The harp, the harp played by angels floating on soft, white clouds, is a majestic instrument. I have always wanted to play the harp for various reasons. The harp itself is a wonderful and antique instrument. What makes the harp so fascinating and appealing is the sound it produces. Another aspect is the complex and unique shape of the harp. Uniqueness gets a lot more attention than unoriginality. Well, with no doubt, the harp is a very unique instrument, which called my attention. Unlike all other stringed instruments (guitars, violins, cellos), its strings are perpendicular (not parallel) to the soundboard, or sound hole. In contrast of its complexity, the harp is made up of three main parts:

  1. The Soundboard/Soundbox (body or resonator)
  2. The Neck
  3. The Strings

There are many types of harps, which come in different shapes, sizes, and colors. The most modern is the pedal or concert harp. This is the harp that I would love to play. I liked this one the most because of its shape. The soundboard is made out of Sitka spruce, which is the the same wood from piano soundboards. To make this kind of harp, several kinds of woods are necessary. These woods include willow, birch, pine, spruce, and maple. Not only are there a variety of woods, there are many metals too, which include brass, bronze, gold, and steel. The strings can be made out of nylon, gut, wire, or silk. Typically, there are forty-seven strings in a concert harp. These are some components that make the harp so intricate. As I am writing this entry, I am researching some information about harps to learn as much as I possibly can. This information is interesting to know, although it is not very useful to me right now. I learned that each string represents a white key on the piano. Then I wondered: what about the black key on the piano? What represents that? Well, I discovered that harpists use the pedal to play an “accidental”, which is the black key on the piano. Learning this information encouraged me to want to play the harp. The reason for this is because the harp is similar to the piano, in spite of all the different characteristics. Since I know how to read music, playing the harp would be slightly easier for me. Also, while playing the piano, my fingers are very relaxed, enabling me to fluently move them. To play the harp, your fingers have to be agile and well-coordinated. I am always amazed when I watch harpists smoothly dance their fingers on the strings, creating a beautiful high quality note. Similar to the piano, you don’t only play one note at a time. Sometimes, you have to play a lot of notes at the same time to make a harmony. Therefore, harpists pluck many strings at the same time, which seems very complicated. But when I think about it, playing the piano is very complicated too. The reason it doesn’t seem so complicated is because I have been playing the piano for a long time and I am used to it. So I guess if I start playing the harp, with no doubt, it will be hard. But after a while I don’t think it would be so hard. I am very eager to play the harp, but this is not something that falls into the place of “I want, and I get”. First of all, if I start taking lessons, wouldn’t it be reasonable to have to own a harp? You have to practice to get better, therefore, if I don’t have a harp, I wouldn’t be able to practice. Moreover, the harp is not a very common and popular instrument, unlike the guitar and piano. I am hoping that in the future, I will be able to experience the feeling of playing the harp.