Hi, I’m Cynthia Shelhart. You can call me Cindy. And it’s time for some #DoubleTalk. Double-strung harp, that is!
Welcome, or welcome back, to our channel featuring the modern double-strung harp and its music. If you’re new here, make sure you subscribe to my mailing list and YouTube channel, so you can be notified of future episodes (and catch up on the back catalog)!
This series, Know The Score, takes a behind-the-scenes look at arranging for double-strung harp, based on The Technique Triangle™️, my signature framework for double-strung harp technique.
Each episode shows how I use The Technique Triangle in different ways, in different arrangements, to help your double-strung harp “sound more like a double.”
About the Tune
Today’s Episode 2 arrangement is an adaptation of Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring, by Johann Sebastian Bach, who, in turn, arranged and orchestrated an earlier hymn tune by Johann Schop. Bach’s version appears in his 1723 cantata Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben, BWV 147.
This arrangement comes from my book Double the Weddings, part of The Double Dozen Series (available at CindyShelhart.com). You can play this arrangement not only for weddings, but also for recitals, concerts, special events, and worship services.
In this video, I’ll play the arrangement twice through, leaving out the optional repeat of measures 9 through 24.
About the Arrangement
Throughout the arrangement, the left hand accompaniment is varied with single notes as well as chords.
In measure 12, the left hand D major triad stays above middle C, so the stacked thirds of the triad don’t sound muddy (if they go too low).
This arrangement features Overlap Technique—what I like to call the double-strung harp’s “combo platter.” It brings everything together. Both hands can play independent parts, and it also features elements of Echo and Split Techniques. If you need a refresher on Overlap Technique, watch the “Know The Score” overview episode for a review of The Technique Triangle.
In measures 9 through 16, while the right hand plays the chorale theme with chords, the left hand switches to a single-note line that imitates the basso continuo of Bach’s original.
Using Overlap Technique
Overlap Technique isn’t just a convenient way to play the left hand up an octave. It’s also a way to make “less” sound like “more.” This comes from arranging with simpler textures that make room for the double-strung harp’s extra resonance, from its extra strings.
This doesn’t have to be boring—nor is it dumbing it down. It’s an INTENTIONAL way to use musical texture, in a way that works best for the double-strung harp AND for your arrangement.
So this arrangement of Bach’s Jesu, Joy Of Man’s Desiring is just one example of how you can use the “less is more” texture of Overlap Technique to show off the extra resonance, the extra strings of the double-strung harp.
For YOUR next arrangement, try a “less is more” Overlap Technique approach, with some ideas like:
Using left hand patterns and chord voicings that use consonant intervals: unisons, fourths, fifths, and octaves.
Varying the accompaniment pattern between chord tone patterns and single notes.
And shifting between registers for contrast…you don’t need to use Overlap Technique all the time. You can move back and forth [in and out of Overlap] to vary your arrangement.
For more details on double-strung harp arranging with Overlap Technique, along with the other techniques of the Technique Triangle, watch for my upcoming double-strung harp arranging book!
Wrapping Up
Thanks for joining me today for Episode 2 of Know The Score. If you liked what you heard today, please make sure you’re subscribed, so you can be notified of future episodes. And if you want to be the first to get some more Double Talk, head on over to my website, CindyShelhart.com, and sign up for my mailing list.
Next time, in Episode 3, it’s a double feature. We’ll use Split Technique AND Overlap Technique to work some Mendelssohn magic with accidentals. Stay tuned (and subscribe) for more #DoubleStrungExcellence with Know The Score… see you next time!
Hi, I’m Cynthia Shelhart. You can call me Cindy. And it’s time for some #DoubleTalk. Double-strung harp, that is!
Welcome, or welcome back, to our channel featuring the modern double-strung harp and its music. If you’re new here, we’re glad you joined us. Please make sure you subscribe to my mailing list and this YouTube channel, so you can be notified about future episodes. (and catch up on the back catalog!)
Know The Score
Today we’re launching Series 2, called Know The Score. It’s a behind-the-scenes look at arranging for double-strung harp, based on The Technique Triangle™️, which is my signature framework for double-strung harp technique.
Each episode shows how I use The Technique Triangle in different ways, with different arrangements, to help your double-strung harp “sound more like a double.”
About the Tune: Ode to Joy
Today’s Episode 1 inspiration is Ode to Joy by Ludwig van Beethoven. This famous theme comes from the final movement of Beethoven’s Symphony #9. It’s also used for the English-language hymn text “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee,” and it is the instrumental anthem of the European Union.
