Harp History
Earliest Harp History
The harp is the oldest known stringed instrument. The word "harpa" or "harp" comes from Anglo-Saxon, Old German, and Old Norse words meaning "to pluck". By the 13th century the term was being applied specifically to the triangular harp as opposed to the lyre harp. The earliest Gaelic term for a wire-strung instrument was "cruit" was applied specifically to the harp by 1200. A later word used in Scotland and Ireland for the "Celtic" harp was clarsach or cláirseach. Scottish records of the 15th and 16th centuries show that both the terms "harp" and "clarsach" were in use at the same time, and seem to indicate that there was a distinction between the gut-strung European-style harps and wire-strung Gaelic clarsachs. Today, we know the Gaelic harps as the Irish, Celtic, Folk, Scottish Clarsach or the modern lever harp. Most folk harps are strung with a combination of nylon, metal, gut and/or synthetic gut (carbon fibre) strings. Brass wire strung harps continue in the Gaelic tradition.
The harp is the oldest known stringed instrument. The word "harpa" or "harp" comes from Anglo-Saxon, Old German, and Old Norse words meaning "to pluck". By the 13th century the term was being applied specifically to the triangular harp as opposed to the lyre harp. The earliest Gaelic term for a wire-strung instrument was "cruit" was applied specifically to the harp by 1200. A later word used in Scotland and Ireland for the "Celtic" harp was clarsach or cláirseach. Scottish records of the 15th and 16th centuries show that both the terms "harp" and "clarsach" were in use at the same time, and seem to indicate that there was a distinction between the gut-strung European-style harps and wire-strung Gaelic clarsachs. Today, we know the Gaelic harps as the Irish, Celtic, Folk, Scottish Clarsach or the modern lever harp. Most folk harps are strung with a combination of nylon, metal, gut and/or synthetic gut (carbon fibre) strings. Brass wire strung harps continue in the Gaelic tradition.
Pictish Carving - Circa 8th Century
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The Harp's Origins
No one really knows where the harp originated and we will never know what harp music sounded like in the pre-historical era. One of the earliest musical instrument discoveries showed a harp-like instrument on rock paintings dating back to 15,000 BC in France. Many believe that the earliest harps came from the sound of the hunter's bow. In Egypt, some of the earliest images of bow harps are from the Pharaoh's tombs dating some 5,000 years ago. These hieroglyphs show that there were many harps in ancient Egypt. The Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses III (1198-1166 BC) had many bow harps painted in his tomb. In the New Kingdom, harps measured up to 2 metres (6.5 feet) in height with 19 strings and were played seated or standing up. Harps were very popular in ancient Assyria and Mesopotamia. One of the earliest illustrations of a harp was on a vase found in a Babylonian temple. These harps were angled harps with 12 to 15 strings and similar to the bowed instruments played in Egypt about the same time. The angle harp represents the next step in history towards the modern harp. The angle harp differs from what we call the harp today in that it lacked the front-piece, column or pillar. It was played "upside down" from its present playing orientation, with the tuning pegs on the bottom. |
Lyre Harps in the Middle East
Vertical harps with 2 arms also known as lyre harps or "lyres" also began appearing in ancient Sumaria by 2800 BC. Some of the oldest carvings of harps were discovered in Phoenicia with marble harp statuettes found dating back to 3,000 - 2,300 BC. The development of the lyre harp in Greece also coincided with the development of mathematical musical scales. By the 6th century BC, Pythagorus discovered numerical ratios corresponding to intervals of the musical scale. The Greeks are also credited with inventing the Aeolian harp, a harp played by the wind.
The Romans
Ancient Rome did not seem to place as high an importance on music compared to other ancient civilizations. With the decline of the Roman Empire, music seemed to have died out and there are very few historical references for a half millenium. In early European society following the fall of Rome impressions of lyre harps were found on the coins of pre-Christian Gauls. The harp and musical culture in general seems to have disappeared in the Dark Ages. These centuries are shrouded in mystery.
