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Ancient Egypt
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| The earliest evidence of the harp is found in
Ancient Egypt circa 2500 BC. They were shaped liked bows or angular and had
very few strings (because they lacked a column they could not support much
string tension). |
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Irish Harps
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The frame harp, or a harp that
included a straight forepillar (or column in the modern sense), first
appeared in Medieval Western Europe in the 8th to 10th centuries AD.
Although there are very few remaining in existence, art from that time
indicates they utilized about ten or eleven strings. The first harp to
feature a hollowed soundbox that amplified the instrument's sound dates back
to Ireland in the 14th century. It also included a curved forepillar, a
stronger neck and 30 to 36 brass strings. |
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Diatonic Harps
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| Harps in continental Europe differed from Irish
harps in that the forepillar was thinner and less curved, the neck was more
slender and it curved upward to meet the end of the column. Referred to as
Renaissance harps, they typically had 24 or more gut strings which were
fixed to the soundboard with brays (wooden pegs). By the end of the 17th
century, they typically had staved sound bodies and straight forepillars. |
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Triple-strung harps
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| Triple-strung harps first appeared in Italy in
the late 16th or early 17th century. They followed the invention of the
double-strung harp, which had two rows of strings strategically tuned for
use of two-handed playing; by passing a finger between two strings a harpist
could reach the corresponding chromatic note in the other row. The
triple-strung harp had three rows of strings, the two outer rows were tuned
to the same diatonic scale while the inner row was tuned to the outer rows’
chromatic semitones. Two major benefits were that tunes with more rapidly
repeated notes could more easily be played and that the doubled, or
amplified, rows of the same notes increased the resonance of the instrument. |
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Single-action pedal
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Approximately 1720, a less cumbersome way to
get some chromatic notes from a single-strung harp tuned diatonically was
introduced. Five pedals (eventually seven) were housed in the bottom of the
soundbox. When depressed they connected to hooks that would sharpen the
strings of the same note via linkages that passed through the column. The
hooks were quickly improved to crochets, which were right-angled rather than
u-shaped hooks, then to bequilles, sets of two small levers in which each
string wrapped through; when a pedal was depressed, one lever would turn
clockwise and the other counter-clockwise, providing a firmer grip. While a
better system, they were prone to breakage and produced a buzzing noise.
Near the end of the 18th century, the single-action pedal harp was greatly
improved. A model was introduced that had a soundbox built with a separate
pine soundboard and a body that was reinforced with internal ribs. Brass
action plates were attached to the outside of the harp neck, rather than
inside providing strength to the linkage system. The most important
improvement was the disc system. Two brass prongs (or forks) extended from a
disc that a string passed through before attaching to the tuning peg. When
the corresponding pedal was depressed, the discs turned and the strings
sharpened a semitone, held firmly against the prong. |
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Chromatic / cross-strung
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| This unique version of the harp was introduced
about 1800. It had two necks, two bodies and two columns that crossed in the
middle, each double-strung with 40 strings. A simplified version was made in
the late 19th century with one body, column and a wider neck which two sets
of strings descended, crossed and attached to the soundboard. This version
was large and physically difficult to play and virtually abandoned by the
mid 1950's. |
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Double-action pedal
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| The only drawback to the single-action harp was
that not every key could be achieved for playing. In 1810, a double-action
pedal harp was patented in which the seven pedals could be depressed twice
and each string passed through two pronged discs instead of just one. When a
pedal was depressed into the first notch, the upper disc turned partially
and firmly held the string so that it sharpened a semitone while the bottom
disc turned partially but did not touch the string. To sharpen another
semitone, the pedal was depressed again into a lower notch and the bottom
disc turned further to grip the string even more. Aside from mechanical
improvements, this system is still used today. |
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Important People to the Harp World
Jacques-Georges Cousineau (France, 1760-1824) invented the bequille
and other mechanisms for the harp, was also a harp virtuoso.
Sebastien Erard (Germany, 1752-1831), developed the single action and
double action harp, revolutionized the harp by the invention of the
fourchette mechanism (discs with prongs) that is still used today.
Clelia Gatti-Aldrovandi (Italy, 1901-1989), esteemed harp soloist and
respected teacher.
Marcel Grandjany (France, 1891-1976), successful harp virtuoso,
esteemed teacher, helped found the American Harp Society.
Alphonse Jean Hasselmans (Belgium, 1845-1912), refined the techniques
known as the French method of harp playing, instructed many respected
harpists while harp professor at the Paris Conservatoire.
Lily Laskine (France, 1893-1988), harp prodigy with a long career
including posts at the Paris Opera, Orchestre National de France, Theatre
Francais and as professor of harp at the Paris Conservatoire; also a
successful recording artist.
Harpo Marx (USA, 1888-1964), second oldest of the "Marx Brothers" -
the popular vaudeville act and movie team of the 20's and 30's; taught
himself to play the harp while never learning to read music; his two gold
Lyon & Healy harps were donated to an Israeli university for student use
upon his death.
Turlogh O'Carolan (Ireland, 1670-1738), blind harpist and composer of
the harp, wrote many popular Irish airs.
Charles Oberthür (Germany, 1819-1895), renowned harpist and composer.
Elias Parish-Alvars (England, 1808-1849), considered one of the best
harpists of all time; composer of concertos, fantasias and solos for harp,
many still popular today.
Henriette Renié (France, 1875-1956), was one of the first successful
female harp virtuosos and a respected teacher and composer.
Alberto Salvi (Italy, 1893-1983), renowned harpist, performed many
solo concerts in a time when more harpists were accompanists; performed in
many operas; recorded with RCA Victor and was popular on radio.
Carlos Salzedo (France, 1885-1961), widely credited as establishing
the harp as a significant instrument in the 20th century; composed a large
body of music pieces for the harp; esteemed harp virtuoso and beloved
teacher; designed the Lyon & Healy Salzedo model harp.
Marcel-Lucien Tournier (France, 1879-1951), harp virtuoso and
composer; succeeded Hasselmans as professor of harp at the Paris
Conservatoire.
Nicanor Zabaleta (1907-1993), increased the popularity of the harp
worldwide by aggressively touring and selling more than four million copies
of his recordings. |
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