Some people find that by holding the harmonica on a small angle in their mouth, they can bend more easily. However, the major factor when bending is the shape of the inside of your mouth. The vowel sound you make doesn't bend the note, rather, the change in air flow and resonance of the inside of your mouth does.

Yes, of course you can. Being able to read music is helpful, but you don't have to learn how if you don't want to.

The purpose of bending a note is to add a special effect to the sound. Different genres have different sounds to them, and bending a note is especially helpful in blues. It will add an effect that mimics wailing or crying in a longing manner.

Sheet music only needs to be followed if the goal mimics the song perfectly. That being said, music does not require or reject anything but allows any and every performance as long as it sounds good.

Yes, any instrument can be used in any genre (i.e. Bela Fleck is a funk-jazz fusion banjo player). However, you must practice diligently to accomplish this. Another consideration is that the harmonica will lend itself more readily to some styles of music than others. Easier kinds are generally going to be based in the blues and the many styles that it influenced while, more difficult: classical pieces that lean on refined sounds, such as from the Romantic period, and styles which avoid gritty sounds like brass, fiddle (not violin), or distortion effects. Regardless, in music anything can be done with enough time and determination.