AHJ, Vol. 5 No. 3, Summer 1976

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THE AMERICAN HARP JOURNAL The Official Publication of the American Harp Society, Inc. SUBSCRIPTION RATES: INDIVIDUALS: Two issues per year (Winter and Summer): $8.00 This price includes automatic membership in the American Harp Society, Inc., and airmail postage for foreign subscribers. Send all subscriptions to: Mrs. Dorothy Remsen American Harp Society, lr,c. 6331 Quebec Drive Hollywood, California 90068 LIBRARIES: Two issues per year: $6.00 Send all library subscriptions to: Ms. Gail Barber, Editor The American Harp Journal 321 0 56th St. Lubbock, Texas 79413 Back issues: $2.00 ARTICLES, PEOPLE AND PLACES, CHAPTER NEWS, CONCERT CALENDAR, TEACHERS' DIRECTORY: Submit to: Ms. Gail Barber, Editor The American Harp Journal 3210 56th St. Lubbock, Texas 79413 Phone(806)795-5116 COPY DEADLINES: (for articles, People and Places, Chapter News, etc.) September 15th for the Winter issue February 15th for the Spring issue. ADVERTISING: Advertising rates are available on request from: Miss Nina Dunkel, Advertising Manager The American Harp Journal 59 West 71 st Street New York, New York 10023 All display advertising material and correspondence concerning it should be sent to the Advertising Manager. ADVERTISING DEADLINES: September 15th for the Winter issue February 15th for the Summer issue CHANGE OF ADDRESS NOTICES: Send to: Mrs. Dorothy Remsen 6331 Quebec Drive Hollywood, CA 90068 TEACHERS' DIRECTORY: Three-line listing of Name, Address, Phone: $6.00, with no alterations, for two issues. Sample listing: Sally Lou Doe, B.M., M.M. 2100 Market St., Middle City, New York l 0023 Ph. HO3-2200 Each additional line of 50 characters per line: $1.50 per line, with no alterations, for two issues. Sample listing: Sally Lou Doe, B.M., M.M. 2100 Market St., Middle City, New York 10023 Ph. HO3-2200 First Harpist, Middle City Sym., N.Y. Concert Band, Center City, N.Y. Faculty: Middle City Univ. This sample of 5 lines would cost $9.00, with no alterations for two issues. Send all Teachers' Directory material to the Editor. FEES FOR ADVERTISING AND FOR TEACHERS 1 ABLE IN ADVANCE. DIRECTORY LISTINGS ARE PAY Make all checks payable to: 2 AMERICAN HARP JOURNAL
The Harp in America by Lucile H. Jennings The harp migrated to the Western Hemisphere from such European sources as Ireland, Wales, France, England, and Spain. In the 'melting-pot' that became the United States, early settlers-nostalgic for the traditions of their countries of origin-kept alive as best they could the sounds and songs they had known before. Therefore the instruments they had brought with them -including, no doubt, a limited number of early pedal harps (single-action) and folk harps--were treasured and passed down to succeeding generations. In South and Central America, the Spanish harp was imitated in primitive, handmade form and adopted as a folk instrument which still is popular today, although its ancestor became archaic in Spain. The use of the harp.in the early years of the colonies in North America reflected its fortunes in the Old World, with a reasonable time lapse between. To understand this, we should remember that in its modern form the harp dates only from 1810, the year of the double-action pedal invention of Sebastian Erard in France. Before this mechanism was invented, the harp could not be played in all keys without re-tuning; but since the improvement, it is capable of any modulations and is tuned in the tempered scale. Obviously, after the invention was patented (in 1811), it was a matter of several years before the new instruments were manufactured in any number and adopted by European musicians. The change in technique from single-action to double-action pedals was a considerable one for those who were already performers on the old harps, and there was no literature for harp, making use of its new capacities, until composers were made aware of its possibilities by harpists who championed it. Until the growth of large cities and a wealthy upper class in this country, few people had the means at hand to import expensive European instruments. By the late 18th and early 19th centuries, fashionable young ladies of the leisure class were given music lessons (for example, Nellie Custis, grand-daughter of Martha Washington, was an accomplished harpsichordist). But at this time it was primarily the keyboard instruments- virginals, harpsichords, and pianofortes-which were in vogue and for which music and instruction, and the instruments themselves, were available. Nevertheless, there were harps in some colonial homes and concerts SUMMER/1976 in which harps were played in certain musical centers such as Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Hartford. A glimpse can be had by piecing together fragmentary references from historical works, musical and literary journals of the period, and old newspapers. With infinite patience, much more information might be unearthed and many more gaps filled in. The following is offered as only a beginning and to furnish a bit of background, so that we might better understand and marvel at the widespread use and the sophistication of the harp in the U.S., in this year of 1976. THE HARP IN AMERICA BEFORE 1835 A reference to a harp being used in a church service as early as 1752 in Pennsylvania has been found in the diary of a pastor, the Rev. John Frederick Handschuh. He is describing a reconsecration service at St. Michael's Lutheran Church in Germantown: The services were begun by singing the hymn "Komm heiliger Geist, Herre Gott." The first two verses, the ministers sang alone, accompanied on the harp by the schoolmaster, the third verse was sung by the whole congregation ... After the consecration ... we ministers sang, accompanied by the harp, the 22nd and 23rd verses of the printed consecration ode ... " 1 Many studies of Benjamin Franklin state that he played the harp. According to William Lichtenwanger, 2 this is not proven and has probably been inferred from such references to his musical instrument collection as the one telling of the British evacuation of Philadelphia in June, 1778. It is found in a letter of Sarah Bache to her father in Paris; she related that the British "stole and carried off Franklin's Musical Instruments, viz., a Welsh Harp, ball Harp, and set of tuned Bells, which were in a box, Viola da Gamba ... " We don't know whether or not he actually played the harp. However, Franklin did know something about the instrument. He based a theory about the construction of Scotch tunes upon his observations of the traditional accompanying instrument, the small harp found in the British Isles: " ... they were composed by the minstrels of those days to be played on the harp accompanied by the voice. The harp was strung with wire, which gives a sound of long continuance, and had no contrivance, like 3
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Page 10 and 11: Jefferson in a letter to his daught
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Page 14 and 15: 31 Literary and Musical Magazine, P
Page 16 and 17: Orleans, and Pittsburgh. The duplic
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Page 22 and 23: SPECIAL MEMBERSHIPS In June, 1970,
Page 24 and 25: the mixture of harmonies, and the l
Page 26 and 27: NEW RECORDINGS Please send all info
Page 28 and 29: for his wife. Further, Tristram was
Page 30 and 31: A NOTE OF APPRECIATION I have been
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Page 36 and 37: PRIVATE CAR: North-South Interstate
Page 38 and 39: FOOD SERVICE: Cafeteria style at La
Page 40 and 41: HARPWEEK-1976 Phia Berghout announc
Page 42 and 43: 40 compositions for harp by PATRICI
Page 44 and 45: International Harpweek 1975 by Patr
Page 46 and 47: 44 THE CHRISTMAS HARPIST by Marilyn
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has written a new major work for th
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Stephanie Curcio has performed Wond
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Schlomovitz's home; and Pamela Stut
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form. Carla Wong Gee and Toynette W
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The traditional St. Patrick's Day m
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UCLAeXtension ANNOUNCES MILDRED DIL
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Tape Library. This excellent tape t
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Our next meeting will be held Febru
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A concert in memory of Marcel Grand
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March 21 in the auditorium of Calva
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SUZANN YOUNG DAVIDS, B.M., Oberlin,
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AHJ, Vol. 5 No. 3, Summer 1976

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