This arrangement of Ode to Joy comes from my book Double the Weddings, which is part of The Double Dozen Series. It’s available on my website, CindyShelhart.com. In this video, I play the arrangement twice through.
Using Echo Technique and Echo Variations
This arrangement features Echo Technique, the foundation sound of the double-strung harp. If you need a refresher on Echo Technique, be sure to watch the Know The Score overview (Episode 0) for a review of The Technique Triangle, which includes Echo Technique.
Echo variations work well if your melody has mostly notes on the beat, like the quarter notes and half notes do in Ode to Joy. This way, you have room in between the notes on the beat to play echoes. But, if you echo ALL the notes, it’s too much of a good thing.
Ode to Joy‘s main theme is relatively short. So I arranged it with an echo variation, a section using Echo Technique, to keep things interesting a second time through. This especially shows up in the A part the second time through, in measures 25 through 32.
Echo Technique, Register Shifts, and Clef Changes
Echoing with the left hand means that it needs to move up and play in the same range as the right hand. So, in this section, you’ll see the left hand part written in treble clef.
Now, just because it’s an echo, doesn’t mean that every single melody note needs to be strictly echoed. And, for example, I do things a little differently on the first beat of each measure. The left hand plays a chord root or inversion to establish the harmony, and then it jumps up to echo the right hand in a different range.
In measures 33, 41, and 43, I break up the echo variation with some left hand block chords in the bass clef. So, changing to a different register on the harp, and giving it some accompaniment variety. So, watch for those clef changes when that happens.
Different Kinds of Echoes
And there are different kinds of echoes, too. In measure 28, in the left hand D-A-D pattern, the left hand’s A actually comes in before the right hand’s A. Maybe you could think about this as an “anticipated” echo, one that comes before the melody note instead of following it.
Later on, in measures 45 and 46, the left hand syncopation gives almost an “echo-ish” feel to the accompaniment. It’s not a MELODIC echo, but the ostinato G on the off-beats makes it almost sound like a RHYTHMIC type of echo.
Why Use Echo Variations?
Echo variations, like Echo Technique, come from the double-strung harp’s direct ancestor, the Welsh triple harp. Triple harpists in the 18th century composed and performed classical-style variations on Welsh traditional airs. And, we can use this practice for other types of music, too, like I did in this arrangement of Ode to Joy.
If you’re interested in finding out more about the history of the double-strung harp, and its relation to the Welsh triple harp, be sure to catch Episode 4 (parts 1 & 2), in our Double-Strung Harp FAQ series.
Wrapping Up
So this arrangement of Beethoven’s Ode to Joy is a great example of how Echo Technique and echo variations, from the Welsh triple harp tradition, can be used for other musical genres. My upcoming book on arranging for double-strung harp goes into more detail.
Thanks for coming today. Thanks for joining me on Episode 1 of Know The Score. If you liked what you heard today, please make sure you’re subscribed, so you can be notified of future episodes. And if you really want to be one of the first to get some more Double Talk, go on over to my website, CindyShelhart.com, and sign up for my mailing list.
Next time, in Episode 2 of Know The Score, we’ll show how arranging with Overlap Technique can help make less into more. See you next time!
Hi, I’m Cynthia Shelhart. You can call me Cindy. And it’s time for some #DoubleTalk. Double-strung harp, that is!
Welcome, or welcome back, to our channel featuring the modern double-strung harp and its music. We’ve just finished up a series of double-strung harp FAQ videos, featuring everything from “What is a double-strung harp?” and its historical roots, to choosing an instrument for yourself and getting started playing a double harp. If you missed those episodes—hey, it’s never too late for some Double Talk! Make sure to catch those episodes to catch up. And make sure you’re subscribed for future episodes.
About Know The Score
You’re here at just the right time for some exciting stuff. Starting with this episode, we’re switching gears for a new season. We’ll dig deeper into arranging music for double-strung harp with a new series called Know The Score.
Know The Score, which is new to Series 2, is a behind-the-scenes look at arranging for double-strung harp, based on The Shelhart Method™️, my approach to tunes, technique, and theory for double-strung harp.
Each episode also goes deeper on The Technique Triangle™️, my signature framework for double-strung harp technique, as part of The Shelhart Method.
This new series is going to focus on using The Technique Triangle in different ways with different arrangements, to really help your double-strung harp “sound more like a double.” You’ll see this in action with arrangements from my Double Dozen Series books: Double the Weddings, and Double the O’Carolan Tunes.
