My Harp

From sparkling high notes to ringing bass, my harp's voice fills a room with enchantment. The FH36-B, made by Dusty Strings of Seattle, has become a very popular harp among performers and recording artists, and those made of wenge (an African rosewood) have a delicious richness of tone. With its nearly-black wenge body, and gleaming white soundboard, this kind of harp has been dubbed the "tuxedo harp" at Dusty Strings—even its visual presence adds elegance to an event.

Standing 4'6'' tall, with 36 strings, this is one of the largest of folk harps, with a full tone and the volume to fill a large room. Its sound, though, is unmistakably that of the nylon-strung folk harp—bright and resonant.

Harp History

Harps have existed all over the world since prehistoric times, in many different shapes and sizes, made from different kinds of wood, strung with different materials, played with different techniques. The Celtic countries—along with all of Europe—had highly developed harp traditions in the Middle Ages. Stories and poems tell us highly esteemed court harpers (in Ireland, they were the only musicians with noble status) who accompanied praise poetry and played brilliant solos. In Ireland and Scotland, the wire-strung harp was played with the fingernails, damping all but a few notes to take advantage of its extraordinary ring. In Wales, harps were strung with gut or horsehair, and played with a different technique. Unfortunately, we have no recordings, and very little evidence about medieval techniques, but scholars are working to reconstruct these early instruments and their tunes.

In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, as musical styles changed, the orchestral or "pedal" harp was developed. By working foot pedals, harpists could change keys and play chromatic music—a feat beyond the capabilities of earlier harps. Harps were also made larger and strung with higher tension in order to be heard in a symphony orchestra. These are the instruments most people picture when they hear the word harp—six feet high, and often gilded—and there are excellent harpists playing and recording with these harps today.

With the folk music revival in the 1960s and ‘70s, though, came an interest in smaller harps to play traditional music—and so the "Celtic harp" experienced its own revival. Interest in Celtic music has grown, and the harp now fills many different roles as a solo instrument and in bands from traditional to rock. Meanwhile, the folk harp has branched out from Celtic music, and absorbed elements from the vibrant Latin American harp tradition and the early music scene. The improved design of sharping levers (levers at the top of each string which flip up to raise the tone one half-step) has made it possible to play more Classical, jazz, and pop music on what are now often called "lever harps."

Bibliography & Links

For the history of the harp see:

• Roslyn Rensch, Harps and Harpists (Indiana University Press, 1989)
• Joan Rimmer, The Irish Harp: Cláirseach na hÉireann. (Mercier Press, 1984)

To purchase a harp or harp music, visit:

• Sylvia Woods Harp Center
• Melody's Traditional Music and Harp Shoppe

To find other harpers/harpists & harp-related sites:

• The Harp Page
• The International Society of Folk Harpers and Craftsmen
• The Harp Column