The Lyre Harp In Western Europe
After those centuries of obscurity in the historical record, the lyre precursor to the triangular Medieval harp reappeared in Western European civilization. In the fourth century AD, monk vocalizations predating Gregorian chanting were used in worship services in the Christian Church. The harp became a preferred instrument for accompaniment for the monks' voices. The harp was one of the few instruments allowed in the early church where the horn, drum and rattles were considered the devil's instruments. During the fifth century, the Papal Music School was established in Ireland where the lyre harp was taught. Fragments of a six-stringed lyre were found in the 7th-century burial ship unearthed at Suffolk in England. The remains of several Germanic lyres, dating from the fifth through the tenth century, have been found in Saxon and Frankish graves in Germany and England.
The Triangular Harp
It is not known where or how the fore-pillar or upright column that created a triangular-framed harp body came into use. The earliest drawings of triangular-frame harps appear in the Utrecht Psalter in the early 9th century. It was the appearance of the harp column possibly during the early Christian era that marked the advent of the modern harp. It solved two problems. It allowed the harp maker to increase string tension without distorting the instrument which also made the harp easier to tune as changing the tension of one string no longer affected the tension of all the other strings. Harps could then be built with more strings with higher tensions, better volume and tone.
Vertical harps with 2 arms also known as lyre harps or "lyres" also began appearing in ancient Sumaria by 2800 BC. Some of the oldest carvings of harps were discovered in Phoenicia with marble harp statuettes found dating back to 3,000 - 2,300 BC. The development of the lyre harp in Greece also coincided with the development of mathematical musical scales. By the 6th century BC, Pythagorus discovered numerical ratios corresponding to intervals of the musical scale. The Greeks are also credited with inventing the Aeolian harp, a harp played by the wind.
The Romans
Ancient Rome did not seem to place as high an importance on music compared to other ancient civilizations. With the decline of the Roman Empire, music seemed to have died out and there are very few historical references for a half millenium. In early European society following the fall of Rome impressions of lyre harps were found on the coins of pre-Christian Gauls. The harp and musical culture in general seems to have disappeared in the Dark Ages. These centuries are shrouded in mystery.
The Lyre Harp In Western Europe
After those centuries of obscurity in the historical record, the lyre precursor to the triangular Medieval harp reappeared in Western European civilization. In the fourth century AD, monk vocalizations predating Gregorian chanting were used in worship services in the Christian Church. The harp became a preferred instrument for accompaniment for the monks' voices. The harp was one of the few instruments allowed in the early church where the horn, drum and rattles were considered the devil's instruments. During the fifth century, the Papal Music School was established in Ireland where the lyre harp was taught. Fragments of a six-stringed lyre were found in the 7th-century burial ship unearthed at Suffolk in England. The remains of several Germanic lyres, dating from the fifth through the tenth century, have been found in Saxon and Frankish graves in Germany and England.
The Triangular Harp
It is not known where or how the fore-pillar or upright column that created a triangular-framed harp body came into use. The earliest drawings of triangular-frame harps appear in the Utrecht Psalter in the early 9th century. It was the appearance of the harp column possibly during the early Christian era that marked the advent of the modern harp. It solved two problems. It allowed the harp maker to increase string tension without distorting the instrument which also made the harp easier to tune as changing the tension of one string no longer affected the tension of all the other strings. Harps could then be built with more strings with higher tensions, better volume and tone.
Medieval & Renaissance Harp History
The harps played by the harpers of the old Gaelic orders were an aristocratic instrument, played in the courts of kings and before the chiefs of clans. Harp music had an important role in Gaelic culture, legend and folklore. About the 13th century, when Feudalism reached its height, the Troubadours began appearing. European harpers earned their living by moving from town to town, using small harps for self-accompanied singing, storytelling, news-telling and in instrumental groupings. Harpers were second only to the chieftain or king, often serving as advisors and leading armies into battle. Unarmed, they were recognized and respected by the enemy and were generally immune from harm.
The age of chivalry with its troubadours and minstrels began a new renaissance in harps. The Medieval harps during this time were small enough to be held on the player's lap, and had between 7 to 25 strings and they had narrow sound boxes often carved out of a solid log. Medieval harps were apparently wire strung although gut, hair and plant materials were used as well. By the 11th or 12th century, the upper neck begins to assume the contours of what we call the "harmonic curve" which attempted to more closely match the string's length with its frequency or pitch. Very little else is known about the instruments of this period.
