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That’s one of the benefits of not having a pedal harp at the moment. I can get both of my lever harps, an amp, and my full gig bag in to my MINI with no problem.
I was wondering if Emily Mitchell’s harp was one, thanks for that information Barbara. It is a beautiful harp, and it sounds great. I have her album, Irish Harp Songs, and I love the sound of her harp.
It’s a shame about what happened to Fay’s shop and that these harps are no longer being made.
Jay’s harps are very nice. I had the opportunity a few months ago to check out Patrick Ball’s wire strung Witcher harp and it is just amazing. The sound it produces is unlike any other wire strung harp I have ever heard.
If you need a string chart you should just contact Jay:
Jay Witcher���Harpmaker
Back Ridge Road
Houlton, Maine 04730207-532-9051
Thanks Catherine,
I need to re-watch them I think. It’s been a while. I have most on VHS, but now I think most have been released on DVD so it’s time to update the collection and give them another watch.
+++I am certain that it is Gail Laughton’s hands you see in the movie “The Big Store”, where the edit from Harpo beginning and ending the lengthy sequence to another pair of hands is quite obvious, and the playing is sufficiently different to show that Harpo is indeed playing in the other movies.+++
Hi Carl,
Well, its a big subject, and I am getting ready for a big trip so this will probably be my last post for a few weeks.
It’s OK that you are not into Jazz… really ;^)
Improvisation is used in many kinds of music. The specifics of WHAT you do change from style to style, but the general concepts carry over. Playing from lead charts is a skill virtually any decent studio musician needs no matter what style of music they play. In fact, many studio musicians will walk in to the studio one day and lay a backing track for a country singer, the next one for a Rock singer, and the next week do some work on a pop song. All on music he or she never saw before that day, and all presented as lead sheets (fake book format).
There are two basic things you need to know about in order to improvise. Or at least well. You can “noodle” around easily enough playing around with just pentatonic scales in the key of the piece you are playing, but that gets boring fast for both the musician and the listener.
The two things necessary is an understanding of music theory, and an understanding of how to apply it in the right circumstances.
Now I don’t know how much music theory you know. If you have a decent grasp of theory then you are a step ahead of the game. But I have known conservatory trained musicians who can perform classical music wonderfully, but can’t explain what makes a major scale different from a minor scale, so I never take it for granted that an accomplished musician knows theory.
If you don’t then the first thing to do is to work on that. At the very least you need to understand the different scales and modes, intervals, and chords. Since the lead sheets don’t show you the notes in the cords, but simply give you the symbol, you need to be able to look at those chord symbols and understand how to form them on your instrument. With Jazz that can be tricky because of all the atypical chords used and the extensions.
Then you need to learn when to apply what. And that depends on the kind of music you are playing. Different styles of music use different conventions. That is why there are whole books on Jazz theory as opposed to classical theory. Because what you need to do to make Jazz sound like Jazz is some what specific. Same with blues and rock and pop.
Certain kinds of scales work well over certain kinds of chords. Certain intervals work well in certain situations depending on musical style. Learning what to do where is key. Then practicing until you don’t have to spend a lot of time thinking about it.
Once you get past these basics you can get in to things like experimenting with rhythm, chord substitutions, counter melodies and the like.
When it gets right down to it improvising is the same exact thing as composing. It is the same skills and requires the same knowledge base. The difference is that composing you can do at your own pace, sitting down, and taking your time to try out things. Improvising is composing on the fly as you play. Because of that improvisation often lacks the intricacy and detail of development that a fully composed piece of music can have, but when someone who knows what they are doing improvises it can have a wonderful breath of life and energy that can only come from seeing the creative process in action before your eyes.
I mentioned some books before. Two books specifically I would recommend for what you are asking about are:
How to Play From a Fake Book by Michael Esterowitz – This one gives you
And if I can plug my teacher, check out Swing Time by Ruth Berman. An excellent example of early recordings of Jazz for harp.
A good place to start is Verlene Shermer’s stuff.
She has several books out, three of arrangements and one of Music theory.
What I like about her approach is that she takes traditional music and arranges it with Jazz elements. Not only does she end up with some very nice and interesting arrangements of traditional tunes, but the juxtaposition of jazz elements in these tunes makes them stand out so you can really get a grasp of what she is doing. Then you can take what you pick out and apply it to other music.
But more importantly, get her book, Cool Chords and Groovy Rhythms. This book is for lever harp, but can be just as easily applied to pedal harp. It is basically a theory book that goes into how to use chord substitutions and rhythms in jazz arrangements. Since it is for lever harp it is kept very basic, but that is good if you are just starting out. It introduces the basic elements of jazz arranging as a very usable starting point.
