So Many Strings ATOS 7.46

So Many Strings

By Rusty Perez

One of the most ancient instruments known to man is the harp. From its most basic form, a string stretched on a hunting bow and plucked, to its most advanced form, as many as 47 strings with pedals to adjust pitches on a concert or symphonic harp, the concept is the same. Several strings are tuned to different notes and plucked with the fingers to create music. The harp, or similar instruments, have been used for worship and entertainment for thousands of years. The Biblical King David wrote many verses in praise of his God which were sung with the harp. " Psalm 43:4 Then will I go unto the altar of God, Unto God my exceeding joy; And upon the harp will I praise thee, O God, my God." (ASV) Other ancient harp-like instruments were found in Ur, located in modern day Iraq which are thought to date back to 2500 B.C. Though it might be argued that David's harp was not the same as our harps today, the idea is similar. The strings are tuned to a musical scale and plucked with fingers. The vibrating strings are made louder because they vibrate the wood of a sound box and the air inside of the box.

The basic form of a more modern harp is a flat wooden Scalene triangle with an empty center. The strings fill the center of the triangle running parallel to the longest edge of the triangle which is called the column. The next longest side is the box or soundboard. The shortest side is the neck the strings attach here to the tuning pegs. Imagine a large slice of pizza. The point is toward you and the crust is away from you. The crust is the neck of the harp. The right side of your slice is the sound box, it is a little shorter than the left side which is the column. The harp is roughly this shape, and strings run from the neck edge at an angle straight down to the sound box on your right. The strings on the extreme right are much shorter than the strings on your left. The strings on the left are lower notes and the strings on the right are higher. To play the harp, imagine that the slice of pizza is standing on its point, and that the right side, or sound box, is leaning on your shoulder.

Harps come in all sizes, some balance on the floor or a stand, and some are small enough to sit in the player's lap. The harper plays seated. The harp is held with the sharpest, or most acute angle or corner pointing toward the ground and the sound box leaning on the player's right shoulder. The column is held away from the player. The shortest strings are closest to the player's shoulder and the longest strings are away from the player. The strings are mostly vertical, and the player places her right hand on the right side of the strings and the left hand on the left. Usually, the right hand plays the high strings, closest to the player's shoulder or head, and the left hand reaches out to play the longer lower strings.

Any kind of music can be played on the harp, and it has been used for centuries to play anything from classical to dance music, and music of worship. You may be most familiar with the sound of a harp when thinking of dreams or angels in movies or other types of shows.