IS THERE HARP MUSIC IN HEAVEN?

I've always been intrigued by the harp, but it was something that was always too expensive to own anyway.  As the harp is associated with Heaven, thought this was a good day to share what you might and might not have known about this instrument.

• Harps go back to King David in the Old Testament.
• Is symbolic of worship in heaven or hope.
• In many artworks, angels wearing white robes, reclining fluffy clouds with halos, are gently playing golden harps.

The more I thought about the above, the more I figured out I didn't know much about the harp.  For example, know any famous person who played the harp.  Some actually can answer this question, and immediately come up with Harpo Marx.

Other well-known harpists include Turlough O'Carolan of Ireland, Alphonse Hasselmans of Belgium, Marcel Tournier of of France, Carlos Salzédo of France and Judy Loman of Canada.  Surely, you never heard of them before.  Here is one top ten:

• #1   King David, who ruled in Israel from 1010-970 BC.  How can he be ignored.  The Bible said so.  Of course, You Tube was not around millennia ago, but here is an album, King David's Harp.
• #2  Joanna Newsom (photo to the right), a Californian, only 41 years old.  Is also an actress and is married to comedian Andy Samberg.  Watch her teach Larry King.

• 
  #3  Loreena McKennitt, Canadian who has sold 14 million records.  Here is one...Atomic Peace.
• #4   Alice Coltrane (right), American, married Jazz musician John Coltrane.  Also known as Swami Turyasangitananda.
• #8  Akiko Shikata, won't give age, from Japan, associated with anime and video games.  Best of her harp music.

• Twelve of the top fifteen are female.

The greatest harp music of all time could be:

• #1  Mozart, Concerto for Flute, Harp and Orchestra.
• #2  Manuel De Falla, Spanish Dance.
• #3  Handel, Concerto for Harp and Orchestra.
• #4  Donizetti, Harp solo from Lucia de Lammermoor.

• 
  #5  Glinka, Variations on a Theme of Mozart.
• #6  John Thomas, Watching the Wheat.
• #7  Smetana, Vltava (the Moldau).
• #8  William Mathias, Improvisations for Harp.

• 
  #9  Handel, Passacaglia.
• #10  Jesus Giurdi, Viejo Zortzico.
• ALL of the harpists are female.  But it is said that 93% of them are women.
• This list would make a fine Sunday afternoon of classical music.

Or, here is a top ten of best loved classical harp music.  If you want more information about the harp, read this treatise. 15 instrumental harp songs for memorials, funerals and grieving.

About the instrument itself, the harp is known to have existed in Mesopotamia, Persia and Egypt, and later in India and China. 

• They date back to 4000 BC.   
• 
  There is a family of harp shapes and size.  
• The concert harp today has pedals to alter pitch of given strings
• They are triangular and made of wood, with strings of gut, wire or nylon.  
• Each string has a tuning peg.  
• The longest side is called the column or pillar.

One of the attractions drawing me to a harp was those colored strings.  All C strings are red, while all F strings are black or dark blue.  I've wondered why they don't give a color to all the strings, and perhaps change the order to mimic the color of the rainbow.

Maybe you're now interested in playing a harp.  Cost?  From Amazon.

• Roosebeck Lily Harp with 8 strings, $70.  About 15 inches high.
• Lotkey Lyre Harp (right), 19 metal strings, $90.  15 by 11 inches.
• Used Venus classic natural finish Concert Pedal Harp, 46 strings, low C to high F, 72.5 inches high, $18,495.

Want a new one?  They cost between $15,000 and $20,000.  The top three harp brands are #1 Cacam, #2 Lyon & Healy and #3 Salvi, and they own L&H.

Here is a seven minute lesson on how to start.  Or a 14-part series.

How does the harp rank in ease of learning?  This article lists this instrument as third most difficult in a list of the hardest to play, with the French horn as #1 and #2 violin.  However, Rees Harps Inc. says the harp is truly easy to learn.  Keep in mind, though, that they sell it.

If you want to be less challenged, try the triangle, which is the easiest, or ukulele.  Also says that the piano is easy.  Something to do with a keyboard.  Sure.  Heard about my experience? Not a piano, but an even easier electronic, keyboard where the key to play is lit.  I got inspired to try when I saw Jokgu the chicken playing America the Beautiful on America's Got Talent.  She also can play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.  Read about my travails.

I have a special and sad memory linked to that tune and a keyboard, which underscores my particular dedication to overcome.  I thought, I could do what Jokgu did, so the next day went online and bought a 61-key Electronic Keyboard, which comes with 128+ instruments and 4000 programmed songs (where the keys light up).  Let's see, now, two years later, and I still can't perfectly play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.  A common joke at 15 Craigside is that someday I'll put on a theater recital.

So is there harp music in Heaven?  

• Of course yes....if there is a Heaven.  
• Most Americans actually believe they will go to heaven and see their family, friends and pets.  Pew has this at 73%, with Christians way up there at 92%. Only one in six don't believe in an afterlife.  Mind you, even though you would think Muslims all believe and most of the other religions have reincarnation and a whole host of options at the end, only 49% of the world believe in something after death.

• 
  My mind says that at the end, it will be something like nothing or eternal blackness, although I'm beginning to more and more be influenced by some who say there will come ultimate peace.
• 
  When our early Homo ancestors evolved millions of years ago, my sense is that there were early communities, and from this beginning came a brilliant idea.  
• Why not impress on others that there is some kind of supreme being, or a family of them, that is watching us to keep us honest.  Faith also was invented as an important part of social control.
• This combination became the religions of today.  

• 
  In a way I think this is immoral because there is no provable reality.
• When you are alive, an afterlife is merely a belief.  At death, and there is really nothing, there is no way to complain that you were deceived.
• Mind you, those who are religious have a psychological advantage with the hope of heaven.  I'm troubled by my belief.
• 
• Also to my disbenefit, there is Pascal's Wager:  Let us weigh the gain and the loss in wagering that God is. Let us estimate these two chances. If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation that He is.

Loreen (Lorine Zineb Nora Talhaoui) of Sweden won the Eurovision song contest.  Watch her perform Tattoo.  She was the favorite, and had previously already prevailed by winning the 2012 contest.  Johnny Logan of Ireland has also won twice.  Finland came in second and Israel third.  Sweden also won in 1974 with ABBA performing Waterloo.

Again, Happy Mother's Day.

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