Debora Henson-Conant has several other arrangements of her Jazz pieces. Notably Natalina and Nightingale. Two very nice pieces playable on lever harp.
But she also has a really good book called Introduction to Improvisation that comes with a CD of “Vamps” to practice with. This is a great book for learning the very basics of Jazz improvisation.
Of course if you want to get in to Jazz you should work on a good understanding of theory. Jazz is all about the theory. If you don’t know basic theory yet then definitely start there. Books like Edly’s Music Theory For Practical People, and The Complete Idiots Guide to Music Theory (and the two follow up “Idiots” books on Improvisations and Solos, and Music Composition) are great places to start getting your feet wet in the theory pool, assuming you are not already.
From there you should get the Bible of Jazz, Mark Levine’s Jazz Theory Book.
And if you don’t know how to play from a fake book yet then you should pick up any one of the numerous books that will show you how, including Sylvia Woods’ Music Theory and Arranging Techniques for the Folk Harp.
Getting a good chord book (one for piano would work well) is also a helpful reference.
A lot of Jazz is played from “Real Books”, which are basically fake books of Jazz standards, so if you want to really play Jazz then you need to be able to play from a fake or “real” book.
Jazz is all about improvising, so sticking to printed, complete arrangements isn’t really the way to go. Debora Henson-Conant calls her arrangements starting points to get you going, with the expectation that you will improvise over what she has provided. But complete improvising with nothing to go on but the melody and chord symbols is the mark of a true Jazz musician.
Playing Jazz has so many levels that you can really spend a lot of time working on the skill depending on how in to it you want to go. I hope some of my suggestions are useful to you.
+++In the real world, this is very nearly impossible, at least for performance+++
I was thinking more along the lines of composition. I can already play and after years of playing don’t see a need to get a degree in performance, but there are many other areas of music with degree options that are both useful and satisfying.
Carl,
You make some very good points, and overall I have to agree with you. Of course I do not and never had aspirations to be a professional classical harpist with a nice permanent orchestra position, so my experiences may be rather biased.
I didn’t start harp till my late teens and so never seriously considered majoring in music. By the time I took up the harp I had already decided in a career in science and that is what I pursued.
However it did not stop me from basically making ends meet through college as a harpist playing weddings, and since enjoying the benefits of being able to play professionally while at the same time not having to worry about completely supporting myself through music.
Having done a lot of my work in music outside of the realm of classical music I have come into contact with a vast number of musicians who have no music degrees, and many who have virtually no formal education in music of any kind, and they are some of the most talented and professional musicians I know. Clearly a degree in
I guess it all depends on the shirt. Often I find soloists who wear just a nice shirt to appear much more natural and pleasant. And sometimes it is just necessary.
For instance, not too long ago I saw David Herbert perform Kraft’s Timpani Concerto No. 2. It requires over 20 Timpani all arranged on a circular frame, some on the ground and the smaller ones suspended at head level. He had to be able to strike Timpani both in front and behind him at two different levels simultaneously. I can’t imagine him doing that with a jacket or anything that would restrict his movement. He wore all black with a loose but nicely tailored black silk shirt, and he looked perfectly fine in the midsts of all those Timpani banging away like a madman (it was really something to behold).
I also think a lot has to do with the setting and the music. Some attire just fits certain settings and looks natural, and the same attire just looks out of place in a different setting performing different music.
Honestly Saul I don’t go in for flashy, and I would feel foolish wearing ascot or a brooch. A lapel pin possibly, but I don’t like wearing pins and things like that because I am always paranoid about scratching the harp.
My tuxedos are both cashmere and custom cut, so they are very comfortable. It is one of those places where I don’t skimp or be too frugal.
On stage under hot lights they might get a little warm, but if I were on stage as a soloist I would wear plain black slacks and a silk shirt (not the cheap, shinny silk, but good quality Thai or Indian silk). Perhaps in a deep red (not bright red). That is about as flashy as I get.
Wow, as a man, after reading the responses, I guess I have it easy. I either wear a suit or a tux, depending on what the client wants. The biggest descission I have is if I am going to wear a traditional tux or my more contemporary one, and if I will wear a reagular tux shirt or the silk. I had both of my tuxedoes custom made in Thailand so they are both nice looking AND comfortable.
And no jewelry other than cufflinks. I have silver cufflinks in the shape of Celtic Harps that I found in a shop on Grafton St in Dublin several years ago.