About The Technique Triangle
You might recognize these double-strung harp techniques from my method book, Make Mine a Double; they’re now known as The Technique Triangle, as part of The Shelhart Method. (I also wrote a blog post recently introducing The Technique Triangle, and I’ll put a link to that post in the show notes.) If you’re new to these techniques, or if you’d like a little reminder, we’ll take a look under the hood.
Each technique of The Technique Triangle is named for its main job in playing and creating double-strung harp music.
You can use these techniques to create an unlimited number of double-strung harp patterns, but they’re still based on 1 or more of these 3 double-strung harp techniques. And the same pattern can be used in a variety of ways.
Also, you don’t need to use all three of these techniques in the same arrangement. Using even just ONE of these techniques can help your double-strung harp “sound more like a double.”
The 3 Techniques
So let’s take a look at the 3 techniques:
Echo Technique
Echo Technique is the foundation sound of the double-strung harp—what everyone expects to hear from 2 rows of strings. This melodic technique features the 2 string rows, and they’re tuned in unison. And both hands echo the same notes back and forth.
Split Technique
Split Technique serves as the double-strung harp’s problem solver. It’s also a melodic technique. And it helps out, when you have repeated notes or an extended scale pattern, when you can split similar notes back and forth between hands, so that it’s easier to play. And Split Technique also includes some elements of Echo Technique.
Overlap Technique
The third technique, Overlap Technique, is what I like to call the “combo platter” of double-strung harp techniques. It weaves independent parts together, as both hands overlap in the same range to play two or more different parts at the same time, including accidentals. So that’s where some of the lever changes, or maybe not even having to make lever changes, can come in handy. In Overlap Technique, harmony and rhythm and texture share the same stage with the melodic techniques and elements from Echo and Split Techniques.
Wrapping Up
So, these 3 parts of The Technique Triangle, the part of The Shelhart Method that really helps your harp “sound more like a double,” are the foundation for our new look behind the scenes at the arranging process. You’ll see how I used these techniques—and how you can, too—with example arrangements from my Double Dozen book series.
Thanks for joining me today for Episode Zero, the overview of our new series. If you liked what you heard today, please make sure you’re subscribed, so you can be notified of future episodes. And if you really want to be the first to get some more Double Talk, head on over to my website, CindyShelhart.com, and sign up for my mailing list.
So stay tuned (and subscribed) for next time—our first Series 2 episode features some great ways to arrange with Echo Technique, that unmistakable sound of the double-strung harp. Get ready to Know The Score… see you next time!
Hi, I’m Cynthia Shelhart. You can call me Cindy. And it’s time for some #DoubleTalk. Double-strung harp, that is!
Welcome back to our FAQ series on the double-strung harp. Last time, in Episode 5, we took a workshop view to explore all kinds of music that you can play on double-strung harp. (Did you miss the episode? Hey, we missed YOU. Make sure you’re subscribed for future episodes, OK?)
This time in Episode 6, it’s the magic moment you’ve all been waiting for. Your double-strung harp is on its way, or maybe it’s even already arrived at its new home. It’s time to take those first steps—and it can be easier than you think. Today we’ll take a look at “How do I get started playing double-strung harp?”
Technique
Let’s start with some good news about technique.
If you already play single-row harp, if you already play lever harp with a single row of strings, you’re halfway there. The same familiar technique that you use for single-row harp is the same that you use for double-strung harp: the same placing for your fingers, plucking the string, closing and replacing, fingering conventions, these are all the same. So, you’ve already made a great start there.
And an ideal place to start, I think, is if you already play at an intermediate level—if you can play independent parts with both hands together at the same time. The double-strung harp has enough new and different things about it, for your hands and your eyes and your brain, that it helps if you can get some of the other stuff out of the way, the basic harp technique that you know from single-row harp. And if you can play hands together playing independent parts, well, you’re just putting the ball in your court.
But if you’re brand new to harp, the double-strung harp IS still doable; you’ve just got a little bit more to cover. I’d recommend harp lessons to get you up to speed with basic harp technique. And you CAN do this. I would recommend doing a little research, and making sure that you find the right teacher to help you out with both things at the same time. (And I’ll have a little bit more on that later.)
Single-Row & Familiar Repertoire
Speaking of familiar stuff, you can use familiar single-row repertoire to help you get used to your double-strung harp: not just technique, but also the music that you already play.
This helps you get used to the feel and the look of 2 rows of strings. And you might be surprised to know that when you’re playing double-strung harp, it’s not just all overlapped in the same range all the time. It also includes playing hands separated, with right hand high in the melody range, and left hand a little lower, like the single-row harp. So this will also fit right in with playing double-strung harp, if you bring your single-row repertoire over.
