Who are your favorite harpists?

Subject: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Sandy/DE
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 05:24 PM

I wonder if this informative group would be so kind as to recommend some harpists (and specific CDs) to listen to. I am especially interested in celtic music, but also American folk and hymns. Any thoughts? Thanks

Sandy from Delaware

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From:
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 05:43 PM

The one in DT's #192

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Sorcha
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 06:01 PM

Anne Heyman!!

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From:
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 06:48 PM

Alison Kinnard - Various recordings. See Temple Records

Ardyth Robinson and Jennifer Wyatt Celtic Harpists

Maggie MacInnes - Singer and Harpists Eilean Na Mara

Hope those are useful.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Mbo
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 08:14 PM

Definately, DEFINATELY get William Jackson, a Scottish harper & composer who plays both straight Celtic and Celtic/Classical fusions, all of which are simply beautiful. Good CD's by Billy Jackson are "Inchcolm," "A Scottish Isle," and "The Wellpark Suite." Also, the Welsh triple-harper Robin Huw Bowen is excellent! A good one by Robin is called (at least in English, I believe) "Sweet Harp of My Land." Good stuff!

--Mbo

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Dave (the ancient mariner)
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 08:17 PM

Anything by Emma Christian (from the Isle Of Man)

Loreena McKennitt CD's Elemental Parallel Dreams The Visit The Book of Secrets To Drive The Cold Winter Away The Mask and Mirror My favourite single is the Mummers Dance

Classical Harp Allan Stivell

I can rcommend Emma's live performance, she is a wonderfull singer musician... Loreena McKennitt is also an excellent performer but I enjoy her music professionally recorded for listening pleasure more than her live stuff.

I hope you will enjoy these musicians too. Regards. Yours,(the ancient music critic)Aye. Dave

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Mbo
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 08:41 PM

**SLAP** How could I forget THE MAN himself, Alan Stivell? And Loreena is a personal favorite of mine, too. I've only heard Emma Christian do one song--a lullaby called "The Little Redbird." It's absolutely beautiful. Thanks for reminding us, Dave! UNDERSTAND EACH OTHER.

--Mbo

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Art Thieme
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 08:45 PM

Liz Ciafani (I know that's spelled wrong.)

Carol Rohl(works with hubby G. Bok as (are ya ready) Bok 'n Rohl.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: jeffp
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 09:16 PM

Carol Thompson is a wonderful Celtic harper. Also Sue Richards. Carol teaches at Irish Week at the Augusta Heritage Center and has several CDs out. Sue plays frequently at the Maryland Renaissance Festival. I have heard both of them many times and can recommend both. Derek "Ding Dong" Bell of the Chieftains is also an excellent player and is featured on their Celtic Harp CD with the Belfast Harp Ensemble. A wonderful CD for reflective listening.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Matt
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 10:24 PM

The late Nicanor Zabaleta was the Segovia of the harp. He is a classical maestro, the maestro of all time.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: sophocleese
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 10:32 PM

Ruth Sutherland from the Hamilton, Ontario area (though she may have moved) area has a CD called rantin' and rovin'. Which I love to listen to, some crossover with african beats in it.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: margaret
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 10:41 PM

You might enjoy the Scottish harp duo, Sileas; they've got lots of energy and they do some nice singing too.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: emily rain
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 10:53 PM

another vote for derek bell. also philip boulder of magical strings. he's awesome.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Mbo
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 10:56 PM

Ooooohh, Derek does a bang-up job on "The Blackbird" on the Celtic Harp album!

--Mbo

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Alice
Date: 18 Jan 00 - 11:01 PM

Mary O'Hara!!!!! Definitely. You can find her CD's on the internet and her autobiography "The Scent of The Roses" on used book websites. Reading her life story in her own words is inspiring for anyone, musician/singer/harpists especially. Here is a thread discussion we had awhile back.click here

Alice

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From:
Date: 19 Jan 00 - 12:00 AM

Oh! You might look around for a video called Celtic Harps. This was shown on Pledge Week on WGBH last spring. I tried to find it as a video when I was in LA in May, but no luck.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Helen
Date: 19 Jan 00 - 06:41 AM

I vote for Derek Bell, especially his playing of O'Carolan tunes, and for Sileas - I have two of their albums and love both of them. They are raucous, a great selection of songs and tunes, and obviously havign a lot of fun while they are playing - very inspiring.

