夏天吃水果“寒”与“热”# WaterWorld - 未名水世界
n*8
1 楼
Harp
I erect a harp by the mirror lake.
In the mirror I gaze at her grace,
and wish she would sing when awake.
When autumn breeze wrinkles her face,
I hear fallen leaves pluck her string.
And see golden sun rays decorate her reflection.
Harp sings a song of mesmerizing spring,
Till I tie autumn with affection.
竖琴是很有意思的乐器。 几天前开车带小宝去上游泳课， 电台播放着很好听的音乐。
我是家里公认的乐盲， 五音不全， 对音乐的感知仅限于好听和不好听的欣赏水准。
因为好听， 就问小宝， 是什么乐器。小宝答， 竖琴。 我也不知哪来的信心， 坚定
地否决他， 是吉他， 想是因为大学被迫听过太多的吉他， 初学者的吉他。 痛苦的记
忆总是留的久些。 小宝自然不买我的。 好在音乐不长， 结束时， 主持人按惯例介绍
了取名， 和演奏者。 名字都没听说过， 可是我和小宝都清清楚楚地听到了
performed by Harpist XXX and Guitairst XXX。 让小宝和我都满意的结局。 过后我
特意谷歌了吉他和竖琴的异同， 学了很多很有趣的知识。 翻译太花时间， 贴在下面
FYI。
Angela Biggs: Soprano, Harper
Sing to Him a new song, play skillfully, and shout for joy! (Psa 33:3)
Harp v. Guitar: What’s the Difference?
In a geographical region dominated by 6-string rhythm guitars, I encounter
quite a lot of confusion about my harp. Why is it so finicky? Why am I
opposed to amplification? Of course it’s just like a guitar, it has strings
! Read on.
My harp has 36 strings, made of nylon monofilament, nylon-wound-nylon, and
wire-wound-wire. Each type of string reacts differently to the environment.
A guitar has anywhere from 6 to 12 strings, generally made of the same
material (steel wound with bronze, or nylon).
The strings on a harp are arranged perpendicularly to the soundboard and
roughly parallel with the neck, and exert about 1500 pounds of force on the
instrument. This perpendicular arrangement of the strings relative to the
soundboard is the defining characteristic of the harp family of instruments.
The guitar belongs to the lute family: its strings are arranged parallel to
the sound board and exert around 150 pounds of pressure on the body of the
instrument (for a 6-string guitar).
Most harps are larger than guitars, and contain more wood. Therefore, there
is a greater overall effect of wood expansion/contraction due to changes in
environment, which affects the tuning and health of the instrument. This is
why I arrive an hour early for every gig (it gives the harp time to
acclimate before tuning), and why I must tune in the same room — ideally,
the same spot — in which I will be playing.
My harp has 36 strings, which are strung on through-pins and tuned with a
separate tuning key; approximate tuning time, depending on conditions, is 7-
12 minutes. A guitar has 6 strings, which are strung on integrated
mechanical tuners; approximate tuning time is 90-180 seconds.1
The harp is a non-fretted instrument: I can only get one pitch when I pluck
a string. If it’s out of tune, there’s nothing I can do until the piece is
over; and that’s why I won’t play without carefully tuning first. The
guitar is a fretted instrument: a skilled player can adjust for a slightly
flat or sharp string on the fly.
The strings on my harp are arranged over the course of 36 inches. Because of
this, an full-sized amplified harp requires at least three internal pickups
, four are better, and best is a series of individual piezo-electric pickups
installed on each string. A single microphone never works well. The strings
of a (6-string) guitar are arranged over the course of less than two inches
, and require only one pickup. Also, most guitars nowadays come set up to
plug and play; if a harper wants an amplified harp, she must usually get it
custom-fitted with pickups after purchase.
Both harps and guitars are polyphonic instruments (they can play more than
one note at a time). A harp is traditionally used for melodic and harmonic
playing.2 Strummed guitar is pitched rhythm. The purpose of pitched rhythm
instruments is different from the purpose of melodic/harmonic instruments.
A harp’s volume is naturally soft. Even large concert grand harps (CGs) are
easily drowned out by other instruments, and I play a small lever harp. A
guitar is naturally louder, and holds up much better to other instruments.
