Harps are a musical instrument that is played all throughout a great deal of the world. Consider the fact that in Africa alone there are more than one hundred and fifty different distinct traditions involving the harp. The harp's ancestor is suggested to be a hunting bow, but the history of the harp is complex and not all together very clear despite suggestions from historians in the tradition like Francis Galpin. What we do know, primarily through poetry, art work and epic tales is that harps have existed at least since 4000 BC, especially in Mesopotamia and Babylonia. Harps have regularly been depicted and represented in paintings, including in the tombs belonging to the Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses III from 1166 BC, as well as in sculptures hailing from Ancient Greece, in Iraqi votive carvings from before 2900 BC and many other places as well.

It is assumed that during Islam's growth, the harp saw a great deal of travel to Spain from North Africa during the 8^th century, which is when it saw growth and spreading throughout Europe.

Harps are strung with sinew, wire or silk, and they vary significantly in their size, their structure and their decoration according to the technological and physical environments of each origin. African harps, for example, have been made using a wide variety of different materials including wood and gourds, and cow or animal hide coverings. Some have a sound box and string arm that is bow shaped or arched. The sound box is the body and the resonator of the instrument and the string arm is the neck of the instrument where the tuning pegs can be found. Some other harps, such as the Turkish "ceng" harp is curved or C-shaped. European harps on the other hand have had a triangular frame instead, with a column or pillar which is added to the string arm and the sound box. There is one element that is shared among all harps, which is the fact that the strings run vertical to the sound box rather than parallel to it.

Harp instruments are central to musical cultures in many different communities ranging from Central America to Indonesia. In Jalisco, Mexico, for example, the harp was truly significant in how mariachi music was developed. Mariachi music traditionally featured only stringed instruments. In other Latin American countries like Ecuador and Guatemala for example, harps were suggested to have been introduced during the 16^th and 17^th centuries by African slaves that were brought to Central America and North America by Spanish explorers.

The contemporary orchestral harp of the west is a product of ancient heritage and centuries worth of technological innovations that consistently sought to improve the tone, range and speed at which different tuning systems could be altered through both pedal and hook mechanisms. In Northern America, there has been a dramatic increase in general interest for this instrument, stemming from around the 1950s. The harp may not be the most popular stringed instrument in existence today, but it certainly has a strong place in current and past culture and history.

Photo Credit: 1

Originally posted 2008-10-16 05:45:53. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Related Posts

• The Trombone - a Jazz Instrument that Slides A member of the brass family, the trombone is a wind instrument that is played much in the same way as other brass instruments. The lips are pursed and the musician blows into the mouthpiece in order to create sound. The trombone is unique in that it features a slide......
• A Little Background on Harps The harp is a simple stringed instrument that is comprised of a plane of strings that is positioned perpendicular in relation to the instrument's sound board. All harps have similar elements, like the neck, the strings and the resonator. Some harps, frame harps as they are referred to, also have......
• Harp Introduction The Harp is an acoustic musical instrument which is made up stings that are held stretched under tension, which will produce harmonics when plucked with the fingers, a pick or a similar device. There are two primary kinds of harps, bow and angle. Bow harps are so named after the......
• A Look at the Harp A harp is a type of stringed instrument. The harp's plane of strings is positioned in a perpendicular fashion to the sound board, unlike most other instruments where the sound board and the strings are affixed in a parallel fashion. As many other non percussion based instruments, the harp is......
• Metal Instruments 101 There are a range of different metal percussion instruments that can be found in the modern western orchestra, even though many of them have origins that are not only ancient in nature, but also global as well. The Anvil - The Anvil is a specific type of sound effect that......

Related Websites

• History of Music and Current Recording Industry Crisis Roger L. Bagula wrote this exclusive article for ManuelMarino.com. History of Music and Current Recording Industry Crisis In a time when the whole future of how music is distributed is in question, maybe we should look at the history of music for a guide. Many of us find music......
• Attain Victory with the Right Triathlon Gear pt 1 Throughout our existence, one of the deciding factors in who survives and who doesn't has been technology. It is the innovation of technology that has allowed us to push ourselves to new horizons along the way. In all aspects of our life, having the right gear and equipment is absolutely......
• Drumsticks and Drums Drumsticks are specially designed sticks that are intended to strike the heads of percussion instruments like drums. Drumsticks are especially useful for hitting specific types of drums, especially during orchestral work, jazz music, rock band music and even marching band music. The most common drumsticks are made from oak, hickory,......
• Teach Yourself Acoustic Guitar with Country Music Guitar Lessons What better way is there to learn to play the guitar today? Well a very popular means is via the Internet. Because of it's popularity, taking country music guitar lessons, will guide and you show you the many tricks and tips of the trade. We will focus on two......
• The History Channel is Looking for 16 Top Shots This is right up my alley. Sixteen lucky contestants will battle weekly for a 100,000 dollar prize. The game, shooting. Each week they will be tested with different weaponry, with one elimination per week. So if you're interested, scroll down and click on the link to get started. Check out the......

Online Stores

• Mellophone Brass Musical Instruments
• Acoustic Guitar Strings Musical Instruments
• Banjo String Musical Instruments
• Vintage Pre-1980 Brass Musical Instruments
• Acoustic Guitar Musical Instruments

If you liked this article, vote for it on del.icio.us and stumbleupon.



Categories:

Acoustic Musical Instruments, Harps, Instrument History

Tags:

ancient greece, babylonia, ceng, different materials, distinct traditions, egyptian pharaoh, epic tales, galpin, gourds, history of the harp, hunting bow, mesopotamia, musical cultures, pharaoh ramses, physical environments, poetry art, ramses iii, resonator, triangular frame, tuning pegs