Gothic Harps
During the middle of the 14th to 16th century, larger harps known as Gothic harps appeared. This harp had around 24 gut strings, a relatively tall instrument compared to earlier harps and is the ancestor of the later Renaissance harp. The Renaissance harp evolved into the Italian Double-Row Harp, the Italian Arpa Doppia, the Spanish Renaissance harp and the Chromatic harp. These versions of the Renaissance harp eventually developed into the modern the folk harps of Latin America, the "Orchestral, Pedal or Concert" harp of Central Europe and possibly the modern "Irish" or "Celtic" harp from the "Isles".
Still small and light by modern standards, the Gothic style Harp was the standard harp throughout Europe into the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance period in music history. They were strung with gut strings at a much lower tension than we are accustomed to today. Earlier models had 19 to 22 strings, later harps known as early Renaissance harps were larger and had 26 to 30 strings. They were tuned diatonically with the soundbox generally hollowed from a plank of hardwood, giving the harp a distinctive plucked sound to complement the lute, an instrument the gothic harp often played with in consort.
The Wartburg Single-Row Gothic Harp (circa 1350-1450) was acquired during the middle of the 19th century for the art collection of the Wartburg Museum, Eisenach, Germany. It purportedly belonged to Oswald von Wolkenstein, who lived in Tyrol from 1377-1445. It is beautifully inlayed with Certosinia-workand has 26 gut strings and a full set of brays at the string base to sharpen the strings by a semi-tone. It is a 'carved-body' type and made of maple. It stands at 109 cm high.
The Renaissance Harp
By the late Renaissance a number of variations on the Gothic / Renaissance harp theme were in use. The single-course Renaissance harp remained only capable of playing seven notes per octave or the diatonic scale (the white notes on a piano). The major composers of the 16th to 18th centuries demanded all 12 chromatic notes of the scale (white and black notes on the piano). One solution was a chromatic harp, a harp with 12 strings per octave . Chromatic harps were built in Spain in the 16th and 17th century. A double harp with two rows of strings was built in 1581. Soon afterwards, the triple harp appeared where the player would reach between two diatonic scaled rows of outer strings to play the chromatic notes in between. The double and triple harps continue today in the Welsh tradition.
The Italian Double-Row Renaissance Harp (circa 1675) had 2 parallel rows or courses of strings and was chromatic (having both the black notes and the white notes like a piano). It had a carved soundboard of maple and a five-staved back made of walnut with 52 chromatic notes with all gut strings.
The harps played by the harpers of the old Gaelic orders were an aristocratic instrument, played in the courts of kings and before the chiefs of clans. Harp music had an important role in Gaelic culture, legend and folklore. About the 13th century, when Feudalism reached its height, the Troubadours began appearing. European harpers earned their living by moving from town to town, using small harps for self-accompanied singing, storytelling, news-telling and in instrumental groupings. Harpers were second only to the chieftain or king, often serving as advisors and leading armies into battle. Unarmed, they were recognized and respected by the enemy and were generally immune from harm.
The age of chivalry with its troubadours and minstrels began a new renaissance in harps. The Medieval harps during this time were small enough to be held on the player's lap, and had between 7 to 25 strings and they had narrow sound boxes often carved out of a solid log. Medieval harps were apparently wire strung although gut, hair and plant materials were used as well. By the 11th or 12th century, the upper neck begins to assume the contours of what we call the "harmonic curve" which attempted to more closely match the string's length with its frequency or pitch. Very little else is known about the instruments of this period.
Gothic Harps
During the middle of the 14th to 16th century, larger harps known as Gothic harps appeared. This harp had around 24 gut strings, a relatively tall instrument compared to earlier harps and is the ancestor of the later Renaissance harp. The Renaissance harp evolved into the Italian Double-Row Harp, the Italian Arpa Doppia, the Spanish Renaissance harp and the Chromatic harp. These versions of the Renaissance harp eventually developed into the modern the folk harps of Latin America, the "Orchestral, Pedal or Concert" harp of Central Europe and possibly the modern "Irish" or "Celtic" harp from the "Isles".
