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Oh yes, she’s very elegant, isn’t she! Thanks for posting. Leon. I’m still not that great at identifying the differences between various styles of harp so all these pictures are part of my continuing education.
Leon – sorry to do this because I know you’re not comfortable with posting pics, but one inquiring little mind here would love to see a photo of your Grecian harp!
Ellen, I love your comment that you find it fun to try and think of ways around these problems. I taught embroidery for several years and got quite excited when a student came along who had physical problems that made the process difficult for her (it was usually a her, though I did teach one man) because it allows the teacher to be really creative in finding different ways of coping with the same problem.
It certainly isn’t about seeing older students (of which I am now one) as ‘lesser’ in any way; it’s about enabling those who have difficulties to play on a level playing field with those who don’t. Many learners will find that by adapting their technique to suit their abilities they can gradually move towards using the same techniques as everyone else – some won’t, but that’s no reason why they shouldn’t get as much enjoyment from their chosen pastime as anyone else. As Diana points out, it’s something of a balancing act but when you’re teaching humans rather than machines you have to learn to be flexible in making allowances for human problems and you have to get to know each student individually and discover what is right for each one.
My Harpsicle has nylon strings and my Ossian has carbon fibre composites so I haven’t had experience of guts strings although my tutor plays with gut and can go years without a break; in fact, she usually ends up changing aged strings more often than broken ones
How interesting it is to hear from Elizabeth about those helpful people at Dusty Strings. It always puts a smile on my face to hear of great service like that and it’s usually a sign of someone who loves what they do – I guess it has to be worth contacting them because it really sounds as if you’ve tried everything. I hope someone comes up with the answer soon because it must be incredibly frustrating for you.
Gotta name ’em Charles! Both my harps have names and I wouldn’t feel quite the same way about them if they didn’t. In fact I love the way you refer to your harp as ‘him’ (mine are girls) – it shows an emotional connection, I think!
Not sure if this fits your requirements Reidun, but I’m working on some pieces from this book right now – http://www.amazon.co.uk/Classics-Pedal-Free-Harp-Chuck-Bird/dp/0786605693/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1380973318&sr=1-1&keywords=pedal-free+harp+music – and it’s a lovely one with a CD so that you can check your interpretation of the written music is the same as what is being played. It’s aimed at a post-beginner
Hi Alan. i love the Friou book and keep referring back to it for exercises.
You ask what you are supposed to get from these books and I can only really tell you how I use them – I hope ot helps. Firstly, it is handy to have a few fairly simple exercises (scales, for instance) that you can use as a warm-up when you first pick up your harp in the morning. They will just help to get your fingers working and your brain back into harp-playing mode.
Other exercises are there to address particular problems or techniques and should be chosen in conjuction with whatever piece you are learning at the moment. For example, I am currently learning a piece that has some very fast arpeggios and, as well as practising those when they arise in the music, I find it really helpful to spend a little time during each practice session working on the four-finger arpeggios on pages 33-52 in the Friou book. If you are learning with the aid of a tutor then he or she should be able to point you towards which exercises best replicate the technique you are trying to achieve, if you are learning alone you will need to use trial and error to discover which is most appropriate at any given time, though they will all come in handy sooner or later.
The general purpose of exercises is to assist with fluidily in your playing and to accustom your fingers to doing things and reaching positions that don’t come naturally at first- to teach you to play certain techniques speedily and smoothly. They also ensure that, rather than just repeating the passage in a single piece of music, you are able to transfer those skills to any other similar piece rather than only learning that particular passage in one particular key or tempo. Incidentally, they really do work, that is why they are still used by all musicians and they can be very relaxing and quite meditative to do so don’t think of them as forced labour that isn’t particularly enjoyable. Have fun with them and you will find they are one of the most important parts of the learning process.
Also bear in mind that an older student may have quite different learning objectives from a younger one. A sixty-year-old is not likely to be learning with the ambition of playing in an orchestra – she will just be wanting to get some pleasure out of playing for herself or a few close friends and her learning will, therefore be all about finding out how she can make the best possible sound while allowing for physicl limitations. I suspect that many older learners are simply tackling somthing they have always wanted to do before it is too late and will just become frustrated if they have to slog away at trying to achieve hand positions that are difficult or painful for them. I have taught a lot of older students a variety of subjects, though not harp-playing, (as well as having been a ‘mature’ learner myself) and it is a group of people who can be immensely satisfying to teach and who also get real joy from learning their new subject. They are not learning because they need the skills for a job or because their parents say thy have to learn but simply because they want to, so they are usually enthusiastic and dedicated students and well worth going that extra mile for. Good luck – I hope it will be satisfying for you to know how much pleasure your lessons will bring your students.
Tracey, to me this looks more like a lack of knowledge than an actual scam. I would assume that the ad has been posted by someone who has aquired the harp and knows little or nothing about it. Perhaps they inherited it before its owner had had a chance to play or even take delivery? Maybe it came from a closing down sale or was bought as part of a job lot by one of those people who buys up the contents of unpaid storage lockers?
Wow Charles, that is one impressive-looking beast! I am dumbstruck with awe by you people who can make these things yourselves, as well as playing them. I t feels incredibly satisfying to know I had a hand in the design of my harp so I can barely imagine how amazing it must feel to play an instrument that has been your own creation from the first tentative sketches to the finished product. I have this somewhat superstitious belief that we put a little of ourselves into our harps every time we play so there must already be a lot of your heart and soul in yours.
