Harp and Soprano Repertoire

[Hannah White]

Any good arrangements/compositions for harp and advanced soprano? Any genre! Looking to put together a recital and just working on getting a program compiled now.

[Elizabeth Volpé Bligh]

Fleur des Blés by Debussy for soprano and piano can work on the harp. There’s a charming lullaby by Herbert Hughes for soprano and harp called Little Boats. Five Greek Melodies for voice and piano by Ravel, and transcribed for voice and harp by Salzedo with Ravel’s approval. The Nightingale by Deborah Henson Conant has a vocal part.If you google soprano and harp, various youtube videos come up that might give you some ideas.

[Hannah White]

Wonderful, thanks for all the suggestions!

[carl-swanson]

Marcel Tournier set 5 songs for voice and harp. Only one of them, le lettre du jardiniere (The Gardner’s letter) has been available consistantly since it was first issued. The others were available for a short time in the 1930’s to the 1950’s, but then disappeared. Tournier went back to 4 of the songs years after he wrote them and added string quartet parts. I have found two of the songs that he wrote string parts for (Le letter du jardininiere, and Reverie du Bouddha). They are both drop-dead gorgeous. I found the one song that he did not add string part to (le lettre d’enfant à Noel). I’m still looking for the last 2 songs: Elle est venue… Ella as souri, and Insomnie. If anyone knows where they are, or has copies, please contact me. I’m hoping eventually to publish an edition of all 5 songs.

I just tried to upload a sound file of the Gardener’s letter, but it seems to be too big. If you want to hear it, send me a private email and I will send you the file to listen to.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by carl-swanson.
• This reply was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by carl-swanson.

[Elizabeth Volpé Bligh]

I had forgotten the Tournier La Lettre du Jardinier! I performed it years ago. Also, there is a nice suite of songs (poems by different authors) by Haim Permont called Songs of Love and Remembrance. It was performed at the World Harp Congress in 2011. Schumann wrote some songs in which the part can be played on harp: Die Tochter Jepthas, Dem Helden, and An den Mond. Serenade Florentine by Duparc also works on harp.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by Elizabeth Volpé Bligh.

[Hannah White]

Great thanks! Do you have any of the harp/voice for the others, or just the one that is available on harp.com ( Tournier La Lettre du Jardinier, which is gorgeous. Just listened to it ).

[Elizabeth Volpé Bligh]

I forgot to mention my own arrangements of The Lark in the Clear Air and Belle Virginie which are on Harp Column Music!

[Hannah White]

Thanks!

[Saul Davis Zlatkovski]

There is a huge amount of repertoire, you just have to search and search. There are arias for voice and harp from a number of operas. I have never seen a comprehensive list of them.

[Alison]

and The Owl and the Pussycat, great composition by Sue Rothstein on Edward Lear’s poem (which I read to a 5 year old recently).

[Veronika]

I’d love to sing some Bach accompanied by harp. Ideas, anyone, please?

[Alison]

I came across this too:
https://goodmorningbritten.wordpress.com/category/listening-to-britten/

Listening to Britten – Bird Scarer’s Song
Listening to Britten – The False Knight upon the Road
Listening to Britten – Dafydd Y Garreg Wen (David of the White Rock)
Listening to Britten – Bugeilio’r Gwenith Gwyn (I was lonely and forlorn)
Listening to Britten – Bonny at Morn (with harp)
Listening to Britten – Lemady
Listening to Britten – She’s like the swallow
Listening to Britten – Lord! I Married Me A Wife
Listening to Britten – A Birthday Hansel, Op.92

and more……..

[Elizabeth Volpé Bligh]

Oh, yes, Britten wrote some wonderful, but very difficult music. I played A Birthday Hansel with a soprano and it was very challenging for both the singer and the harpist. But it is great music!

[Alesha Orton]

“Song to the Moon” by Dvorak is so beautiful. He wrote it for orchestra, but the harp is predominant. I found the arranged for harp and voice about two years ago online. I can’t remember where I downloaded it from— maybe harp column music, I’m not sure. It’s in Czech, but I think there is an English translation.
If you want to listen first, try Lucia Popp singing it, search on YouTube.

Cossack Lullaby…. I also can’t remember where I found the arrangement but it’s the arrangement that was made for Aida Garifullina (search for her SJ gong this— SO beautiful! This arrangement is very special. I’ve never seen an arrangement that amplifies the meaning of the words to this degree. I don’t know the name of the arranger and I wish arranging for harp and voice is all they would ever do. Lol. It’s in Russian, check out the history of the lyrics and song because it’s pretty amazing.

I am training for classical soprano and I’m also a beginner at the pedal harp. I can imagine me visiting this thread many times. :). I know I will need to learn to arrange.

[Alesha Orton]

To give credit, I went looking for names. The arrangement of Song to the Moon is by Elizabeth Volpe Bligh and is here at Harp Column Music.

The magical arrangement of Cossack Lullaby is by Evan Evan Booyens and I found it on m.free-scores.com

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