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Jim and Vicki:
I’m glad to know you guys have your priorities in the right place!!! I love Jim’s idea. We
could expand it to say that anyone who posts a thread that gets more than 10 responses
has to play the Ginastera concerto. Jim can sell tickets and use the proceeds to outfit all
the responders in red thongs. Love it…..By the way…..where is Alex? I think he owes it to all of us to at least pipe in and give us
some input since he started this……KIM
Jim:
It would be great if this became the longest thread in HC history!!! Our aim is to keep
people coming back for more! But to stay on topic, I think the question is not whether you
can manufacture your own red thong underware, but whether you’d wear it on stage?????It seems to me like what’s evolving here is the difference between artists who are
individual personalities versus those that play as members of a group. Of course we all
love that Deborah wears a miniskirt, but would I wear one in an orchestra? No, or I
wouldn’t be asked back. Would I like to think I am hired solely on the basis of my
musicianship like Vicki said? Yes, but that’s just not always the reality. I remember one
show at Caesars I did for Tony Bennett where I was on a riser directly behind Tony the
whole night. I think I had maybe three glisses in the whole show. My 13-year old student
could have played this show. I can tell you my job that night was to sit there and look
good and that’s it. Sad, but that’s the reality of being a freelance harpist sometimes.Alexander originally asked if playing without shoes “looks really stupid.” It seems like from
the input he’s gotten here, the answer is that it depends on where you’re playing. But since
he was playing in an orchestra with other musicians, my answer is Yes, it looks really
stupid if you are the only one sitting there with no shoes on.KIM
Wow! We love it here at the HC when a post generates so much interest! This one has
certainly been interesting and informative….I usually try to stay out of these
conversations, but Chris, I just have to comment on Josh Grobin and barefoot violinist: I
played his show at Caesars in Atlantic City a few months ago and I have to tell you, that
violinist offended every professional musician on stage. At the rehearsal, she wore low cut
jeans (you know, the kind with the thong underware poking out) and a half-T shirt that
said “The world is my ashtray.” I am not kidding. I remember it clearly because we were all
just in awe of her bad taste. When she walked out barefoot for the concert, everyone just
looked around and rolled their eyes. We might not have cared so much if it wasn’t for the
fact that her wardrobe was a direct reflection on her attitude and demeanor towards the
rest of the professionals on stage. Casual attire might be acceptable in the music industry,
but bad taste and disrespect, especially on stage, are inexcusable, in my opinion.I have to side with Jim on this one and say that while Josh and his violinist might be able to
get away with it because they’re the stars, I’m confident that my contractor would not ask
me back if I showed up to play a show at Caesars in bare feet.Kim at Harp Column
Nicole:
I’m sad to hear that you stay away from AHS events. Although I understand your
reasoning, I think you would be surprised at the amount of cross-representation you will
find currently at these events. As one of the organizers of the most recent AHS conference
in Philadelphia, I can tell you that we tried extremely hard to showcase harpists with a
variety of backgrounds. Although we did pay a heavy tribute to Salzedo, because of his
strong roots in Philadelphia, our concerts featured top harpists from all over the world and
our organizing committee included representatives from all styles of playing.I won’t dispute that you may have encountered a few bad attitudes in the AHS along the
way, but to blame the entire society isn’t really fair. In order to confront some of the
problems you mention in your post we really need to present a unified front to the rest of
the music population. You might not like everything the AHS is doing (and I don’t either),
but at least they are trying to address some of the problems you mention in the form of
commissioning projects and bringing harp to the public eye through large-scale events
like those you avoid. I hope you’ll reconsider your view of this organization and give it
another chance.Frank:
No! It is not just stupid! A lot of harpists start on the later side, probably because harp is not offered in most school music programs. I was 16 when I started and have gone on to have a career as a professional harpist. Many of my colleagues also started as older teens or in college. Go for it!
KIM
Kat:
I think a bigger issue is whether the teacher is a good teacher, not whether they are “Salzedo” or “Grandjany.” If they are a good teacher, they will be able to help you advance and they will work with your Salzedo background and try to strengthen it with their own ideas. You may have to try some new things, but if you trust this teacher, you might discover some technical ideas you hadn’t thought about before. If you don’t trust the teacher, or are going to be unwilling to try new things, you might as well find someone else. I would give it a try. You will know within a few lessons whether it’s working or not.
Kim from Harp Column
Carolyn:
Some good pieces for your level are:
Haydn Theme and Variations, arranged by Salzedo, Handel Pasicagllia, Handel Theme and Variations, songs found in “Solos for the Harp player” edited by Lucile Lawrence (good ones are the “First Arabesque” by Debussy and the “Giga” by Correlli)
To find out what the most advanced players of your age group are learning, join the American Harp Society and look at what the required pieces are for their competitions. That will give you a good idea of what you should be striving for.
Hope this helps…anyone else?
Yes, carts are great for one person! There are so many different carts available now, and most of them are really good. I use a standard 2-wheel cart just for getting the harp around.
I also have a six-wheel dolly designed for stair use. It is great for curbs and short flights of steps, but for a large flight of steps you are still pulling the entire weight of the harp and I find it a little scary. I prefer to take the harp off the dolly and have someone help me carry it up large flights. I’m not very strong and some of my friends can handle large flights fine, so I think a lot just depends on you.
Sherry: I think you can certainly find a good new pedal harp between $10,000 and $20,000 from Lyon & Healy or any other company. $5,000 is a bit low for a new harp. You might find something used at that price, but probably not in very good condition. My advice would be to get a better feel for what your options are by requesting price lists and catalogs from the pedal harp companies. There are links to most companies on the “Classified Ads” page on this site. I think you’ll be pleased to find that there is a lot available in your price range. Good luck!