Hi Daniele! i’m afraid I probably won’t be much help with this but I just wanted to say hello to another UK-er as we’re in the minority here.
First of all let me say I have never yet had a string break and it seems odd to me when other players talk about this as a regular occurrence (I’ve been playing 2 lever harps regularly (around 2 hours a day) for about 2 years).
I’m sure you’ve already worked out that the problem is unlikely to be with the strings themselves but with the harp or the way you are stringing it. Are you following proper instructions as to the stringing? Most of the books I have that teach beginner harpers give instructions on the correct way to tie the knot etc and I assume you are using one of these – if that isn’t the case and you are just muddling through without instructions contact me through my profile and let me have your postal address so that I can photocopy and send you some of the instructions i have.
Have you checked your harp closely? Are there any rough edges anywhere on the tuning pins, levers or bridge pins that might be rubbing or causing friction (you might need to check this with a magnifying glass)?
Are you using quality strings? if you have used to same brand of string every time there’s just a chance they may be inferior so it might be worth experimenting with different makes but I would certainly check everything else first before spending more money on strings.
I’m sure lots of other people on this site will have actual experience of the problem and therefore be able to give you more practical advice but, if that isn’t so, my own inclination would be to go back to the place you bought the harp if they are specialists, or contact a good luthier who will check the instrument over for you.
Most of all, though, please don’t let this put you off playing. The problem must be fixable somehow and I hope someone here will come up with the answer. Meanwhile, good luck with your playing. Harps over here seem to be much less popular than in America and it always thrills me to hear of another player somewhere in the country.
PS – I just reread your message and I notice you say that the shop where you buy your strings is being less than helpful. I do hope there is somewhere else you can buy from as I really wouldn’t want to keep giving my business and cash to any place with that attitude. Once you get the problem sorted out I’m sure you’ll find plenty of places online that can supply you, probably cheaper, and who actually believe in giving an after-sales service!
I’m a chronic pain sufferer who tried ignoring the pain for far too many years and now has permanent problems. Hard though it may be for we musicians to understand, health must always come first and the sooner you tell your tutor about the problems you are having the sooner you can begin to address them. My own tutor goes to enormous lengths to arrange my seating and playing in ways that will protect my back and other joints and I’m very grateful to her for that. if your teacher is less than understanding then you should start looking for a new one. Take your mum along with you to your next lesson if you feel she will help to put your case across or if you’re worried that your tutor may think you are just making up excuses not to play. Even if the worst came to the worst and you were temporarily unable to attend college your health is with you for the rest of your life and should be your number one priority.
There are also a few other things you might want to consider that could help. You don’t say what part of the world you are from so I don’t know how much cost will factor in your choices of treatment, however, if you can afford it you might want to try looking around for a physiotherapist or other practitioner who specialises in treating musicians; your doctor may be able to recommend someone. The movements you need to make and positions you need to hold are very specific to the instrument you play and an expert should be able to help you to deal with these in ways that do not worsen your condition.
I would also recommend a couple of useful little books on the subject which are aimed at harpers – the first of these is “Harping With a Handicap” by Laurie Riley (www.laurieriley.com) and the second (available only, I believe, on Kindle) “An Alexander Technique Approach to Harp Technique” by Ethan Kind (http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=an%20alexander%20technique%20aproach%20to%20harp).
Most importantly, I can’t stress enough that you should not ignore your condition. If you take the right approach now you can have many happy and pain-free playing years ahead of you but if you try to ignore it it will come back to haunt you. Wishing you the best possible luck. Please do come back and let us know how things are going for you.
Lyn
Oh wow, Boira! It’s a lovely harp and you must be so excited! I didn’t sleep for about a week before my first (and, come to think of it, second) harp arrived or before my first lesson. I look forward to hearing how you get on with playing and, hopefully, following your journey from beginner to expert. Do you already play other instruments or is this a completely new experience for you? Have you given him/her/it a name or don’t you do that?
I started learning quite late in life with only a very sketchy knowledge of how to read music and I especially didn’t want to waste a lot of time, once I found a tutor, in doing theory when I could have been playing. At first I wrote the names of the notes on the music but over time and with lots of practice I found I could tell which note was which much faster (and, more importantly, its relation to the other notes around it) and that writing them in wasn’t always necessary as far as the treble clef was concerned; I still stumble over the bass clef but I’m hoping that will also fall into place in time – I think it’s beginning to happen. It is still hard for me to play an unfamiliar tune and I take my information on rhythm etc from other people’s playing (thank god for YouTube) rather than from the written notation though gradually the two are starting to come together.
I like Brian’s analogy with learning a new language, which is something I have much more experience of. There are definitely similarities. With learning a language, there are basically two ways of going about this. The first way is to learn the theory from a book and by making notes and having friends test you; the second is by immersing yourself in the language (eg. going to live in your chosen country for a couple of years). With learning music, there’s no reason, as far as I can see, to spend hours memorising the theory when it’s more effective to play and try to notice what is going on on the page at the same time, while tryng to relate that to what you hear when your tutor, or other pro plays the tune.
I believe that young children can learn the theory very quickly and it is therefore beneficial to them to start off by tackling that, whereas older learners find it easier to apply that theory to ‘real life’ and probably shouldn’t worry too much about simply acquiring the theoretical knowledge as they go along.
