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Give them a signal for putting the harp on the shoulder, another one for putting the hands on the strings. Train the students how to start together by giving them a good upbeat in tempo. Train them to always keep their eye on the conductor and count. This is a great opportunity for them to get used to conducting, so be sure to use the standard conducting patterns for each meter. Choose pieces that are not too technically demanding so that they can concentrate on listening to each other and developing good ensemble. Make sure they pay attention to the musical details like phrasing and dynamics and, of course, tuning. Ask each student to play their part individually so that they understand that they can’t “hide in the weeds”. If it’s a repetitive or short piece, play around with improvisation and adding bridges in between repeats. Select at least one piece in which they must count bars before their entrances. If you have some students who have trouble with rhythm, I recommend Phil Perkin’s “A Logical Approach to Rhythmic Dictation”. This will help them enormously and contribute to fewer stops for missed entrances or haywire counting.
Hi, Diane! Years ago, I was touring with a ballet orchestra, and we were performing in a pit which was lowered down after we had all taken our places. It was in Mexico, and some of the musicians were feeling the effects of Montezuma’s Revenge. There was no way to exit the pit except by climbing up to the stage, so we were trapped. At least there was an intermission! On the same tour, we were travelling on a bus that had no toilet facility in it, and the driver got lost. We drove around for quite a while after having had large breakfasts and lots of coffee. Pretty soon, we were looking up the words for “Stop! I have to go to the bathroom!” in our phrasebooks. He finally deigned to stop, at a little tiny gas station with one outhouse for the men and one for the women. It was like a scene out of Dante’s Inferno as that little bathroom, odiferous to begin with, was used with gusto by an endless stream of gasping musicians. Most of the men ran off to the yucca plants to relieve themselves.
Thanks, Briggsie! If you go to http://www.elizabethvolpebligh.com/articles.shtml, there’s a whole article called “Take the Harm Out of Harmonics”.
Maybe, to counteract the frustration, buy a book of really short, easy pieces just to have fun with. If you have more easily attainable goals, then the more difficult ones won’t seem as much of a yardstick to measure your progress by. Also, just for pleasure, play by ear, just noodling around the harp for a few minutes every day. This will remind you why you love it. Everyone has their own pace, and if you are practising an hour every day, then you are progressing.
I love this CD: Jean Françaix: Three Quintets, Piccolo Duetti, performed by “Mobius” on ASV, published in 2000. The harpist is Alison Nicholls, with flautist Lorna McGhee, violinists Philippe Honoré and Kanako Ito, violist Ashan Pillai, clarinetist Robert Plane, cellist Marlin Storey. It was made in England, and I got this copy from Amazon or EBay.
One thing that also helps bring the piece “off the page” is thinking of images or emotions that illustrate the intentions of the composer, and trying to put these across to the audience. As Carl said, this can’t happen effectively if the tools aren’t there to begin with. It’s just like building a house; the foundation comes first, then the structure, then the decorations. But even a beginner can play musically if they think of music as expression rather than notes.
I am amazed at your courage that you were able to organize a festival and still do a recital as well, and all this after losing your mother. Don’t beat yourself up over the Pescetti; that pedal passage is difficult enough without all that added stress. Congratulations on the success of your festival and your great performance of the piece that mattered the most. And congrats as well on giving a showcase to the great talents of your performers and teachers.
Here’s another thought: experiment with different heel heights. Buy a few different pairs of high-heeled shoes (that you can return, if necessary) and try them out. Maybe that will solve your problem of keeping your heels on the floor.
There is a thread posted by Saul regarding short fourth fingers which you might find helpful, too. The main thing is not to try to pound a square peg into a round hole. If you cannot place every finger simultaneously, just place what you can and throw on the last finger as soon as you can, comfortably.
One of the best ways for a student to gain that maturity is to listen a lot to great performances of great music. The more they hear and absorb, the more they understand style and nuance. A teacher can inspire the student by demonstrating at lessons, but students benefit greatly from attending live concerts. They don’t have to be harp concerts. Life experience is certainly helpful, but some young prodigies are able to connect with the core of the music in spite of their age. It might have more to do with imagination, emotional depth, and plenty of exposure to good music. If the student tries to paint a picture with the music instead of just thinking of notes and chords, that can lift them up to another level.
There are a number of reasons why this could happen: differences between your harp at home and the one in your teacher’s studio, fatigue, distraction, illness coming on, etc. But another thing could be the way you are practising. Sometimes you can practise for hours, but the information is not being processed at the really conscious level, so it’s akin to spinning your wheels. Slow down and be very methodical and extremely conscious of everything you are doing. Notice patterns that repeat, chord structures, anything at all that you can identify and label in your mind. Read the music while you are away from the harp. Visualize playing it while you’re in a quiet place and your eyes are closed. You will be amazed at the results you will get.
I did ballet when I was a kid, then did five years of flamenco as an adult. I believe that dancing helps develop good rhythm. However, you need good balance to maintain your rhythm while you’re dancing! If you have to put a foot down to stop yourself from keeling over, a 4/4 can turn into a 5/8! Dance is good for all sorts of things: grace, posture, health, not to mention an enhanced understanding of dance music. And it’s so much fun!
