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Sam- Make sure as you work on this that you don’t tense up. I used to do a lot of choral singing, and the conductor of one of the choruses was explaining one time that when you sing softly, you don’t cut the air flow. You use the same air stream that you would use to sing forte. I think it’s the same on the harp. You don’t touch the string less or more lightly to play softer. If you do, you get a shallow scratchy sound. You have to prepare the string in much the same way you would if you were to play loud, but then, at the last moment, back off on the force and release the string. Try, just as an exercise, playing one string at varying dynamics, and see how softly you can go while maintaining the tone. Try that using different fingers on each hand. When you start to get the result you want, then try it with 2 and 3 note chords.
Sam- Make sure as you work on this that you don’t tense up. I used to do a lot of choral singing, and the conductor of one of the choruses was explaining one time that when you sing softly, you don’t cut the air flow. You use the same air stream that you would use to sing forte. I think it’s the same on the harp. You don’t touch the string less or more lightly to play softer. If you do, you get a shallow scratchy sound. You have to prepare the string in much the same way you would if you were to play loud, but then, at the last moment, back off on the force and release the string. Try, just as an exercise, playing one string at varying dynamics, and see how softly you can go while maintaining the tone. Try that using different fingers on each hand. When you start to get the result you want, then try it with 2 and 3 note chords.
sam- I think that pulling on the string, or pressing into it before releasing the string, puts a wider area of flesh on the string and thereby alters the sound for the better. It gives you a rounder, fuller sound that carries better. Once you learn the technique, you will be able to play at the softest pianissmo and still be clearly heard without being scratchy. But it takes time. You have to consciously work on it until it simply becomes the way you touch the string.
sam- I think that pulling on the string, or pressing into it before releasing the string, puts a wider area of flesh on the string and thereby alters the sound for the better. It gives you a rounder, fuller sound that carries better. Once you learn the technique, you will be able to play at the softest pianissmo and still be clearly heard without being scratchy. But it takes time. You have to consciously work on it until it simply becomes the way you touch the string.
sam- I think that pulling on the string, or pressing into it before releasing the string, puts a wider area of flesh on the string and thereby alters the sound for the better. It gives you a rounder, fuller sound that carries better. Once you learn the technique, you will be able to play at the softest pianissmo and still be clearly heard without being scratchy. But it takes time. You have to consciously work on it until it simply becomes the way you touch the string.
Catherine- I think the Forty Progressive Studies is the op. 318. The first 20 etudes are mostly one page long, then etudes 21 through 40 are mostly 2 pages. I also think these same etudes were printed as part of a larger “Methode” and maybe called something else. The 50 studies are the most advanced and are usually available in two volumes of 25 each. They are all 2 to 5 pages long and are not killer-difficult but are excellent for really learning patterns and endurance.
For anyone at any level of playing who has technical problems or bad habits that need to be changed, I would recommend the 40 easy etudes, op. 318 as a starter. They provide an excellent format for stabilizing a student’s hand position and getting the fingers working consistently.
Sam- I’m guessing here that she’s talking about pressing into the string before releasing it. Regardless of the volume you want to play, you have to press into the string, basically pulling on it and then releasing it at the volume you want. Initially the way to work on this is with something slow and legato. Once you get the feel of it and it becomes automatic, then you can apply it to anything you play.
I had a very good professional harpist take lessons from me years ago and any time I sat down at the harp and played something she had just played she’s always say “How do you get that sound???” It’s a technique that takes time to learn and your sound will develop over a period of months. That’s what happened to her.
Try working on this with something that’s much easier than you are currently playing so you can concentrate all your effort on tone. Tournier’s Offrande would be excellent for this, or one of the slow Bach/Grandjany etudes.
Sam- I’m guessing here that she’s talking about pressing into the string before releasing it. Regardless of the volume you want to play, you have to press into the string, basically pulling on it and then releasing it at the volume you want. Initially the way to work on this is with something slow and legato. Once you get the feel of it and it becomes automatic, then you can apply it to anything you play.
I had a very good professional harpist take lessons from me years ago and any time I sat down at the harp and played something she had just played she’s always say “How do you get that sound???” It’s a technique that takes time to learn and your sound will develop over a period of months. That’s what happened to her.
Try working on this with something that’s much easier than you are currently playing so you can concentrate all your effort on tone. Tournier’s Offrande would be excellent for this, or one of the slow Bach/Grandjany etudes.
Sam- I’m guessing here that she’s talking about pressing into the string before releasing it. Regardless of the volume you want to play, you have to press into the string, basically pulling on it and then releasing it at the volume you want. Initially the way to work on this is with something slow and legato. Once you get the feel of it and it becomes automatic, then you can apply it to anything you play.
I had a very good professional harpist take lessons from me years ago and any time I sat down at the harp and played something she had just played she’s always say “How do you get that sound???” It’s a technique that takes time to learn and your sound will develop over a period of months. That’s what happened to her.
Try working on this with something that’s much easier than you are currently playing so you can concentrate all your effort on tone. Tournier’s Offrande would be excellent for this, or one of the slow Bach/Grandjany etudes.
There are a couple of tricky spots for the harp, technique-wise. But it’s the ensemble that is really tricky. You have to have three good players who are all very good and sensitive musicians. All three instruments are equal partners in this piece.
I’m afraid I don’t get this one at all. When I do solo recitals I dust my hands and especially my fingertips with talcum powder so that I have more precise control in releasing the string. maybe it’s because I have very fleshy fingertips, but when I’m really practicing several hours a day and building up callus it gets very difficult to release the string. I often have to sand down the ridge of callus that forms too.
If you can get a qualified technician to look at it as soon as possible I would do that. If not, I think you should get your money back on the instrument. A new soundboard on a troubadour is likely going to cost you $1,200 to $1,500 and may just not be worth the investment.
Julietta-I’m sure our orchestra harpist readers can compile a list of “inaudible harp parts” that are written against a backdrop of the whole rest of the orchestra playing. No amount of yanking the strings is going to overcome that. What’s interesting is that ‘overpulling’ or overplaying the instrument doesn’t really increase the volume. It just changes the sound coming out and somehow makes it less pitch oriented and more noise oriented. The harp, like all instruments, has a maximum volume it can put out, and any attempt to get more than that causes a breakdown in the basic sound.
Only a few composers really knew how to write for the harp. In the symphonic realm, Mahler, Debussy, and Ravel come immediately to mind. Maybe Rimsky-Korsokof too. They seemed to know that when the harp plays, you have to have very little else going on or the harp will be completely covered.
Robert- Thank you for the clarification. And it’s nice to know that my book helped you accurately assess the problems with the instrument.
I’m really sorry to hear that Walter got taken advantage of like that. Why didn’t he put it on ebay himself? I’m sure someone from the harp community in Philadelphia would have helped him do that and handle the sail. For the amount of work that it needs it’s not worth my time and money buying at that price.