Still small and light by modern standards, the Gothic style Harp was the standard harp throughout Europe into the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance period in music history. They were strung with gut strings at a much lower tension than we are accustomed to today. Earlier models had 19 to 22 strings, later harps known as early Renaissance harps were larger and had 26 to 30 strings. They were tuned diatonically with the soundbox generally hollowed from a plank of hardwood, giving the harp a distinctive plucked sound to complement the lute, an instrument the gothic harp often played with in consort.
The Wartburg Single-Row Gothic Harp (circa 1350-1450) was acquired during the middle of the 19th century for the art collection of the Wartburg Museum, Eisenach, Germany. It purportedly belonged to Oswald von Wolkenstein, who lived in Tyrol from 1377-1445. It is beautifully inlayed with Certosinia-workand has 26 gut strings and a full set of brays at the string base to sharpen the strings by a semi-tone. It is a 'carved-body' type and made of maple. It stands at 109 cm high.
The Renaissance Harp
By the late Renaissance a number of variations on the Gothic / Renaissance harp theme were in use. The single-course Renaissance harp remained only capable of playing seven notes per octave or the diatonic scale (the white notes on a piano). The major composers of the 16th to 18th centuries demanded all 12 chromatic notes of the scale (white and black notes on the piano). One solution was a chromatic harp, a harp with 12 strings per octave . Chromatic harps were built in Spain in the 16th and 17th century. A double harp with two rows of strings was built in 1581. Soon afterwards, the triple harp appeared where the player would reach between two diatonic scaled rows of outer strings to play the chromatic notes in between. The double and triple harps continue today in the Welsh tradition.
The Italian Double-Row Renaissance Harp (circa 1675) had 2 parallel rows or courses of strings and was chromatic (having both the black notes and the white notes like a piano). It had a carved soundboard of maple and a five-staved back made of walnut with 52 chromatic notes with all gut strings.
"Bolognia Doppia"
with 2 rows of strings
Reproduction from the doppia in the
Museo Medival, Bolognia, 1600.
Eric Early Harps
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"Barberini" Italian Baroque Harp
with 3 rows of strings.
Reproduction from the original built for
Cardinal Antonio Barberini, Rome 1635.
Eric Early Harps
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The Italian Arpa Doppia was a three-course harp of the late Renaissance or early Baroque period had 26 chromatic strings in the central row, with 24 trebles on the right, and 25 basses on the left. The soundbox was constructed of hardwood staves, and the soundboard is maple.
Spanish Harps
Early Spanish Harps were single-course or cross-strung harps generally with 29 strings. The single course- harp could be fretted against the neck for semi-tones.The cross-strung harps had chromatic strings (the black piano notes) intersecting, or passing between the diatonic strings (the white piano strings), forming an X. In this way, all chromatic and diatonic strings were playable by both hands at any point on the harp. The soundboard is very much like the guitar with spruce and cross braced for reinforcement, creating a wonderful sound.
Wire Strung Harps
Wire strung harps or ancient Irish harps may be the predecessors of our current lever harps in folklore but not in technical development. These instruments were wire strung (brass, iron, silver, or gold) often with the soundboxes carved from a single piece of willow (bog wood). Technical innovations garnered from many geographical centers of the late Renaissance Europe plus the invention of the modern lever mechanism in Japan in composite have eventuated in the modern Celtic harp.
The Paraguayan Harp
In the 1600s, the later Spanish or Renaissance harp was taken to the new world by Jesuit missionaries and developed in a completely different way. The indigenous peoples were fascinated with the instrument, made some changes to it and adopted it as part of their own culture. There are many kinds of harps in Latin America, including the Venezuelan harp, Mexican harp and arpa llanera - harp of the plain. Almost all South American Countries have their own versions of harps. In construction and playing techniques, these harps are quite different from the traditional European harps. They were made of thin wood (cedar and pine) and were much lighter than the European harp. The strings were routed up the centre of the neck and the instruments were bi-symmetrical resulting in few structural stresses. Eventually tacitos were used to sharpen notes to change key. The playing style and techniques were vibrant and dynamic in contrast to the softer European tone. Modern Paraguayan harps usually have 36 nylon strings tuned to the diatonic scale and are played with the fingernails. The sound is bright with a shorter sustain period after the plucking of each note.