This also helps you get used to the sound of 2 rows. If you do a slight move of your left hand up an octave, so that you can play the melody, the same right hand melody, in the left hand, at the same time, you’re actually playing in true unison. And this is something that you can’t do on a single-row harp; you have to have a double- or triple-strung harp to be able to do that. So the two unison rows of strings allow you to play the same thing in the same range. And this is a great way to get used to the sound of 2 rows.
“Double Vision”
Now there’s one more thing that everybody gets a little bit concerned about when their double-strung harp arrives, and that’s something that we nickname “double vision.” And this is a temporary disorientation from looking at the two rows of strings, instead of one. And this DOES go away with time; please be patient with yourself, but also know that the time that this takes to go away varies with individual harpists. So for you, it may be something that goes away very quickly, or it may take you a little bit of time. But again, please be patient with yourself.
The main thing that we’re looking to do is to decrease your visual dependence on the strings. And there are some things you can try:
One is to focus on 1 row of strings at a time. You may, for example, want to focus on the left-hand row of strings (and I’m speaking about a harp on your right shoulder); the left-hand row of strings would be closer to your head and, by extension, your eyes. Or, it might work out better if you look at the right-hand row. That means that you’re looking at the row of strings that you usually play the melody on, and this is closer to the same plane as your eyes, at eye level. So, one row might work a little better than the other on a given day. And sometimes you need to change that around a little bit, depending on the piece, or depending on the day.
You could also try playing lower than usual on the strings, temporarily. Usually, we play in the middle of the strings (so that we have the best sound, and activate all the harmonics on the strings). But, temporarily, it’s totally okay if you want to experiment with playing a little bit lower on the strings. It might be easier to see the strings if you look at them with the soundboard nearby.
You can also experiment with angling the harp differently on your shoulder, so that the peripheral vision that we use for looking at the harp strings (you know, not looking with your neck cranked around to cause it some pain), we want to make sure that you’re using peripheral vision like you do on any other harp. But, maybe angling the harp a little differently on your shoulder can help you find that “sweet spot” for your peripheral vision.
You can also try changing your environment. You can change your lighting, the floor covering, maybe putting a different piece of fabric or a rug down in the area where you’re looking down at your strings. There might be other background distractions. Try changing your environment around a little bit.
And finally, you could actually try playing with your eyes closed from time to time, to help develop your sense of touch and your muscle memory to get used to the distance between the 2 rows of strings, and the distance between the strings themselves. Many Welsh triple harpists, just like their contemporaries who played wire-strung harp (from Ireland and Highland Scotland), were also blind. So they played without the benefit of being able to see the strings. And maybe that might work for you, to try it out a little bit while you’re getting accustomed to the look of the 2 rows of strings. And your ears will tell you when it’s right.
Make Mine a Double & Working Together
So, if you found today’s tips helpful, I’ve got a lot more music and information for you in my best-selling method book for double-strung harp, which is called Make Mine a Double. It’s available on my website, CindyShelhart.com, along with other music books, sheet music, and CDs—all for double-strung harp. And that’s also where you can contact me if you’re interested in working directly in 1:1 lessons, or small group workshops. I’d love to hear from you.
Wrapping Up
So whether your double-strung harp is on its way, or that new harp is just waiting patiently for some love in your harp room, I hope that these tips on getting started are helpful for you.
Thanks for joining me today for Episode 6 of the double-strung harp FAQ series. If you liked what you heard today, make sure you subscribe, so you can be notified of future episodes. And if you want to be the first person to get some more Double Talk, go to my website, CindyShelhart.com, and sign up for my mailing list.
And you definitely want to stay tuned and make sure you’re subscribed for next time; I’ve got a whole new double-strung harp series coming up for you, and you’ll find out all about it in the next video. You won’t want to miss it. See you next time!
I learned this jig/slip jig set from Altan’s CD The Red Crow. Con Cassidy’s is an Irish tune, while The Dusty Millar is common to both Scottish and Irish traditions, and is related to a Robert Burns song by the same name.
Recorded in April 2021 at St. John’s United Church, Chesterton IN, for the 2021 Gebhard Woods Dulcimer and Traditional Music Festival.
Hi, I’m Cynthia Shelhart. You can call me Cindy. And it’s time for some #DoubleTalk. Double-strung harp, that is!
Welcome back to our FAQ series on the double-strung harp. In the past couple of videos, Parts 1 and 2 of Episode 4, we took a look at the double-strung harp’s family tree, all the way from late Renaissance chromatic harps to the 20th century birth of the modern double harp. If you missed those episodes, we’re sorry we missed you! You need to make sure you subscribe, so you can be notified of future episodes.