The tone of a harp is clean, round, and quiet. It leaves space for breath,
heartbeat, and thoughts of its audience. The tone of a strummed guitar is
noisier (contains more sounds) and more raucous. It is designed to take over
the breath, heartbeat and mind of its audience.
I have only been able to find one harp repair shop in the Twinstate area,
and I had a bad experience with them with a prior harp; the nearest one I
will consider using for my performance instrument is The Harp Connection in
Boston. On the other hand, there are several guitar dealers in the Upper
Valley area alone. It’s much easier to get a guitar repaired than a harp.
This is why I won’t leave my instrument alone, and why I require a roped-
off space in which to play.
In Conclusion:
Harps and guitars have very little in common beyond their most basic
identities as stringed instruments. They should be used according to their
designs, purposes, and strengths, and not shoe-horned into ill-fitting
assumptions.
My harp performs best in an intimate space with a small audience; or in a
quiet, high-ceiling church; or in a shady spot at a Farmers’ Market, where
people can pause in their shopping to listen. It performs best as an
acoustic instrument, sometimes accompanied by my un-amplified voice.
Although I can play blues, jazz and even rock on it, it is not natively a
rock instrument: it cannot generate that much sound, nor is it simple to
amplify. Because of its fundamental design, it requires time to adjust to a
new place, and time and quiet in which to tune.
Not all music needs to overtake your body and mind; not all music must be
loud or noisy. A harp is not a guitar, but why can’t that be a good thing?
Music is more than just one instrument has to offer!
1 Aside from the sheer number of strings, there are some very technical
details involved in tuning a 5-octave range on a fixed-string instrument. It
has to do with the way we divide our musical scale and the compromises we
make between thirds and fifths. Even when each string registers perfectly on
an electronic tuner, the harp can still sound out of tune, so in a
performance situation I always tune by ear. It takes longer to do it this
way, but results in a much more pleasing sound. I start by tuning the middle
tenth of the instrument using a tuner, then “sweeten” that tenth (make
small adjustments by ear), then tune down and up the harp in octaves using
harmonics.
2 It can also act as a rhythm instrument via guitar-like strumming, slaps to
the body of the instrument, and certain other techniques.
I erect a harp by the mirror lake.
In the mirror I gaze at her grace,
and wish she would sing when awake.
When autumn breeze wrinkles her face,
I hear fallen leaves pluck her string.
And see golden sun rays decorate her reflection.
Harp sings a song of mesmerizing spring,
Till I tie autumn with affection.
竖琴是很有意思的乐器。 几天前开车带小宝去上游泳课， 电台播放着很好听的音乐。
我是家里公认的乐盲， 五音不全， 对音乐的感知仅限于好听和不好听的欣赏水准。
因为好听， 就问小宝， 是什么乐器。小宝答， 竖琴。 我也不知哪来的信心， 坚定
地否决他， 是吉他， 想是因为大学被迫听过太多的吉他， 初学者的吉他。 痛苦的记
忆总是留的久些。 小宝自然不买我的。 好在音乐不长， 结束时， 主持人按惯例介绍
了取名， 和演奏者。 名字都没听说过， 可是我和小宝都清清楚楚地听到了
performed by Harpist XXX and Guitairst XXX。 让小宝和我都满意的结局。 过后我
特意谷歌了吉他和竖琴的异同， 学了很多很有趣的知识。 翻译太花时间， 贴在下面
FYI。
Angela Biggs: Soprano, Harper
Sing to Him a new song, play skillfully, and shout for joy! (Psa 33:3)
Harp v. Guitar: What’s the Difference?
In a geographical region dominated by 6-string rhythm guitars, I encounter
quite a lot of confusion about my harp. Why is it so finicky? Why am I
opposed to amplification? Of course it’s just like a guitar, it has strings
! Read on.
My harp has 36 strings, made of nylon monofilament, nylon-wound-nylon, and
wire-wound-wire. Each type of string reacts differently to the environment.
A guitar has anywhere from 6 to 12 strings, generally made of the same
material (steel wound with bronze, or nylon).
The strings on a harp are arranged perpendicularly to the soundboard and
roughly parallel with the neck, and exert about 1500 pounds of force on the
instrument. This perpendicular arrangement of the strings relative to the
soundboard is the defining characteristic of the harp family of instruments.