Spanish Harps
Early Spanish Harps were single-course or cross-strung harps generally with 29 strings. The single course- harp could be fretted against the neck for semi-tones.The cross-strung harps had chromatic strings (the black piano notes) intersecting, or passing between the diatonic strings (the white piano strings), forming an X. In this way, all chromatic and diatonic strings were playable by both hands at any point on the harp. The soundboard is very much like the guitar with spruce and cross braced for reinforcement, creating a wonderful sound.
Wire Strung Harps
Wire strung harps or ancient Irish harps may be the predecessors of our current lever harps in folklore but not in technical development. These instruments were wire strung (brass, iron, silver, or gold) often with the soundboxes carved from a single piece of willow (bog wood). Technical innovations garnered from many geographical centers of the late Renaissance Europe plus the invention of the modern lever mechanism in Japan in composite have eventuated in the modern Celtic harp.
The Paraguayan Harp
In the 1600s, the later Spanish or Renaissance harp was taken to the new world by Jesuit missionaries and developed in a completely different way. The indigenous peoples were fascinated with the instrument, made some changes to it and adopted it as part of their own culture. There are many kinds of harps in Latin America, including the Venezuelan harp, Mexican harp and arpa llanera - harp of the plain. Almost all South American Countries have their own versions of harps. In construction and playing techniques, these harps are quite different from the traditional European harps. They were made of thin wood (cedar and pine) and were much lighter than the European harp. The strings were routed up the centre of the neck and the instruments were bi-symmetrical resulting in few structural stresses. Eventually tacitos were used to sharpen notes to change key. The playing style and techniques were vibrant and dynamic in contrast to the softer European tone. Modern Paraguayan harps usually have 36 nylon strings tuned to the diatonic scale and are played with the fingernails. The sound is bright with a shorter sustain period after the plucking of each note.
EL ARPA PARAGUAYA
The Celtic Connection
The Irish are generally credited in the popular press with bringing the harp to Europe. It is believed by some scholars that the harp was actually brought to Europe from Egypt by the Phoenicians in pre Christian times as a trade good. The paths of the Phoenicians can be traced by the distribution and acceptance of the harp. Versions of the harp (or Kora harp) exist from the Mediterranean Basin to Northern Europe to cultures all the way around coastal Africa and up to the Island of Madagascar. The harp may have arrived in Europe as well with successive Indo-European migrations from Southwest Asia.
An Instrument of the Court
The harp and Celtic harp music has been an important emblem of Irish nationalism since the 10th Century. King Griffith of Wales employed harpists in his court at the end of the 11th century. By the end of the 12th century, manuscript illustrations show harps with more advanced designs. The Irish were by then playing harps with brass, or bronze, strings. Records from the 15th century show that both the terms "harp" and "clarsach" were in use at about the same time and seemed to have been a distinction between gut-strung European-style harps and wire-strung Gaelic clarsachs of Scotland and Ireland.
The earliest surviving harps from Scotland and Ireland date to about the 15th century. The Trinity College harp, one of Ireland's national treasures, is the harp from which the national symbol of Ireland is copied. The characteristic shape of an Irish Harp is familiar from Irish coins and bottles of Guiness Beer. Henry VIII of England had the Irish harp impressed on coins after obtaining control over Ireland. For centuries, the harp was an integral part of Irish life. Traveling harpists in Ireland, were known to be at the focal point of rebellions - so much so that the harp was banned. Turlough Carolan (1670-1738), the blind Irish folk harpist, wrote hundreds of tunes - many of them are still very popular today.
The Irish are generally credited in the popular press with bringing the harp to Europe. It is believed by some scholars that the harp was actually brought to Europe from Egypt by the Phoenicians in pre Christian times as a trade good. The paths of the Phoenicians can be traced by the distribution and acceptance of the harp. Versions of the harp (or Kora harp) exist from the Mediterranean Basin to Northern Europe to cultures all the way around coastal Africa and up to the Island of Madagascar. The harp may have arrived in Europe as well with successive Indo-European migrations from Southwest Asia.
