If you need to update your pop repertoire, there are several new worthy publications. Vanderbilt Editions has published two new arrangements by Heather Hills, a recent graduate of Indiana University. Her classical training is evident in her use of the full range of the instrument and frequent pedal changes. She offers two beautiful, romantic songs for the intermediate level player.

Add some pop: Ten Minutes Ago
Love song from the classic movie Cinderella.

“Ten Minutes Ago” is a love song from Cinderella by Rodgers and Hammerstein. Hills adorns her arrangement mostly with glisses and harmonics. The left hand frequently goes above the right to provide embellishments, and some of these are easier to read than others. For example, in measures 54 and 104, she uses a treble clef sign on the lower staff to indicate the notes that are played much higher on the harp with the left hand. In other measures such as 36, 44, 62, 66, 112, and 116, she writes the notes in the bass clef and marks them 8va. It seems easier to read clef changes quickly than to find the notes an octave higher than where they are written. Regardless of your preference, consistency in the style of writing would improve the readability. There were also two measures—47 and 97—where the pedal changes achieve a G major glissando although the measure has a D7 chord and the dominant seventh gliss sounds a little better. She does use a D7 glissando in measures 16 and 23 after a D7 chord.

Add some pop: People Will Say We're In Love
Another Rodgers and Hammerstein favorite with lyrics included in the score.

She has also arranged another Rodgers and Hammerstein love song, “People Will Say We’re in Love” from Oklahoma! This is similar in style to her other arrangement but slightly more difficult. Some fingering is suggested on this piece. The page turns are awkward, and adjusting the layout could have made them less daunting. There is an error on the final chord where the third octave G is written in both hands and was probably meant to be a third-octave B in the right hand.

On both pieces all the pedal changes are clearly marked in the center of the staff. In addition, the lyrics are included in the body of the music, and the notes are written in layers that clearly separate the accompaniment from the melody. So, if you’re not familiar with either of these songs, you’ll have no problem bringing out the melody.

In spite of a few suggestions for adjustments that might be caught by having another harpist proofread the music before going to press, these are both nice arrangements. We will undoubtedly be seeing more from this talented young arranger.

Add some pop: When You Say You Love Me
Includes chord symbols for easy embellishment.

Sylvia Woods is another arranger who understands the importance of recognizing and emphasizing the melody. In her recent publication of “When You Say You Love Me” she instructs the player to “be sure that the melody is always prominent…you can use the lyrics to determine which notes are part of the melody.” To that end, she includes the lyrics in the body of the music, and this definitely helps with interpretation.

Notation is included for both lever and pedal harp. Pedal changes are below the staff, and both diamond-shaped notes and wording indicate lever changes. Fingering is provided where it is most helpful. The chord symbols are also included making it easier for the more advanced player to embellish the arrangement if desired. There are six pages, and it is just a little shorter than the recording made popular by Josh Groban. It is reasonably easy to play and, like the Groban recording, features sixths.

Add some pop: Stay With Me
A Sylvia Woods arrangement of the 2015 Grammy Song of the Year.

Woods also includes the lyrics on another contemporary pop hit, “Stay with Me” by Sam Smith. You might get requests for this tune since it won Song of the Year at the 2015 Grammy Awards.

This arrangement is just four pages in length. There is only one accidental, and even that can be omitted if you need to simplify the arrangement. However, the lever changes are included, and they are not difficult. Intermediate players should be able to sight-read this music. Both are available in either print format or as a PDF download.

Another popular contemporary song is “Thinking Out Loud” by Ed Sheeran. Catherine Rogers has self-published an arrangement for pedal or lever harp. It is just three pages with a D.S. and a repeat. Each page is printed on one side of light beige card stock so you can insert them into plastic sleeves in a gig book.

Add some pop: Thinking Out Loud
Ed Sheeran’s popular song, self-published by Catherine Rogers.

There are no pedal or lever changes in the piece. The left hand accompaniment is primarily octaves, fifths, and sixths. It might sound a little cleaner on the second page if the chords below the melody in the right hand were played on every other note instead of almost every eighth note. Nevertheless, this is relatively easy to play, and it retains the pulse and mimics the strum of the guitar on the original recording.

No fingering is indicated nor are lyrics included. If you are not familiar with this tune, you may not know what notes to emphasize as melody and what notes to play softer as accompaniment. Even without lyrics, this problem could be averted by following Hills’ fine example of putting the accompaniment in a different layer to distinguish it from the melody as in her Rodgers and Hammerstein arrangements. Hopefully, this practice will become standard in pop harp tunes just as it is in most piano music.

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