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Tuesday, 27 June 2006
Yo 'cause there isn't anything more gangsta than a Harp
Topic: Music Reviews
This is my 8th grade Harp Project WOOT!
It got 105/100
The harp is the oldest known string instrument. Paintings were found featuring the harp as early as the 13th century B.C.E at Thebes. It has many different forms depending on where you are. The harp was very popular in Ireland during the 9th century. It was so popular it became their national symbol. During the 15th century the harp was being made in three parts: sound box, neck, and pillar. It is still being made this way. The harp has 3 main different types the folk harp, lever harp, and the pedal harp, which is the current type.
The folk harp is small to medium sized and is made for traditional music. It rages from two to six octaves and uses levers to change the pitch. The common folk harp has 33 strings. It has two octaves below middle C and two and a half above. The strings are made of nylon, gut, or metal core. It is plucked using a similar technique to the pedal harp. At the top of every string is a lever. When it is raised the pitch is raised a semitone.
The lever harp started to appear in the second half of the 17th century. The player could tune a hook against an individual string to raise the pitch a half note. Lever harps are often tuned to B flat. Using this scheme the major keys can be reached by only changing lever positions. This was much easier than re-tuning any strings. Blades and Hooks perform the same function as levers, but use a different method.
The pedal harp or the concert harp is very large. It is designed for classical music and it can be played solo or as a part of an ensemble in symphony orchestras. It has a total of six and a half octaves usually 47 strings, weighs eighty pounds, and is approximately 6 feet high and 4 feet wide. The octaves range from 3 and a half below middle C and three and a half above. The pressure of the strings on the sound board is about a ton. The lower strings are made of copper nylon, the middle strings gut, and the highest of nylon.
The pedal harp uses the action of pedals to change the pitch of the strings. There is one pedal for each note for a total of seven. When you move the pedal with your foot the small wheels on the top rotate. The wheels are studded with two pegs which pinch the string while they turn. Thus shortening the vibration length of the string.
Another type of Harp is the Gaelic wire strung harp. This metal strung harp has a bell-like sound and is prized for its sweetness. The wire-strung harp goes back prior to the 11th century. The Maedoc Book Shrine of Ireland shows a harper with a triangular framed harp with a T-section in the pillar. The type of wire used in these harps are iron, brass, silver, and gold. There are only three pre 16th century examples that survive today. They are the Trinity College harp in Ireland, and the Queen Mary and Lamont harps in Scotland.
Dennis Hempson was the last of the harpers to play with the old style of using the fingernails to pluck while the finger pads are used to damp. He was also one of the last to use his left hand in the treble. He died in the early 19th century. Since the 1970s the tradition has been revived. Most notably Ann Heymann has pioneered in reviving the tradition by playing the instrument as well as studying manuscripts in the Trinity College Library. As performers have became more interested in it harp makers have begun to build wire string harps.
Another type of harp is the Double harp. It consists of two rows of diatonic strings one on each side of the neck. The strings run parallel to each other. They often have a lever for every string. The reason they have two rows of strings allows the harpists left and right hands to occupy the same notes without having both hands to attempt to play the same string. It also allows for special effects that the regular harp cannot do.
The Welsh harp has three rows of parallel strings. The difference from the double harp is that it has a center row of chromatic strings called sharps. To play a sharp the harpist reaches in between the rows and plucks the center string. Also the Welsh harp has no levers.
Harp players use all there fingers except there pinky. To make the notation of fingering easier each finger is given a number. They are as follow: 1 for the thumb, 2 for the index finger, 3 for the middle finger, and 4 for the ring finger. Most types of harps only require the use of hands but the pedal harp requires the use of feet.
There are two main methods of the classical harp technique, the French method and the Salzedo method. Neither of them has a definite majority among harpists. The French method advocates lowered elbows, fluid wrists and the right arm wrapped lightly around the soundboard. The Salzedo method features elbows remain parallel to the ground, wrists are stiff and neither arm touches the soundboard.
The harp is sparingly used in most classical music usually for special effects. It is also used for operas. Modern composers utilize the harps frequently because the pedals on the harp allows for many sorts of non diatonic tones.
One of the most famous Harpists is Adolph Marx, he was born on November 23, 1888. He was part of the comedy group 'The Marx Brothers' who achieved much success in films. His trademark was that he never talked in any of the films. His nickname was Harpo because he played the harp. He taught himself how to play the harp and played it in an unusual manner. He played with an idiosyncratic tuning of the strings. His fame drew many musicians to learn his style of playing. He married actress Susan Fleming in 1936 and they adopted four children. He would later die after open heart surgery in 1964.
One of the most famous pieces of music featuring the harp is Musetta's Waltz from the opera La Boheme. La Boheme is an opera of four acts by Giacomo Puccini. The premiere of the opera was performed on February 1st 1896. It is one of the most performed operas today. It is also the basis for many musicals. Puccini was born in 1858. He studied the piano and organ in Lucca and in 1880 entered the Milan Conservatory. He gained recognition with the one act opera Le Villi. Puccini is known as the last great Italian Composer.
The harp can be a very rewarding instrument since every note sounds good but there are many problems. A student should pick a teacher that teaches the type of music they want to play. The main problem is the cost. The cheapest real harp is 8000 dollars. You must also learn how to tune. Luckily harpsts can use an electronic tuner. Which makes the process much easier. Harps melt at 60 degrees Celsius, so dont keep them in a car on a sunny day.
Posted by ttfansite
at 11:37 AM EDT
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