The Pedal Harp: An Engineering Triumph
“Harpists spend half their time tuning and the other half playing out of tune.” Most harpists have heard this old quote, which has been attributed to the great composer Igor Stravinsky. There is some truth to it, as the harp is a sensitive instrument that is affected by weather changes and the indignities it suffers in transport. Even though today’s pedal harp has an enhanced design making it more musically versatile, the harpist is often one of the first members of the orchestra to arrive at the concert hall and start the task of retuning the forty-seven strings. The tuning problem is still just a part of playing the instrument, but the design improvements have allowed the harp to take an important role in the orchestra and on the concert stage.
The earliest harps were developed from
hunting bows, with additional strings added to an open frame so more than one
pitch could be played. These are
the types of harps pictured in ancient Egyptian times. The harp later became an enclosed
triangle when the column was added to support the additional stress on the
frame as more strings appeared.
The body of the instrument changed from a simple box to a staved body
similar to a lute, with the soundboard along the bottom of the strings. The upper part of the harp (the
neck) became curved to accommodate more strings. This type of harp was popular in the British Isles by the 15th
century. Harps were found in
England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, and were played by both minstrels and
royalty such as James IV of Scotland.
When music became more complex, harpists searched for ways to improve their instruments to allow for playing in different keys without having to retune the strings. This lead to the development of first hooks and later levers along the top of the strings that could shorten the vibrating string length and raise the pitch. These levers could be adjusted with one hand, while the other hand continued to play, This was an improvement over the old style, but still had limitations for music with a lot of key changes. Lever harps are enjoying a rise in popularity in many kinds of music, but are not practical for orchestral work due to their limitations in making key changes quickly.
Another design experiment was the addition of more than one row of strings, so that more notes were available to the player. Various types of double and even triple-strung harps were tried, which had as many as 76 strings. Due to the complexity of playing these instruments, they never became widely popular, even though some types are still played today.
There is some disagreement as to who
actually made the first pedal harp.
The earliest types of pedal harps appeared in Germany as well as other
countries in 18th century Europe, when a mechanism was connected to
the string hooks that could be operated by the feet. This meant the player could continue to play while making
pitch changes in the strings with the feet. Eventually there were seven pedals – one for each note
of the scale. The pedals rods went
inside the column. The rods were
attached to hooks shortening the length of the strings, with all A’s
controlled by the A pedal, F’s by the F pedal, and so forth. The hooks pulled the strings out of
alignment when they were engaged, which presented a problem for the musician.
Many different European instrument makers were making pedal harps of some type by the late 1700’s in Germany, Austria, Belgium, and France. Sebastian Erard received the first English patent for a harp for his improved sharpening mechanism. He changed the hook to a two-pronged disc that is still in use today. Each harp string was threaded through the prongs. When the pedal was engaged, the disc rotated so the prongs pressed up against the string, shortening the vibrating length and raising the pitch by a half step. This eliminated the string alignment problem, as well as changing the pitch more accurately.
Erard contined to refine his harp, and
received another patent in 1810 for a double action mechanism. This design featured 7 pedals with 3
slots for each pedal, one for flat position, one for natural position, and one
for sharp position. There were two
sets of the discs at the top of each string to shorten the vibrating length,
one for the natural and one for the sharp positions.
Lyon-Healy opened the first American pedal harp factory in Chicago, with the first model completed in 1889. This made harp ownership a realistic dream for many people who would never have been able to afford an instrument when it had to be shipped from a European company. The factory superintendent, George Durkee, improved the pedal rod design with a taper spindle action, eliminating problems with rattling and sticking of the pedals. Lyon-Healy continues to manufacture instruments in Chicago, and still uses the same basic pedal and mechanism design.
Harps have had and continue to have many
design changes, but the double action pedal mechanism is the one still used
today. Harps have been made in
different sizes and styles with some having more rococo carved lines or even
gold, and some having more neo-classical angular looks. They have been made out of different
types of wood for the body, and new types are being made of carbon fiber
composite material. Electronics
have been added, both as part of the instrument and as an add-on with a
microphone and an amplifier.
Enhancements in string composition have been made to help the harpist
keep the strings in tune. Harp
strings can now be made of gut, nylon, wire, or carbon fiber.
Harpists still continue to face problems with mobility due to the size and weight of the instrument, as a full size pedal harp is six feet tall and weighs about eighty pounds. The mechanism needs to be regulated periodically, or intonation problems will result from the discs pressing on the strings in the wrong place, and producing buzzes or wrong notes. Some harpists elect to buy the tools and do the adjustments themselves, but others hire harp technicians to adjust the mechanism when necessary due to changes in the wood of the instrument or bumps that occur in transport. The soundboard will eventually pull up with age from the constant tension exerted by the strings, and need to be replaced. Perhaps future design changes can eliminate some of these problems.
In spite of the difficulties that are
inherent to the instrument, the number of harpists is increasing, along with
the amount of available harp music and harp recordings. Harpists can be found not only in
orchestras, but also in rock bands, Celtic groups, and many other types of
ensembles. The design changes have
made it a much more versatile instrument that can play most kinds of music, and
have brought it out of the parlor and onto the concert stage, earning the
respect of musicians and music enthusiasts. Without its unique and beautiful sound, the orchestral music
of the impressionist, romantic, and 20th century composers would not
have the lush and complex tone quality that was intended.
American
Harp Journal: Official Publication of the American Harp Society, Inc., Falls
Church, VA.
Pratt,
Samuel. More Affairs of the
Harp. Montclair,NJ, 1977.
Rensch
Roslyn. The Harp: Its History,
Techniques, and Repertoire. London, 1971.