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Furman University in South Carolina is good (though I know out of your range!) maybe look into Fordham or NYU? And Boston University, Rutgers, Belmont University (in Nashville)….I suppose
Dear Nancy,
I started off my music career by playing piano, which I still love and believe prepared me immensely for playing the harp. Since I began studying the harp seriously, however, I dropped piano lessons to concentrate solely on the harp. I can still play piano, and I have no idea where I would be with my music if I hadn’t begun with piano. That being said, I have recently begun the violin! I sound absolutely horrible and am absolutely thrilled.
–Fairy
Hey,
I’m going to sound crazy, but last year I played a Sousa march with a Wind Ensemble, “Easter Morning on the White House Lawn”. The part is for harp or piano, and while the harp isn’t very prominently featured, it’s a nice piece. Standard Wind Ensemble affair.
Hope this helps!
Hey,
If you are still having trouble, you can try marking the harmonic spot on the string with white-out. I’ve met harpists who have been playing for years who still use this for hard-to-hit harmonics.
Good luck!
Thanks a million, everyone, for your advice! (And sorry I spelled ‘accepted’ as ‘excepted’–it’s been a long week!)
I’m looking forward to researching and playing all the wonderful pieces you all have listed. I’m also looking forward to starting ensemble work! A new door is opening for me!
Hope you all are having as fun a time in general as I am!
(And good luck Zoraida, with your program in October! Wish I could hear it!)
Have a good weekend!~~~Fairy
I have to say I tend to find most ‘Classical’ music boring unless I’m playing it; for instance, I tend to flip past it on the radio. I do however really enjoy classical music when I really sit down and listen to it, like at a symphony, recital, ballet, etc.
For the most part, though, I like
See, the thing with Irish songs is that, one, a lot of the songs have been passed down orally. Actually, I don’t think O’Carolan’s songs were published during his lifetime (don’t quote me on that and correct me if I’m wrong).
Something you really have to keep in mind is that both versions–actually, all versions mentioned in the above posts are someone else’s arrangments. It’s what THEY thought was nice; what someone else thought worked. The phrase in question is not a drastic melody change all things considered, so really there is no right or wrong.
I do love this piece, I must say! When I play it I’ve arranged it my own way entirely; it’s more fun, I think.
Happy harping!–Fairy
Ok, isn’t the Ogden short? I’d look into a Prelude or a Troub before the Ogden if you’re serious about approaching pedals.
And personally, I don’t like Ravennas. But that is just me.
You’ll love it. I’d definitely book an appointment, as this is also a great time to start picking out sheet music. Have fun, ok? Be excited! Jump up and down! Welcome to our crazy world.
—Fairy
You could apply for the Mr. Holland’s Opus grant, for starters. I know a girl who recently recieved a harp courtesy of that.
There are so many grants out there! Just remember: Google is your friend. Surf the web, and you will be flabbergasted at the amount of money out there. It’s crazy.
And, I know how you feel. Easy up, darlin’, and try to upgrade to a nice Prelude before you jump into Pedal mode.
That is so annoying. You go from octaves hurting, to spanning a 10th with no problem, and then you start over-extending and you wish for the days when an octave was as far as you could go.
My teacher has me play opens with the 3rd and 4th, but primarily the 4th. Otherwise you don’t get the full effect of the sound.
Car is good. Just remember: don’t leave it in a hot car for more than an hour TOPS. A harp cannot handle extreme temperatures.
If you don’t have the whole kit and kaboodle of the column cover, base cover, etc., slap on the dust cover and surround with quilts and pillows under the three pressure points. How often do you move your harp?
Please be very, very careful with the Sylvia Woods books. There are often several versions to different folk songs, and usually one is more accpeted than the rest, and quite often the Sylvia Woods version is not the popular version I thought I was getting. For instance the song listed as “Shule Aroon” (Siul Arun) in the SW Irish Book is not what you would hear at an Irish festival, etc. I try to steer clear of Sylvia’s things; they tend to be pretty ubiquitous but I have a much easier time of just reworking piano arrangments for the harp. Usually Mel Bay Irish books are good.
One of my favorite books that I use all the time is Kim Robertson’s Celtic Solos book. Some Scottish, some Irish, some orginial,
What an awful choice to have to make! I’ve been saving up for two years to get a lovely and compact lever harp, but I would never be able to play that exclusively. I’m upset enough that my harp playing has so detracted from my piano–I can’t imagine choosing (once I decide upon a new lever model).
