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Hello, harp friends! I am reviving this “old” blog because it is very interesting to ponder over.
My continuing thoughts about the pedal order include wondering “what was the order of the five-pedal harp?” If one looks at the keyboard, the five sharps (or black-keys) are in the order C-D and F-G-A. It would make sense that this order was used for the five pedals on the harp. When the harp gained seven pedals, then it would make sense for the B to be placed before the C and the E to be placed before the F, giving the order B-C-D, E-F-G-A. Why then was the order reversed on the left side to give D-C-B?
I know that one works from the center outward, and that the half-steps come first (B to C and E to F). If one thinks this way, a better understanding of the current pedal order just makes sense. We all had to learn it that way, and we have to accept it in order to play the pedal harp.
Thanks for bearing with me once more, my friends! Hope all of you are having a great day and Fall season. It is perfectly gorgeous here in our North Carolina mountains!
Best wishes,
BalfourGlad to hear from you, Gretchen! Great news about coping with the hurricane. That was a good point to look at the Sound of Music for the Do-re-mi singing. That has always been one of our favorite movies/musicals.
Another good piece of advice I was often given is “listen and learn!”
Hope all of you are doing well.
Harp hugs,
BalfourGreat posts and advice here! I agree with all of you about charging extra for learning new music for a wedding, especially when the printed music needs to be purchased. I often learn the bride’s request by ear, listening to a YouTube version or some other recording of the piece, but even that can be time-consuming and stressful, since I often do not care for that piece, ha, ha!
Harp hugs,
BalfourHello, Jerusha and all!
Yes, our electricity has been restored! We were only about 22 hours without it, so things were pretty good compared to Florida. We had a lot of tree limbs down with high winds, but no major damage, thank goodness.
Shaped-note singing was (and still is) pretty common here in our mountains. Along with the syllables, Do-Re-Mi-Fa-Sol-La-Si or Ti-Do, shapes are assigned to the notes. Good shaped-note singers can sing a melody just by recognizing the different shapes, even if they are not on a musical staff! One “school” of shaped-note singing used all seven syllables and another used only four syllables, the later being referred to as the “Fa So La” singing. (the fourth syllable was Mi) Collections were called The Sacred Harp and The Southern Harmony, among others. I bet you all could research this further on the Internet; I have not yet tried.
Sylvia, it was great to hear your good news! We hope the Floridians recover soon, thinking of Gretchen and others down there.
Hope you all are having a wonderful day!
Best wishes,
BalfourWell, hello again! Here in western North Carolina we have been dealing with no electric power (fallout from Hurricane Irma!) so no Internet, either! We were so much better off than Florida, I can’t complain. Our best thoughts are with all of you who have been through this dilemma.
Jerusha, yes, I did have to learn solfege, and I agree with Saul, it stays with you and really helps out, especially when playing in different keys or transposing something into a new key. If you ever get a chance to study it, do so by all means. My maternal great-grandfather even taught solfege and shaped-note singing here in our mountains back in the early 1900s. His ancestors were some of the first settlers here, coming from England, Scotland and Ireland.
Well, keep the posts coming! Things are looking sunnier for next week!
Harp Hugs,
BalfourI learned from Henriette Renie’s Method (French), and one of the best pieces of advice was to always remain supple. I think of that every time I get tense over a new piece or difficult section of a piece, and instantly relax.
This is such a great thread, Jerusha and all my harp friends!
Harp Hugs,
Balfour“Clocks” by Coldplay was recently requested as “the groom’s favorite” at a wedding I did a couple of weeks ago. I learned it by ear and did a peppy rendition of it at the appropriate time. The groom and his men loved it!
Such nice responses, my harp friends–thanks! You all know that I prefer the cherry Dusty Strings FH36S above all other lever harps. Check out my testimonial and photo on their website! I love my “Cherie” even more now than when I found her two years ago, if that is possible. Happy harping everyone!
Blessings,
BalfourHi, everyone! Alyson, it was good to see your post. We love having new neighbors who have a two-year-old baby boy. We get to play “grandparents” to this wonderful, cute little child, and we think it does give his sweet parents some rest and variety in their busy schedules.
Harp Hugs,
BalfourThese are all great ideas, my friends! I am one of those harpists who does indeed learn a difficult harp piece first on the PIANO, without having to manage the pedal changes, then I have the piece in my ear before I start it on the actual harp. I think through the pedal changes while I am playing it on the piano (my sweet wife says, “wiggle your toes, ha, ha!”) then it comes easily on the harp except for the C flats, Gretchen, ha, ha! I love to try piano pieces on the harp, too, but sometimes it is just too frustrating and I decide to continue to enjoy “that one” on piano and play more enjoyable pieces on harp. Oh, the joys of being retired, ha, ha!
Harp Hugs,
BalfourHello, Christy and Biagio, and others on this thread! What good postings! I will say here, that after experiencing Lovelands and Camacs, I much prefer the Camacs. To my ears, they sound better, and they press directly into the strings instead of rubbing and “grinding” on them like the Lovelands do, especially on the bass wire strings and the nylon over nylon wrapped ones. I am so glad that Dusty now provides Camac levers on their wonderful harps!
Best wishes and harp hugs,
Balfour