Helen

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: GUEST,emily rain at the U Dub
Date: 19 Jan 00 - 05:23 PM

oh, Alice, your mention of Mary O'Hara reminds me of Graine Yeats, another old style soprano harper/singer. she, too, is awesome. i don't know how readily available her stuff is outside of ireland, but she's worth searching for.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 19 Jan 00 - 05:31 PM

Maire Ni Cathesiedh ?sp gets my vote

Jon

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Wesley S
Date: 19 Jan 00 - 05:40 PM

So how come no one has mentioned Patrick Ball yet?? I thought for sure he would be on this list somewhere. He's a great storyteller also. Same thing for Robin Williamson.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: GUEST,Mbo
Date: 19 Jan 00 - 07:05 PM

Jon, I had forgotten about Maire Ni Chathasaigh too! She does good stuff with her husband, guitarist Chris Newman--not to mention her sister Nollaig Casey & brother-in-law Arty McGlynn...

--Mbo

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: black walnut
Date: 19 Jan 00 - 07:40 PM

SHARLENE WALLACE is an absolutely amazing harper! (and i'd say that even if she wasn't my harp teacher.) check out both sites...one is old, one is new. http://www.interlog.com/~sharlene/oldhome.html http://www.interlog.com/~sharlene ~black walnut

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: black walnut
Date: 19 Jan 00 - 07:45 PM

re: above.

i'm not sure why my spaces get lost sometimes.

please know that "~black walnut" was only my signature, and not part of sharlene's website.

~'nut

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Harald Schmidt
Date: 19 Jan 00 - 08:57 PM

Groucho Marx :-)

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Alice
Date: 19 Jan 00 - 08:58 PM

Emily, I found Graine Yeats mentioned in a Thistle and Shamrock program note for 1997 ...Here is a copy and paste of the notes about that particular protram... "Carolan's Concerto - ........ We feature the music of this enduring character, with the harps of Maire Ni Chathasaigh (pron: Moira Nee Ha-ha-seek), Graine Yeats (pron: Granya Yates), The Chieftains' Derek Bell, and Sue Richards. "

I'm sure I can find Graine's recordings from Music Imports. I have a link on my website for them, and they list all the Mary O'Hara recordings as they were released in different countries around the world.

alice

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: fox4zero
Date: 19 Jan 00 - 09:07 PM

Harald:

Don't you mean H---o Marx? G-----o had the cigar and moustache, and C---o was the pianist. Regards PARISH

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 19 Jan 00 - 09:45 PM

Here is a link to Old Bridge Music (Chris Newman's site)http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/obm/homepage.htm

I used to have "Out of Court" (lost it on loan) and Maire however she is spelt does things with the harp that I hadn't realised were possible. Chris Newman is also amazing on the guitar...

Jon

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: John in Brisbane
Date: 20 Jan 00 - 08:12 AM

I endorse Australia's own - Andy Rigby.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: kendall
Date: 20 Jan 00 - 08:37 AM

Actually Harpo Marx could only play in one key A.. My vote goes to Carol Rohl, Derek Bell, Annie Muir and our own Julia Lane.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: GUEST,emily rain at U Dub
Date: 20 Jan 00 - 04:12 PM

only play in one key? how does that work? he was a classical harpist; all ya have to do is kick the pedals.

parish: i wonder to myself, Cisco Marx? shows how much i know. : )

i'm betraying my age, here.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: kendall
Date: 20 Jan 00 - 07:34 PM

That was the story Groucho told..I dont know anything about harps, but the few I've seen had no "pedals" to kick

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: GUEST,emily rain at the U Dub
Date: 21 Jan 00 - 03:51 PM

kendall: a classical harp (the huge ones with the straight pillars that you see in orchestras) have seven pedals around the base. each pedal corresponds to a note (a, b, c, edc.). when you push the f pedal into the lower position, all the f's are sharped; in the upper position, all the f's are flatted; in the middle position, all the f's are natural. this way you can change keys or play accidentals without using your hands to flip a lever.

groucho said that, eh? then there must be a punchline. i find it pretty unlikely when taken as a serious statement on harpo's limitations.

