HarpSinger

Painting of two woman musicians, one playing the flute, and the other playing the harp. Painting by C. S. Tillman
©2005 C.S. Tillman, All Rights Reserved

Music Page

Background Information

For several years, my sister and I have been performing flute and harp duets at Christmas time. My flutist sister allows me to select the music we perform (although we do make changes to the arrangements as we rehearse, and she reserves the right to veto a piece if she dislikes it.) Unfortunately, I have had difficulty finding arrangements of my favorite songs that meet my criteria:

The accompaniment must be simple and melodic on its own, even if it is not immediately recognizable as belonging to the melody.
The arrangement must allow for the harpist's movement to be elegant and fluid - no awkward lever changes or quick, jerky fingerings.
When placing fingers for a chord or arpeggio, the spacing between fourth and first fingers must not exceed an octave (I have a limited finger span).
There should be no dissonance between melody and harmony. (If I am singing along with the harp, dissonance throws me off.)
The harmonies must make sense on an intuitive level.

Because I have found very few arrangements that meet my subjective requirements, I have begun making my own arrangements using a music notation software program. These arrangements can be played on Terracotta harpist from 3rd century B.C. Artifact is housed in the Louvre Museum in Paris, France. either pedal or lever harp, and only require the F and C sharping levers on the lever harp. Lever changes within a song are minimum.

Although the arrangements are for flute and harp, the flute can be replaced by any treble instrument such as soprano recorder, violin, or even voice. In fact, I pared down the arrangements so that I can sing the melody as I play the harp. The lyrics, when available, are provided separately from the music. All of these songs are in the public domain.

In addition to the sheet music, I have provided two MP3 files for each arrangement: one that plays in real time, and a slower version which may be useful during early rehearsals when learning the harp part.

The harp can be a challenging instrument to play, requiring both mental and physical agility. However, it is also extremely gratifying. I enjoy playing the harp, and sharing my music with kindred spirits. I hope you enjoy these arrangements. Please check back periodically for additional music.