An Instrument of the Court
The harp and Celtic harp music has been an important emblem of Irish nationalism since the 10th Century. King Griffith of Wales employed harpists in his court at the end of the 11th century. By the end of the 12th century, manuscript illustrations show harps with more advanced designs. The Irish were by then playing harps with brass, or bronze, strings. Records from the 15th century show that both the terms "harp" and "clarsach" were in use at about the same time and seemed to have been a distinction between gut-strung European-style harps and wire-strung Gaelic clarsachs of Scotland and Ireland.
The earliest surviving harps from Scotland and Ireland date to about the 15th century. The Trinity College harp, one of Ireland's national treasures, is the harp from which the national symbol of Ireland is copied. The characteristic shape of an Irish Harp is familiar from Irish coins and bottles of Guiness Beer. Henry VIII of England had the Irish harp impressed on coins after obtaining control over Ireland. For centuries, the harp was an integral part of Irish life. Traveling harpists in Ireland, were known to be at the focal point of rebellions - so much so that the harp was banned. Turlough Carolan (1670-1738), the blind Irish folk harpist, wrote hundreds of tunes - many of them are still very popular today.
Trinity college Harp, Dublin
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Queen Mary Harp,
Museum of Antiquities,
Edinborough
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The English Ban the Harp
The period starting from the 1600s during English rule in Ireland was difficult for Irish harpers as the harp as a folk and court instrument was suppressed to prevent a resurgence of nationalism. Harps were burnt and harpers executed. The tragic extinction of this harping tradition at the end of the eighteenth century had a number of causes: the Angloization of the Irish (and Scottish) cultures, the increased popularity of step-dancing and the fiddle, and the inability of the harp to play the musical accidentals required for classical music, which started coming in to vogue in Dublin and Edinburgh during the then Baroque era. Only in Wales was the Folk harp tradition unbroken.
Edward Bunting & O'Carolan
By the late 18th century it was clear that traditional Irish harpers were nearly extinct. Because harp music had always been handed down orally, very little of it has been preserved. The most important attempt to save the music was made in 1792. In order to encourage and preserve the old harping tradition, a festival was held in Belfast and newspaper advertisements invited all Irish harpers to come and play for cash prizes. Only ten harpers, ranging in age from fifteen to ninety seven, could be found. A nineteen year old church organist named Edward Bunting was hired to notate the music, but with few exceptions only the melodies, and not the bass lines were taken down. Bunting had so much enthusiasm during the festival that he continued to collect traditional tunes throughout his life, publishing three collections, in 1797, 1809, and 1840. Bunting collected not only the music, but much lore and technical information from the harpers. All of the surviving O'Carolan melodies date to these works. Few other melodies survive and this proves to be an historic oversight; now we know little about how the harp was actually played.
Today's Celtic Harpers
Many harpers also have assisted in the recovery of the lost Celtic harping tradition. In particular, Keith Sanger and Alison Kinnaird have uncovered much fascinating information about the Gaelic harp in Scotland. The resurgence in the late 20th century of the North American traveling Troubadour harpers like Sylvia Woods has rekindled interest in the Celtic harp. The international success of the Chieftains and their harper, Derek Bell, led to a resurgence of folk harping throughout Ireland and the rest of the western world. Traditional Irish folk harp makers are now beginning to flourish after a hiatus where only the orchestral harp was to be found in Ireland. In the last few decades the harp has grown in popularity with the likes of harpers Derek Bell, Anne Heyman, Alison Kinnaird, Patrick Ball, Moira O'Hara, Alan Stivell, Kim Robertson, and many others have made wonderful records of Celtic music. Today the Irish or Celtic folk lever harp is again an important part of Irish and world culture.