Subject:
From: Tam
Date: 21 Jan 00 - 05:23 PM

Mmmmm...David Hauze of Crawford, CO. He has a lovely CD available locally of traditional and home baked sweetness. The name of his CD is "We All Have Wings."

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Peter Kasin
Date: 22 Jan 00 - 01:03 AM

Maire Ni Cathasaigh is a wonderful Irish harper. For accompanying other instruments, Northern California's own Maureen Brennan. She's a fine soloist, as well.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Peter Kasin
Date: 22 Jan 00 - 01:09 AM

Maire Ni Cathasaigh is a wonderful Irish harper. For accompanying other instruments,though, Northern California's own Maureen Brennan. She's a fine soloist, as well. Seems like every tune she touches turns to gold.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Brendy
Date: 22 Jan 00 - 03:41 AM

Talking about Chris Newman.
He did an album once with Fred Wedlock (English Folky kind of singer with an underlay of humour) called "The Oldest Swinger in Town", oh, way back at the end of the '70's.
But his version of 'Nuages' is one of the best I've ever heard.
He also does an interesting rendition (multi multi tracked) of 'Soldier's Joy'
B.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: GUEST,The Burren Ranger.
Date: 22 Jan 00 - 06:25 AM

When it comes to Irish harpists...def. Maire Ni Cathasaigh as mentioned above...but has anybody mentioned the awesome Laoise Kelly(with the group The Bumblebees)? The Burren Ranger

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: roopoo
Date: 23 Jan 00 - 03:26 AM

I'm not well up on harpists, but I have a cd by a lass called Hilary Rushmer that I bought a few years ago. She plays a mixture of Celtic music from Scotland Ireland and Wales. Mine is the sampler album, "Celtic Mist" on Swallow SWS CD2637.

mouldy

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: GUEST,John Wood
Date: 23 Jan 00 - 10:44 AM

One exceptional celtic harpist is THOMAS LOEFKE.<
Based in Germany,he has a group called NORLAND WIND.
They usually tour with just three members,but the first time I heard them was in Oslo about 4 years ago.....then there were 8,including the Duggan brothers(from Clannad).
Greetings John.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: katlaughing
Date: 23 Jan 00 - 12:09 PM

Alison Kinnaird, for sure, esp. the CD re-release of her 1978 album, The Harp Key

If you want to sample a whole CD by Sileas, click here for Green Linnet's sample page. There are two full cd's of Sileas available.

katlaughing

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Peter Kasin
Date: 24 Jan 00 - 05:58 AM

Help! First time posting a message, and I end up posting two of practically the same back-to-back, thinking I was adding to the first one. Maureen Brennan's artistry bears repeating, but that was not the way I had in mind! Anything I can do to erase my first message, Mudcatters? Thanks for any help given.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From:
Date: 24 Jan 00 - 09:22 AM

The quiestion reminded me of a recording I had (but not anymore) of a first-class breton harpist : Dominig Bouchaud (http://aloysius.itimpresa.mi.it/bouchaud/dbint.htm)

I also noticed that Wendy Stewart hasn't been mentioned.

But still my vote goes to Derek Bell !

Bye,

Rik

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: bobby's girl
Date: 24 Jan 00 - 05:12 PM

Patsy Seddon and Mary McMaster of the Poozies play some brilliant harp, and the band as a whole are well worth listening to.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Helen
Date: 24 Jan 00 - 09:51 PM

bobby's girl,

Patsy Seddon & mary McMaster are the duo called Sileas - hence the glowing reports of their harpistry. I haven't heard the Poozies albums - I heard they were a bit hard to get now, but I've heard really good things about them.

I'm starting to realise that there are so many types of harp music and we are lumping it all together under the title of "harp music"

Perhaps it would help to identify the music style or interest when we recommend these artists. I don't agree with categorising or labelling music & musicians to excess, but my thoughts are that I like the music & music styles of some of these harpers (non-pedal harp)or harpists (pedal harp) but not others and it tends to break downinitially into the type of music they play.

