Architect Your Harp Playing Growth with 3 Key Systems - PHH 243
Practicing Harp Happiness
A system is comfort. When we have and follow a system, whether it’s for completing tasks, or crafting, or making a grocery list, our mind can be at ease. Why? Because we know we have the steps to complete our task, and all we have to do is to follow the steps and the task will be done. When it comes to harp playing, people frequently make one of two mistakes. One is thinking that harp playing is inherently creative, and therefore a system is not only unnecessary, but it will rob your music of its soul. The other is trying to systematize everything about your playing in an attempt to get...
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My New Vocabulary for 2026 - PHH 242
Practicing Harp Happiness
For me, and I think for many people, this last week of the year is a supremely hopeful one. The rush to get ready for Christmas is behind us and the promise of a new year is finally in focus. We’re faced with possibilities for a change, instead of pressure. I realize, of course, that for many of us those possibilities for the new year include uncertainty, worry and fear which are beyond any assistance I could give on this podcast. I can merely offer prayers that the universe grants us all the courage and resources we need to face the circumstances before us. And I will stick to what I know...
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Classics for a Relaxing Holiday Playlist
Practicing Harp Happiness
Playlist Program: All selections performed by Anne Sullivan All selections arranged for harp by Anne Sullivan Largo, from Winter by Vivaldi from Two from Messiah by Handel Mozart in a Minute Ave Maria by Schubert from Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring (Bach)/Ode to Joy (Beethoven) Peace, a Fantasy on Dona Nobis Pacem
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Classics for a Relaxing Holiday - PHH 240
Practicing Harp Happiness
It’s Christmas week, and for me, this is a week to finally settle into the holiday mood. This is the time we decorate our tree, get in touch with friends and family, and start reveling in the spirit of joy and peace that feels so elusive other times of the year. So this is not the week I want to dive into a heavy teaching topic here on the podcast. What I want to do today is spread a little holiday harp happiness with a short musical program for you to enjoy. The theme of the program is “Classics for a Relaxing Holiday,” classical music that is appropriate for the holidays, but...
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The Stories Behind the Songs: Three Carols Revisited - PHH 239
Practicing Harp Happiness
I’m kind of a Christmas carol geek, if there is such a thing. I’ve always enjoyed playing them and even as a young person, I was fascinated by where they came from: their origins, translations, composers, text sources, etc. For me, the stories behind the carols were a kind of history and geography lesson rolled up into the magic and meaning of Christmas. I think the origin stories are what really held my interest. The writing of “Silent Night” because a church organ in Austria was damaged, or the composition of “O Holy Night” as a dedication piece to a renovated organ in France are...
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How Purpose Fuels Progress: The Map You’ve Been Missing - PHH 238
Practicing Harp Happiness
My first ocean cruise was a cruise from New York City to Bermuda. I’d never been on a big ocean liner before. Although I’ve done a couple other ocean cruises since then, I’m not really a fan. I love exploring, and there is only so much exploring you can do on a ship in the middle of the ocean. But on this first cruise, I did love the feeling of being in the middle of the vastness of the ocean with nothing but water all around. The feeling of not having any landmarks - literally - was a little exhilarating and more than a little awe-inspiring. Naturally, I wasn’t really frightened; I...
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Music Angels: Leah Kim and the Transformative Power of Music - PHH 237
Practicing Harp Happiness
I don’t do very many interviews on this podcast. I started the show as a way to help harpists with their learning and I wanted, and still want, to be able to use this podcast to teach, to encourage and to inspire harpists all over the world. But over the last year, I have realized that there are other voices I want to be sure that you hear. After all, learning comes in many forms and hearing a variety of voices and viewpoints enriches us and our harp playing in so many ways. So during 2026, one of my objectives is to bring you into conversations with harpists, musicians and others who...
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7 Quick Fixes so You Can Play Your Stress-Free Best - PHH 236
Practicing Harp Happiness
It’s time for a confidence boost. You’ve been practicing your holiday music and feeling like you’re making good progress, but it’s not quite there and the performance date is coming up soon. Your music is mostly fine. It has up days when everything goes perfectly and down days when it feels like you’ve never played the piece before. Maybe it’s not quite up to tempo. Or maybe there are just a few measures - or maybe more than a few - that are resisting all your attempts to learn them and play them smoothly. Whatever the issue is, it’s starting to be a little concerning...
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Where Harp Beginners Go Wrong - and Maybe You Do Too - PHH 235
Practicing Harp Happiness
I know what I’m going to talk about with you today could be controversial. It could sound totally off target to you. Nevertheless, I hope you will hear me out. I want to share with you why and how I think most harp beginners start wrong, even if they are working with a teacher. It isn’t exactly that we teachers aren’t teaching the right things or that we aren’t dedicated to the success of the students who are trusting us. It’s that the path we walk with them feels so slow. Every individual comes to the harp with a unique skill set and level of musical experience, with their own...
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Three Keys to Relieving Stress - PHH 234
Practicing Harp Happiness
I was moving the harp the other day and once again, it occurred to me just how much stuff we have to carry around with us. Granted, I move my harp all the time for rehearsals and concerts - it’s a big Lyon Healy Salzedo model harp - so you would think I’d be used to it by now. I guess I am, mostly; I don’t have to think about what goes in the car, and my harp bag is always ready to go. But when I start counting the number of trips I have to make between my car and the concert hall in the pouring rain, I start wishing for a Star Trek transporter. But recently, while I was...
info_outlineHere’s our question for today: what makes a piece of music a “harp piece”?
Does it have to have been originally written for harp? Or composed by a harpist? Or could any piece of music, no matter what instrument or instruments it was written for, be a harp piece if you play it on the harp?
I happen to think that the third answer is the correct one. Mostly. Let me explain.
If you play a piece on the harp, it has absolutely become a harp piece whether it started out that way or not. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that it should have become a harp piece. Some pieces just don’t work on the harp. Take the “1812 Overture,” for example. This piece was written by Tchaikovsky to commemorate Russia’s victory over Napoleon. It’s 15 minutes long, It requires a full symphony orchestra (minus a harp), an additional brass band, a bell carillon and a battery of cannons - yes, cannons. How could a single harp play a meaningful rendition of this monster work? You could play some of the themes from the piece. You could shout “BOOM” when the cannons are supposed to fire. No matter how hard we try, though, it will never really sound like the original.
Okay, that’s an extreme example. However, we harpists are known for borrowing music liberally from the piano repertoire. While that’s a good idea in general - after all, the harp and piano have a lot in common - some piano pieces never make good harp pieces, even when the piece translates easily from piano to harp. Sometimes, something gets lost in the translation.
So what makes a piece of music a harp piece? What are the essential qualities and the specific characteristics that identify a piece as being written for harp, or that, on the flip side, mark it as definitely not a harp piece? Today, we will talk about those characteristics and how you can use them to spot pieces that might, or might not, be good ones to transpose or arrange for harp. This information will also be very useful when you’re playing someone else’s arrangement, and I’ll tell you why in just a minute.
Links to things I think you might be interested in that were mentioned in the podcast episode:
- Check out our brand new courses in the Harp Mastery® app!
- We’re halfway through our Super Summertime Challenge. Are you in?
- Harpmastery.com
Get involved in the show! Send your questions and suggestions for future podcast episodes to me at podcast@harpmastery.com
Looking for a transcript for this episode? Did you know that if you subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts you will have access to their transcripts of each episode?
LINKS NOT WORKING FOR YOU? FInd all the show resources here: https://www.harpmastery.com/blog/Episode-218