The period starting from the 1600s during English rule in Ireland was difficult for Irish harpers as the harp as a folk and court instrument was suppressed to prevent a resurgence of nationalism. Harps were burnt and harpers executed. The tragic extinction of this harping tradition at the end of the eighteenth century had a number of causes: the Angloization of the Irish (and Scottish) cultures, the increased popularity of step-dancing and the fiddle, and the inability of the harp to play the musical accidentals required for classical music, which started coming in to vogue in Dublin and Edinburgh during the then Baroque era. Only in Wales was the Folk harp tradition unbroken.
Edward Bunting & O'Carolan
By the late 18th century it was clear that traditional Irish harpers were nearly extinct. Because harp music had always been handed down orally, very little of it has been preserved. The most important attempt to save the music was made in 1792. In order to encourage and preserve the old harping tradition, a festival was held in Belfast and newspaper advertisements invited all Irish harpers to come and play for cash prizes. Only ten harpers, ranging in age from fifteen to ninety seven, could be found. A nineteen year old church organist named Edward Bunting was hired to notate the music, but with few exceptions only the melodies, and not the bass lines were taken down. Bunting had so much enthusiasm during the festival that he continued to collect traditional tunes throughout his life, publishing three collections, in 1797, 1809, and 1840. Bunting collected not only the music, but much lore and technical information from the harpers. All of the surviving O'Carolan melodies date to these works. Few other melodies survive and this proves to be an historic oversight; now we know little about how the harp was actually played.
Today's Celtic Harpers
Many harpers also have assisted in the recovery of the lost Celtic harping tradition. In particular, Keith Sanger and Alison Kinnaird have uncovered much fascinating information about the Gaelic harp in Scotland. The resurgence in the late 20th century of the North American traveling Troubadour harpers like Sylvia Woods has rekindled interest in the Celtic harp. The international success of the Chieftains and their harper, Derek Bell, led to a resurgence of folk harping throughout Ireland and the rest of the western world. Traditional Irish folk harp makers are now beginning to flourish after a hiatus where only the orchestral harp was to be found in Ireland. In the last few decades the harp has grown in popularity with the likes of harpers Derek Bell, Anne Heyman, Alison Kinnaird, Patrick Ball, Moira O'Hara, Alan Stivell, Kim Robertson, and many others have made wonderful records of Celtic music. Today the Irish or Celtic folk lever harp is again an important part of Irish and world culture.
Alison's Sandpiper Nova Celtic - Bresch Celtic - Webby Celtic Harps - Paraguayan Harp-
Other Modern Harps
Although there were forward leaps during our later history, most attempts made to create a more playable harp failed and it has remained difficult to play and awkward, even today. Musical composers continued either to ignore the harp or include it sparingly for glissandos, arpeggios and "harpy effects". The pedal harp was perfected starting in 1697 and in production by 1720 as the first single-action pedal harp which could raise the pitch of the selected strings by a half step, allowing the harp to be chromatic and be played in most keys. The pedal harp was improved in 1750 when the early pedal-operated string catching hooks were replaced with metal plates that gripped the strings while leaving them in the same plane, and in 1792 rotating disks were substituted for the metal plates. Later the double-action harp was developed, where a string could be raised or lowered a semi-tone.
Although there were forward leaps during our later history, most attempts made to create a more playable harp failed and it has remained difficult to play and awkward, even today. Musical composers continued either to ignore the harp or include it sparingly for glissandos, arpeggios and "harpy effects". The pedal harp was perfected starting in 1697 and in production by 1720 as the first single-action pedal harp which could raise the pitch of the selected strings by a half step, allowing the harp to be chromatic and be played in most keys. The pedal harp was improved in 1750 when the early pedal-operated string catching hooks were replaced with metal plates that gripped the strings while leaving them in the same plane, and in 1792 rotating disks were substituted for the metal plates. Later the double-action harp was developed, where a string could be raised or lowered a semi-tone.
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Types of Western Modern Harps
Celtic or Irish Folk/Lever harp - Diatonic - tuned in one key with 7 notes with single accidentals Concert, Pedal or Classical Orchestral harp - Chromatic - all 12 notes with no single accidentals South American harp - Diatonic - Tuned in one key - possibly no accidentals Multi-course/row harp - Double, Triple or Cross Strung harps - all possibilities of tuning Renaissance or Gothic harp - Diatonic - Tuned in one key or mode - no accidentals |