Any thoughts?

To start off: the two I recommended were Derek Bell, who plays (but doesn't sing) with the Chieftains, but also does solo work, and who plays Irish traditional music and a lot of O'Carolan music, and Sileas (Seddon & McMaster) are Scottish so they have a lot of traditional Scottish songs and tunes, and other stuff, and and they have a raucous sense of humour (I think) in the choice of songs they sing - very much from women's viewpoints, including mouth music, and they use the older "bawdier" versions and not the prettified, sanitised versions. Not the sweet & pretty stuff often thought of when the harp is mentioned.

Helen

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 24 Jan 00 - 10:54 PM

One thing I really liked about Maire Ni Cathasaigh was not only her skill at Irish playing but the way she could use the harp in (using what I think they described them as) swing jazz numbers. Seems to me to be exceptionally versatile and when I saw her play I couldn't believe the way she moved the levers to change the semitones in the jazzy ones.

Jon

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: GUEST,Iain
Date: 25 Jan 00 - 06:33 AM

My vote would be for Bill Taylor, an American based in Scotland, or Mary Ann Kennedy, who is a great singer as well. I think you can find out more about Bill's albums, and Mary Ann's new album with the band Cliar, on

www.highland-music.com

A third option would be Corrina Hewitt of Bachue who plays an interesting jazz/trad mix

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: bobby's girl
Date: 25 Jan 00 - 01:51 PM

The Poozies, featuring Patsy Seddon & Mary McMaster are still very much available, and have a website at www.cutting-tweed.demon.co.uk

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: jofield
Date: 25 Jan 00 - 03:58 PM

Paul Butterfield

Little Walter

Jimmy Reed

Sonny Terry

(kaff, snortle, chuckle...)

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Helen
Date: 25 Jan 00 - 06:36 PM

Thanks bobby's girl,

I just checked the Ladyslipper CD catalogue at http://www.ladyslipper.org/catalogs/ladyslipper/ladyslipper.p26.xtml/agaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa#6/444 (goddess, what an amazing site address!!) with lots of women's music plus sound clips, although no sound clip of the Poozies. Blue Infinity (?) is available there too.

jofield,

I guess my chickens have just come home to roost with that joke. I posted a similarly-veined harp joke into a blues harp thread but the guys there just, cyberly-speaking, turned their noses up and pretended they hadn't heard me. Oh well. LOL

Helen

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: GUEST,Michael
Date: 05 Feb 00 - 12:53 AM

TO HELEN: Ive been reading some of your messages and it seems that we have quite a few common musical interests. Perhaps we could chat one on one sometime? My e-mail address is [e-mail]

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: pastorpest
Date: 05 Feb 00 - 09:30 AM

Here is another vote for Derek Bell. I like Sharlene Wallace's mastery of the instrument. Another master in a different genre is Eralio Gill who plays a Paraguayan harp and records for Oliver Sudden Productions of Montreal: www.oliversudden.com

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: GUEST,Philippa
Date: 05 Feb 00 - 02:02 PM

Janet Harbinson

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: keberoxu
Date: 05 May 16 - 03:37 PM

I am posting to this thread even though I can't really answer the question that is the thread title, my conscience nags me about this so I have to say something as a disclaimer.

There are three names that come up in a conference paper from twenty years ago, presented by Irish harpist Janet Harbison. Here's a direct quote:

"Another world of harping emerged in the early 1970s directly in response to the American folk music revival, which cross-fertilzed with, and energetically animated, Irish [traditional] music making at this time....A small number of us younger harp players in Ireland...responded with playing instrumental music featuring the trendier traditional jigs, reels, and hornpipes. These would include Máire Ní Chathasaigh of Bandon in Cork, Noreen O'Donoghue of North Dublin, and myself. I preferred the challenge of playing the harp rather than another instrument in sessions[...], and I was always welcomed with it, whether as melody player or accompanist....I was happy to...indulge in the vast dance music repertoire which all my traditional musician friends outside school were playing nightly."

pp. 96 - 97, from "Harpists, Harpers, or Harpees?"
© Janet Harbison and The Crossroads Conference, 1999
from the proceedings, The Crossroads Conference of 1996
published, Dublin: Whinstone Music, 1999


I had never before heard of Noreen O'Donoghue; she seems to be well-known in Ireland but has a low profile otherwise. Anyone else hear of her?

