The Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica

The Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica (SPAH) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation dedicated to players of the harmonica. Organized as a club, SPAH has members worldwide, though the majority of the members are located in the United States. Members include both harmonica players, ranging from beginners of all ages to professional musicians, and enthusiasts who love the harmonica but do not play it.

In pursuit of its mission to preserve and advance the harmonica, SPAH engages in several activities:

The objectives of the organization are to "cultivate, develop, improve, foster, promote, preserve and advance the harmonica and harmonica playing."

SPAH was founded in October 1962 by Earl Collins Jr. (1924-1988), who began by taking out advertisements in newspapers in the Detroit area, looking for harmonica players with whom to meet. The idea for SPAH came from the early results of these ads.

SPAH was incorporated on October 23, 1963. It is based in Troy, Michigan, United States.

Early SPAH events were evening concerts. Over time, SPAH events grew to two days, and eventually to the present five-day convention.

The SPAH magazine, Harmonica Happenings, was first published in 1967.

For several years, the SPAH convention was held in the Detroit area, organized by SPAH members and officials who resided in the area. Starting in 1996, SPAH began working with other local clubs to stage the SPAH convention in additional locations, beginning with Saint Louis, Missouri. Since then, the SPAH convention has been held in Denver, Colorado (twice); Saint Louis (multiple times); Columbus, Ohio; Kansas City, Missouri; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Sacramento, California; Virginia Beach, Virginia; and Irving, Texas (twice).

To execute its mission to preserve and advance the harmonica, SPAH engages in several activities

Through print and the internet, SPAH helps promote harmonica activities.

Every year in the month of August, SPAH organizes and presents a five-day convention in a city in the United States, in coordination with a local harmonica club. The SPAH convention is usually held in a hotel near an airport and major highways, and features daytime seminars and jam sessions, open mic stages, afternoon and evening concerts, a teaching event for local children, a free-form teach-in, a vendor room populated by harmonica manufacturers and vendors, crafters, builders, and customizers; builders of harmonica accessories and electronics. Tours are organized for those who wish to take in the local sights, and sometimes offsite events are staged in coordination with the convention.

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