This time, it’s a very special Episode 5— can’t wait to share it with you. It’s actually ripped from the pages of a workshop that I just taught. And I thought this would be a great way to share a glimpse for you of what it’s like to work with me in a workshop. So sit back, relax, and enjoy a very special FAQ Series Episode 5, where I answer the question: “Which music can I play on double-strung harp?”
Which music?
Which music can I play on double-strung harp? This is really a concern or a question that people have.
At first, I have a very short answer: I say, “The easy answer is, almost ANYTHING!”
And then after that, there’s an easy answer with a short disclaimer: “ALMOST anything, if it works for your HARP, and works for YOU.”
We’re not just talking about musical elements like melody, or harmony, or genres or styles here. We can actually dig a little deeper, and talk about the actual source material of where the music really comes from.
For example, if a piece of music is written down in permanent form—somewhere—it usually comes from 1 of 3 categories of the source material: a composition, an arrangement, or a transcription. This means that, for compositions, you’re playing something that’s exactly the same, that somebody has written down, and the expectation is, you will play it as written. Or, maybe you are going to adapt music in the original source, and it will be different from its original form. So let’s compare those two things quickly.
Compositions for double-strung harp
For compositions, you’re doing something that’s exactly the same as the composer intended, whoever they were (and whenever they were). The double-strung harp is a new and growing instrument. And that means that we are excited about it! It also means that we have a small and growing number of original compositions written for the double-strung harp. That’s not a whole lot of repertoire—YET. We’re working on that.
So it’s important, when we are thinking about growing the double-strung harp, to take advantage of our instrument’s potential (which is amazing, by the way, I think you would all agree with that). We need to grow our repertoire by also adapting music from other instruments, from other sources. That’s why I’m personally active as both a double-strung harp composer and arranger, so I can help add to the repertoire that’s available for our instrument, and help bring other people into our world.
Arrangements & transcriptions for double-strung harp
There are two types of musical adaptations where we would change the music around a little bit (or maybe a lot) to make it work for us and our double-strung harps. Those are arrangements and transcriptions. This is a time honored practice, by the way; this isn’t something like, “oh, we’re messing with it, that’s not a good idea.” This is something that people have been doing for centuries, since the beginnings of musical history, in all different cultures.
Arrangements are pretty closely related to the original compositions. They can actually be a little simpler, or they can be made more complex than the original. And the arranger might make musical changes in the fingering, for accidentals, the range, etc., that work better on the non-native or non-original instrument. And this is also what happens when we adapt music from, say, our single-row harp libraries, or from other kinds of harps (pedal harps, wire-strung harps, etc.). When we take that music and adapt it for double-strung harp, we are making arrangements.
Transcriptions are another kind of arrangement that are intentionally even closer to the original. They are played as written. And this isn’t just for classical music, as you might expect; this could be anywhere from Western classical music to jazz and rock. I did a couple of arrangements/transcriptions on my first CD. One was a jazz piece by Chick Corea called Children’s Song, and the other was an arrangement of a Southern rock tune by the Allman Brothers called Little Martha. So you never know what might you might be inspired to try, with arrangements and transcriptions.
(Of course, in this process, we’re also making sure that we respect intellectual property, and observe copyright law as needed, if this music isn’t in the public domain. Very important.)
Arrangements + arranging = more repertoire!
So once we understand that arrangements—and ARRANGING—are our friends, and they’re acceptable in the musical community, we can take on almost any kind of music we like (including the arrangements in today’s workshop, in our Irish music workshop), as we adapt and play original musical source material from a wide world of genres and styles. So again, to make the the the appropriate answer: you can play ALMOST anything, if it works for YOUR double-strung harp, and works for YOU.
Wrapping up
Thanks for joining me in this special Episode 5 of the Double-Strung Harp FAQ Series. If you liked what you heard today, please make sure you’re subscribed, so you can be notified of future episodes. And if you want to be the first to get some more Double Talk, more news from my website, go to that website and sign up for my mailing list at cindyshelhart.com. And we’ll get the word out to you as soon as it’s available.
In Episode 6, coming up, it’s that magical moment: you’ve got your double-strung harp and you need to know what to do next. So we’ll answer the question: “How do I start playing double-strung harp?” See you next time!
In previous videos and posts, we talked about the history of the double-strung harp as an instrument. But did you ever consider that a specific piece of music has its own history?