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Steve Gardham
Date: 05 May 16 - 03:51 PM

All of em. Love it, love it, love it!

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: GUEST,Peter Laban
Date: 05 May 16 - 04:16 PM

Anyone else hear of her?

Noreen O Donoghue recorded with Seán Potts' group 'Bakerswell' during the late eighties, she also accompanied James Kelly on his recording 'Capel Street' for one or two tracks.

As for favoutites, Paul Dooley, Laoise Kelly, a few others nice too, in moderate amounts.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Helen
Date: 05 May 16 - 04:29 PM

Nice to see this thread revived. My vote still goes to Sileas, Patsy Seddon and Mary McMaster, who are/were also part of The Poozies, and Derek Bell.

I have one track of Maire ni Chathasaigh playing on a CD by Arty McGlynn and Nollaig Casey, called Lead the Knave. I like Maire's harp style a lot on that track. Now I am wondering why I have never bought any of her CD's.

Thanks to keberoxu's recent posts I have started listening to all my harp CD's in a more focused way. I listen to them in the car on my way to and from work.

That Green Linnet link to samples of tracks by Sileas posted by our dear departed katlaughing on 23 Jan 00 - 12:09 PM looks like it has been hijacked by a vacuum cleaner company, or something. Green Linnet still exists, but Here is an alternative:

Sileas - links to some of their tracks via a Google search

You can use the same method to find sample tracks by other artists.

Helen

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Reinhard
Date: 05 May 16 - 04:40 PM

I do love the Scottish harpists Patsy Seddon, Mary Macmaster and Corrina Hewat, but my absolute favourite is young Rachel Newton who plays with The Shee, the Emily Portman Trio and the Furrow Collective and who has just released her beautiful third solo album, Here's My Heart Come Take It.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: gillymor
Date: 05 May 16 - 04:42 PM

Patrick Ball is one of my favorites and also there's this Sheila in Oz that I've never heard play.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Helen
Date: 05 May 16 - 05:06 PM

That, gillymor, is because she can't play very well! Especially not solo and not in front of other people, so she doesn't rate at all, I'm sorry to say. LOL

I just found this rather beautiful video with traditional/jazzy/traditional version of Carolan's Eleanor Plunkett.

Maire Ni Chathasaigh & Chris Newman

Helen

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Jack Campin
Date: 05 May 16 - 07:38 PM

Bonnie Shaljean, we know you're listening...

Two younger Scottish harpists I was very impressed by, for a while:

- Rosie Morton (strong trad player, made one CD, then got religion in a big way, went to France to become a nun, quit a bit later, but hasn't been very publicly musically active since)

- Ailie Robertson (terrific driving jazzy style, did a very good first CD and then hooked up with an utterly dull Canadian backing band and that was that, though she is doubtless crying all the way to the bank if people like me don't like it)

My pet hate is Celtic-lounge-lizard music. The sort of MOR slop that Corrina Hewat and her hubby David Milligan do. I just wish they'd get together with Eddi Reader and bugger off to the spiritual home of that kind of music, Las Vegas.

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: keberoxu
Date: 05 May 16 - 08:01 PM

Regarding Rosie Morton, sorry, no clickies from me, but here is a URL.

http://rosieharp.wix.com/rosie-morton#!page3/cee5

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: gillymor
Date: 05 May 16 - 08:03 PM

Hey Helen, I was just trying to answer the question honestly. :)
And I found this: Robin Williamson The Blackbird/The Downfall of Paris

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: GUEST,Guest - tongue in cheek
Date: 05 May 16 - 08:17 PM

Tony Capstick.

Actually he was usually fully pissed!