The guitar belongs to the lute family: its strings are arranged parallel to
the sound board and exert around 150 pounds of pressure on the body of the
instrument (for a 6-string guitar).
Most harps are larger than guitars, and contain more wood. Therefore, there
is a greater overall effect of wood expansion/contraction due to changes in
environment, which affects the tuning and health of the instrument. This is
why I arrive an hour early for every gig (it gives the harp time to
acclimate before tuning), and why I must tune in the same room — ideally,
the same spot — in which I will be playing.
My harp has 36 strings, which are strung on through-pins and tuned with a
separate tuning key; approximate tuning time, depending on conditions, is 7-
12 minutes. A guitar has 6 strings, which are strung on integrated
mechanical tuners; approximate tuning time is 90-180 seconds.1
The harp is a non-fretted instrument: I can only get one pitch when I pluck
a string. If it’s out of tune, there’s nothing I can do until the piece is
over; and that’s why I won’t play without carefully tuning first. The
guitar is a fretted instrument: a skilled player can adjust for a slightly
flat or sharp string on the fly.
The strings on my harp are arranged over the course of 36 inches. Because of
this, an full-sized amplified harp requires at least three internal pickups
, four are better, and best is a series of individual piezo-electric pickups
installed on each string. A single microphone never works well. The strings
of a (6-string) guitar are arranged over the course of less than two inches
, and require only one pickup. Also, most guitars nowadays come set up to
plug and play; if a harper wants an amplified harp, she must usually get it
custom-fitted with pickups after purchase.
Both harps and guitars are polyphonic instruments (they can play more than
one note at a time). A harp is traditionally used for melodic and harmonic
playing.2 Strummed guitar is pitched rhythm. The purpose of pitched rhythm
instruments is different from the purpose of melodic/harmonic instruments.
A harp’s volume is naturally soft. Even large concert grand harps (CGs) are
easily drowned out by other instruments, and I play a small lever harp. A
guitar is naturally louder, and holds up much better to other instruments.
The tone of a harp is clean, round, and quiet. It leaves space for breath,
heartbeat, and thoughts of its audience. The tone of a strummed guitar is
noisier (contains more sounds) and more raucous. It is designed to take over
the breath, heartbeat and mind of its audience.
I have only been able to find one harp repair shop in the Twinstate area,
and I had a bad experience with them with a prior harp; the nearest one I
will consider using for my performance instrument is The Harp Connection in
Boston. On the other hand, there are several guitar dealers in the Upper
Valley area alone. It’s much easier to get a guitar repaired than a harp.
This is why I won’t leave my instrument alone, and why I require a roped-
off space in which to play.
In Conclusion:
Harps and guitars have very little in common beyond their most basic
identities as stringed instruments. They should be used according to their
designs, purposes, and strengths, and not shoe-horned into ill-fitting
assumptions.
My harp performs best in an intimate space with a small audience; or in a
quiet, high-ceiling church; or in a shady spot at a Farmers’ Market, where
people can pause in their shopping to listen. It performs best as an
acoustic instrument, sometimes accompanied by my un-amplified voice.
Although I can play blues, jazz and even rock on it, it is not natively a
rock instrument: it cannot generate that much sound, nor is it simple to
amplify. Because of its fundamental design, it requires time to adjust to a
new place, and time and quiet in which to tune.
Not all music needs to overtake your body and mind; not all music must be
loud or noisy. A harp is not a guitar, but why can’t that be a good thing?
Music is more than just one instrument has to offer!
1 Aside from the sheer number of strings, there are some very technical
details involved in tuning a 5-octave range on a fixed-string instrument. It
has to do with the way we divide our musical scale and the compromises we
make between thirds and fifths. Even when each string registers perfectly on
an electronic tuner, the harp can still sound out of tune, so in a
performance situation I always tune by ear. It takes longer to do it this
way, but results in a much more pleasing sound. I start by tuning the middle
tenth of the instrument using a tuner, then “sweeten” that tenth (make
small adjustments by ear), then tune down and up the harp in octaves using
harmonics.
2 It can also act as a rhythm instrument via guitar-like strumming, slaps to
the body of the instrument, and certain other techniques.