We might know about its musical elements—its melody, rhythm, harmony, texture, and form—and its genre or style. But we can dig deeper, all the way to its source.
Same or different?
If a piece of music is written down in permanent form, it usually comes from one of three categories of source material: compositions, arrangements, and transcriptions. This means that you’re playing music that’s either the same as or different from its original form. Let’s take a closer look at these categories.
Same: compositions
A composition is a piece of music that’s originally written for a specific instrument or ensemble. Whether or not you know who the composer is, you’re expected to play their music as written, on the same original instrument (or with that same ensemble).
Different: arrangements and transcriptions
If you’d like to play a piece of music that wasn’t originally written for your instrument, this implies that you (or someone else) will make some changes to the source material. There are two types of music adaptations: arrangements and transcriptions.
Arrangements are closely related to compositions, and can be simpler or more complex than the original. The arranger might make musical changes in fingering, accidentals, range, etc. that work better on the non-original instrument.
Transcriptions are arrangements that are intentionally closer to the original, and played as written. Transcriptions are created in many musical genres, from Western classical to jazz and rock. (The term “transcription” is also used to describe process of writing down music that doesn’t already have musical notation (from a live performance, improvisation, sound recording, oral tradition, etc.).
Stay tuned
I’ve got more to share about compositions, arrangements, and transcriptions in next week’s Double-Strung Harp FAQ Series video, “Which Music Can I Play on Double-Strung Harp?” Watch this space!
I think of these tunes as “The Attributed Set.” Very little is known about The Clergy’s Lamentation, which is popularly attributed to Turlough O’Carolan. Spagnoletta is likewise attributed to Michael Praetorius, publisher of the dance tune collection Terpsichore (1601), and composer of the Christmas carol Es ist einRos’ (Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming). All origins and arguments aside, they make a great set.
Recorded in April 2021 at St. John’s United Church, Chesterton IN, for the 2021 Gebhard Woods Dulcimer and Traditional Music Festival.
Have you noticed that the Irish have a preference for things that come in threes? And that’s not just limited to three-leaf shamrocks, or the green-white-orange Irish flag.
The Irish have been using the “triad form” (arranging ideas by threes) for centuries, including in the Old Irish collection Trecheng Breth Féne “A Triad of Judgments of the Irish”, or “The Triads of Ireland”, from the 9th century. (Learn more in Triads of Ireland on Wikipedia.)
The Three Musics in History
And even earlier, Irish mythology used the number three in the story of the good god The Dagda and his magical harp (his greatest treasure), whose music could cause listeners to laugh, weep, or fall asleep. These three moods, or qualities, are sometimes called the “Three Noble Strains” or “The Three Musics” of harp music:
Geantraí (“joyful music“)
Goltraí (”sorrowful music“)
Suantraí (“lullaby music“)
You can hear the modern Irish and Scottish Gaelic pronunciations of these terms here.
Later, these “noble strains” became the “three musics” required of ancient harpers in Ireland and Gaelic Scotland. In his first book, The Ancient Music of Ireland (Dublin, 1840), music collector Edward Bunting included the Old Irish spellings of these terms (geantraige, goltraige, and súantraige) which he learned from harpers at the 1792 Belfast Harp Festival.
You can learn more about the harp in Irish mythology in Scottish harper Ailie’s Robertson’s blog post.
And my US harper friend Jo Morrison wrote a 3-part tune to, in her words, “embody the three types of music required of ancient harpers, the music of joy, sorrow, and sleep.” This tune is the title track of her CD The Three Musics.
Good Things Come in Threes
So what do “The Three Musics” and the double-strung harp have in common? Easy—the number THREE!
When I created The Technique Triangle™, the easy way to make your double-strung harp “sound more like a double,” I literally based it on 3 basic techniques. Once you master these 3, you can use them in endless combinations, in a wide variety of music… which includes Irish music!
Hi, I’m Cynthia Shelhart. You can call me Cindy. And it’s time for some #DoubleTalk. Double-strung harp, that is!
Welcome back to our FAQ series on the double-strung harp. Last time, in Part 1 of Episode 4, we took a first look at the double-strung harp’s family tree: from late Renaissance chromatic harps, to the Welsh triple harp in the 18th century. If you missed that episode, make sure you subscribe, so that you can find out about future episodes.
This time, in Part 2, we’ll keep exploring the roots of the modern double-strung harp. This will include the 19th century Welsh triple harp’s revival, and the 20th century “big bang” that gave birth to the modern double-strung harp. Let’s get started on Part 2.