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: gillymor
Date: 05 May 16 - 08:54 PM

Laoise Kelly playing Polkas

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Helen
Date: 05 May 16 - 09:47 PM

gillymor,

I listened a couple of times to the Robin Williamson Blackbird/Downfall of Paris. I don't know the Blackbird tune so I found it a bit hard to hear the melody in it, and even though I am familiar with DoP, I had a bit of trouble hearing the melody in that as well. Maybe too many twiddly bits and the melody got a bit lost, or just a personalised version of the tunes. Don't know.

But, in saying that, I like RW's style and eclectic choice of music. He is a bit out there, but what would you expect from an ex-Incredible String Band founding member. "Out there" doesn't even begin to explain THEIR music!

I like the Laoise Kelly video.

Jack Campin said "Celtic lounge-lizard music". Ok, I get it! It's the reason I can't watch those Celtic Woman, and Celtic Thunder TV specials which pop up at Christmas etc.

Another harp player I can't listen to is Loreena McKennitt. Sorry to any LMcK fans on this thread, but I find it monotonous, repetitive and without fire, and the reason I like Sileas so much is that they are the antithesis of that.

Helen

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: Mr Red
Date: 06 May 16 - 04:51 AM

Maire Ni Chathasaigh
Arthur Marx (aka Adolph aka Harpo)
Turlough O'Carolan

cos I'm greedy!

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: CupOfTea
Date: 06 May 16 - 08:23 AM

Unlike famous guitarists or fiddlers, I've seldom heard a harpist in person, where I did not fall in love with their playing.
The guys:
Derek Bell of the Chieftans- a wonderfully fun performer & huge inspiration
Patrick Ball & Dennis Doyle
Robin Hew Bowen- master of Welsh tunes
The ladies:
Liz Cifani - Celtic to classical
Antoinette McKenna-lovely vocals & generous nature
Anne Heyman once upon a time

Lately the harpist who impresses me most is Loretta Simonett (of Curtis & Loretta) who can do tunes with the best of 'em, AND writes songs of great depth and beauty with the harp as lead instrument for her warm singing. She also has the advantage of being among the living, unlike Bell, McKenna and my Cleveland friend, Jocelyn Chang, who was an incredible teacher, and proponent of the Dilling Harp. Jocelyn was also known for her performance costume, a visual joke of mine: a Chinese dragon robe infused with tea imagery. I was just finishing a third edition of it, after she'd worn out the first two, when she died.

Tangentially, a harp of Jocelyn's was the cause of one of my favorite adventures. In the 90s, she paid me to bring back an $11,000 antique concert harp from Lyon & Healy's repair in Chicago in mid November. I visited several friends, taking the harp in with me at each place. The chance to see friends Lou & Peter Berryman in concert was irresistible. Peter came out to help me bring the harp in, past the line of folks going in to the show. "Peter, is there something you've added to your presentation?" They wanted to know. Then after, end of the night, hauling it down the street at Kate Early's place was entertainment for the headbangers leaving a nearby venue. Not entertaining was getting it up three tall stories.
      Next morning, heading home to Cleveland on a clear, cold day, I was a bit annoyed at the snarking about the Cleveland weather on Chicago NPR. By the time I got to South Bend, the er.. harping...about Cleveland on the radio concerned me enough to call my dog sitter for a report. "Everything is closed after a weekend snowfall of about three feet of snow. Plows haven't kept up. Don't know if you can even get up your street" Jocelyn insists her street is passable, they've all been shoveling, so come on. The weather grew steadily worse and snowier all through Ohio. The piles of roadside snow higher and higher. It was an incredible relief to get the harp intact to Jocelyn. The snow was waist high and unplowed at my house, and I waded bootless to the front door, only to find I had no phone ( for a week). It was days before I saw my dog again and longer before I got the car off the street, after it was plowed in. I got off easy: thousands just south of me lost power, some for over a week.

Joanne in Siberia on the Lake, where we THINK we're done with snow for the spring

Subject: RE: Who are your favorite harpists?
From: oldhippie
Date: 06 May 16 - 05:00 PM

Marnie Boyd   http://harpgigs.com/MarnieBoyd/index.htm