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Retrospective: things I used to play, such as Borodin, “Polovetsian Dances.” New: Vivaldi, from the Four Seasons. I wish I could come up with something in the way of a tribute to a cat who died just before Christmas. She was bold and brassy and very much the alpha cat, and she was the only one to realize that my Samoyed puppy, however large, was nothing but a puppy, whereupon she adopted him. (He is now 11.) She also had a very low-pitched meow.
In that case, I guess I have hugged my harp and my guitar and banjo too; but I’d just as soon hug my cat, and she gives off vibrations too (purrs).
Deb, if you know that Vivaldi or Joanambrosio Dalza composed it or that Vicenzo Galilei (Galileo’s papa) is believed to have composed it, then it’s not folk.
“Plaisir d’Amour” is often sung by folk singers (including me), but it’s not a folk song (composed by Giovanni Martini aka Martini il Tedesco in a classical context).
Spirituals are folk songs even when sung by opera singers. They rarely sound good when sung by opera singers; opera singers have too much voice. (That’s my opinion; don’t get mad at me.)
Florence Foster Jenkins was not merely a bad singer, she had the chutzpah to tackle the Queen of the Night.
Current harp favorite: the Handel B-flat lute and harp concerto with the lute included (Satoh).
Like the Loreena McKennitt too. Also Celso Duarte, both Sr. and Jr.
I vary between tuning the harp to itself and going the whole hog with electronic tuner, but at least every other day.
The definition of what is and isn’t folk has changed radically. It used to be confined to songs of which the composer isn’t known. But in fact some “folk” songs turn out to be Victorian parlor ballads (“Wildwood Flower”) or minstrel songs (“Oh, Susannah”). Then there are the folklike or honorary folk songs, such as “Dona, Dona” (Yiddish musical theatre), “They Call the Wind Mariah” (musical), anything by Woody Guthrie, various singer/songwriter songs. Actually, some people call it a folk song as long as it’s played on acoustic instruments, I’ll be danged if I understand why.
Saul brought up the question of balance. I’m guessing he meant something like this: Vivaldi’s D-major lute concerto is most often played with a guitar doing the lute part. I have heard it played on a lute, though, and the violins kept drowning out the lute. Is that what you meant by balance, Saul? If so, and if the harp part is being played on a modern harp, would the lute have a problem being heard?
Reminds me of an instrument repairman’s response when I said (this about 50 years ago) wistfully how much I would like to play the harp: “It’s such a limited instrument.
Hello, limited? Fortunately I ignored him.
I have such a harp, with its original string-chewing levers, but recently regulated and restrung by a traveling harp technician. I agree that $1,500 is too much; harps of that era are going for $900 to $1,000 at best. One of our members, though, acquired one in iffy shape for $300 or $400, had it redone, new levers and all, and I believe she spent $1,500 for the job. That was a few years ago. Most people would say “not worth it”; but she ended up with a great harp. Quite a few harpists think that the Troubadour I has a better sound than Troubadours II-III-IV-V-VI. It’s also 3″ shorter and more portable than its successors.
Keep in mind that the technician cannot use the original holes but has to drill new ones when replacing the original levers. Keep in mind also that if the neck has warped badly or the soundboard has bellied up excessively, then it really may NOT be worth it. (Neither condition applied in my case.)
When I got my first sight of my Troubadour back in the late ’70s, I thought, “Good god! What an ugly harp!” But you know what? With the glut of Celtic-style or classical-style lever harps on the market, my harp, with its Gothic outline, is no longer ugly. In fact, it’s distinctive. Last night I had a belated New Year’s Eve (Bowle, a wine and champagne punch with raspberries and nectarines; shrimp remoulade; cheeses with smoked ham and black bread; and harp music) with some friends. They thought the harp was gorgeous, both the sound and the looks. Guitars and banjos stayed in their cases, because we were all having too much fun with the harp.
Loreena McKennitt plays one of these antiquated Troubadours (but with replaced levers). Take a look at her on YouTube playing “She Moved Through the Fair” at the Alhambra.
If you live in humid Florida, that’s a pretty good reason to use nylon strings. Though I have been tempted to try nylgut or fluorocarbon or othersuch strings.
But back to Heartland: I am astonished that there is so much call for the carbon-fiber harps that Dave doesn’t have time for the lovely wooden harps any more.