The Welsh Triple Harp: 19th Century Survival
Unfortunately, by the 19th century, the Welsh triple harp was actually, despite its earlier popularity, in danger of extinction. The pedal harp was gaining favor, and there were a shortage of harpbuilders building the old (by that time) triple harp.
Also, despite our modern conception of harps being angelic and good and pure instruments, the Methodist religious revival in Wales gave harps and harpists kind of a bad rep. Triple harps were lighter and easier to travel with; they didn’t have a heavy metal mechanism. So the harps were frequently taken to fairs and taverns, and played along with fiddles. And people used to dance to their music, and dancing was extremely anathema to the Methodists.
So these triple harps got a bad reputation. And the triple harpists felt pressure after religious conversion and pressure from the church, sometimes even to the extent that they abandoned their harps. Harps were buried in peat bogs, they were burnt, or even just left to rot—for example, underneath the harpist’s bed, never to be played again.
Fortunately, there were two main sources of keeping the Welsh triple harp tradition going in the 19th century. One very important tradition is from 2 families of the Welsh Gypsy (or Roma), the Wood and Roberts families. These families played triple harp, and brought the triple harp from the north of Wales to the south. So now the entire country had exposure to the Welsh triple harp.
And a noblewoman named Augusta Waddington Hall, whose title was Baroness (or Lady) Llanover, established Llanover House as a center for Welsh language and culture, including music. She was amazing. She was the ultimate “Welshophile.” She employed triple harpists and harpbuilders, she donated triple harps as competition prizes, and collected folk music. She was a major contributor to the survival, and later the revival, of the Welsh triple harp and its music.
The Welsh Triple Harp: 20th & 21st Century Revival
But, unfortunately, despite the best efforts of Lady Llanover and her daughter, by the early 20th century (here we go again!) the triple harp and traditional music in Wales had nearly been abandoned once again for the pedal harp and classical music. Fortunately, once again, we have a couple of exceptions that kept everything going and and kept things going to the modern day.
One great exception was a remarkable harpist and woman named Nansi Richards-Jones. She learned the triple harp and traditional music from harpist and harpbuilder Thomas Lloyd, and she grew up listening and dancing to the music of the Wood Gypsy/Roma family in Wales. As she grew in popularity, she toured Britain and America, playing both the triple harp and pedal harp on her left shoulder. She toured these countries in the early 20th century, and she held the title of Royal Harpist to the Prince of Wales from 1911 all the way until her death in 1971. Nansi inspired many next-generation triple harp players, including Dafydd and Gwyndaf Roberts of the Welsh group Ar Log (who were later inspirations to Robin Huw Bowen, who we’ll talk about in a moment), and also Llio Rhydderch, who was a student of Nansi’s.
And as I mentioned, Robin Huw Bowen not only was inspired by students of Nansi Richards, but also himself studied with a link to the Welsh Gypsy/Roma tradition. He studied with Eldra Jarman, who was the great-granddaughter of John Roberts. So, we have 2 Gypsy/Roma triple harp connections, with Nansi with the Wood family, and Robin Huw Bowen through Eldra Jarman with John Roberts. Robin Huw Bowen is probably the most well known traditional player of the Welsh triple harp today; other current triple harp performers include Elinor Bennett, Eleri Darkins, and Gareth Swindail-Parry of Wales, and American Cheryl Ann Fulton.
But, just as important: you can’t have triple harp players if you don’t have triple harps to play. And one harpbuilder in particular was extremely important in this revival; he was a gentleman named John Weston Thomas. He was a master harpmaker who singlehandedly resurrected harpmaking in Wales in the mid 1960s, including the Welsh triple harp. He taught himself to build harps from museum instruments and looking at old illustrations, because at the time, he was the only harpbuilder left in Wales, and one of only 3 in all of Britain. His innovative perpendicular design made triple harps more stable and long-lasting for the next generation. He was awarded the BEM (the British Empire Medal) for harpmaking by Queen Elizabeth II in the New Year Honours in 1983.
The Double-Strung Harp in Wales
And here we finally meet our instrument, the modern double-strung harp. In 1989, a collaboration between Welsh-Australian harpist and singer Gwenda Davies, and the harpbuilder John Weston Thomas, started them discussing in late 1988 or early 1989 about a Welsh traditional double-strung harp, with levers on both sides. Because Davies was a singer, she wanted a harp where she could easily change keys with preset levers, instead of having to retune the strings, like the older triple harps and older historical harps required. Also, as a Welsh harpist, she wanted the new harp to keep the same 2 unison rows of the Welsh triple harp.
The resulting harp in 1989 was called the “Gwenda” by John Weston Thomas. He had fulfilled both her wishes, for the two unison diatonic rows and full levers on both sides. Davies played it in Wales before bringing it home to San Francisco, California in the early 1990s. And now she lives and teaches and performs in her native Australia. Thomas unfortunately made only one other Gwenda double harp before his death in December 1992. But he did go on to inspire and train a number of apprentices to keep the triple harp tradition going.
In a letter I received from Gwenda Davies in 2005, she says: “The personal enjoyment I gained from playing the Gwenda harp is mainly related to the increased complexity of sound textures, especially when improvising or accompanying my singing. It works particularly well on the Welsh triple harp techniques of doubling.”
Double-Strung Harps in North America
Not long after Thomas’s build of the Gwenda double harp, in 1992, the first North American double-strung harps were built by two harpist and luthier teams in North America: harpist Laurie Riley, and luthier Steve Triplett of Triplett Harps in California; and harpist Elizabeth (Liz) Cifani, and luthier Gary Stone, of Here, Inc., now known as Stoney End Harps, in Minnesota.
Fun fact here: I actually introduced Laurie Riley to Liz Cifani. Liz was my teacher at that time; I introduced them at the 1990 conference of the International Society of Folk Harpers and Craftsmen in Minneapolis, Minnesota, at Augsburg College. And coincidentally, Riley and Cifani—you know it—shared an interest in Welsh harp music, (It’s all starting to come together!)
After the conference, a phone conversation between the two of them inspired both players to design instruments that could play Welsh triple harp repertoire, without retuning or using a third chromatic row of strings. Laurie Riley turned to Triplett Harps, and Liz Cifani contacted Here, Inc., and by the summer of 1992, these collaborations had produced the first modern double-strung harps built in North America. In 1993, both these harpists released the first recordings to include double-strung harp, alongside their other harps: Cifani’s solo CD Bella Stella, and Riley’s duo CD with Michael McBean, Double Image.
While Riley and Triplett, and Cifani and Stone, were not the first to invent the modern double-strung harp, they were certainly the first to launch this new instrument in North America. And today, Stoney End Harps, Gary Stone’s company, is the world’s oldest continuous builder of double-strung harps.
The Double-Strung Harp: My Connection
Finally, I’d like to share my own connection with this story, in the double-strung harp family tree. My double-strung harp adventure began in graduate school at The Pennsylvania State University. This is where I studied harp, and directed the Early Music Ensemble. And, among other things, I played Baroque continuo on an arpa doppia built by Tim Hobrough.
Later, after grad school, I returned to my native Midwest, and I worked for a time for harpbuilders Lyon & Healy in Chicago. And that’s when I met and studied lever harp with Liz Cifani. In the summer of 1992, when she got that first double-strung harp from Gary Stone, hers was made of cherry wood; this was Gary Stone’s very first double, and this is the model now known as the “Lorraine.” When I saw that harp, I immediately placed an order for my own double-strung harp,
Gary built the next harp, his second double-strung harp, for me. This one was made of walnut wood, and I received it in September 1992 at the Fox River Valley Folk Festival in Geneva, Illinois. And, later that year, this harp inspired me to write my composition Walnut Welcome, which is one of the first compositions written for solo double-strung harp.
While I didn’t invent or design one of the first double-strung harps, I’m proud to be a pioneer double-strung harp performer, teacher and composer. In addition to that first harp by Gary Stone, I’ve played double-strung harps by Dusty Strings, Rees Harps, Argent Fox Music, and other builders. I’ve released 2 of the first all-double-strung harp solo CDs, written a best-selling double-strung harp method book, and launched a new series of double-strung harp arrangements. And at the time of filming this video, I’m getting ready to celebrate my 30th anniversary with the double-strung harp in 2022. And I’ll be sharing more with you soon about that celebration.
Wrapping Up
So, I hope you’ve enjoyed climbing the double-strung harp family tree, and learning more about the history and the evolution of the modern double-strung harp—about its historical multi-row harp ancestors, its Welsh triple harp cousins, and the “big bang” of the double-strung harp in Britain and North America in the 20th century.
If you liked what you heard today, please make sure you’re subscribed, so you can be notified of future episodes. And if you want to be the first for more double-strung Double Talk, please sign up at my website, CindyShelhart.com, and sign up for my mailing list.
Next time, on Episode 5, we’re going to visit Inspiration Station…we’re going to find out which music you can play on double-strung harp. See you next time!
About Cindy Shelhart
Cindy composes & performs music for double-strung harp. Read more
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