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Guitar chord forum - chordie → Other string instruments → Autoharp
New 'Autoharp' thread started in the 'Other Stringed Instruments' section of the forum. A recent posting by omIni in the 'Acoustic' forum section opened the topic. This new thread will hopefully continue the conversation under a better heading.
Any other autoharpists out there?
Here are some Chordie songbooks that I know are autoharp compatible (I know they are harp-friendly since I edited & posted these books).
Ballads from Blondes
Silly to Sublime
"In 3" Waltz Gems
Easiest way to locate these books is to go to "All Public Songbooks", then pick "Sort Alphabetically". The "In 3" book will appear close to the end of the list since it starts with a quote symbol.
If you are playing a 12- or 15-chord instrument, you may need to transpose a bit in order to make some of these songs work for you.
Commercial music books published just for the autoharp are aimed mostly at a very narrow market niche - consequently, the range of musical selections in these publications is also very narrow. Don't let that stop you from playing anything that strikes your fancy.
Here are some notable autoharpists who have broadened the horizons of the instrument:
Penelope Houston; California Punker turned Euro-Folkie turned California Punker
The Billy Nayer Show; San Francisco rockers/performance artists/film makers
You can google up some info on these performers. Also you may want to check out the Autoharp WebRing. There are several very informative sites here plus links to good stuff: <a href="http://pages.prodigy.net/cah/autoharp/" target="_blank">http://pages.prodigy.net/cah/autoharp/</a>
Another thing that is fun to do just for shits&giggles is to go to Google News and then do a search for 'Autoharp'. Recent news articles from all around the planet will pop up for your edification and amusement.
Hey iv been using this sight to get chord for ages but only just joined now,(it kicks ass by the way) but I do play the harp and I am very curious as to what an autoharo is.Can anybody enlighten me?
Hello zipporah - here is a link to the Wikipedia article on autoharps:
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autoharp" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autoharp</a>
Hope this helps - when you say you play harp, do you mean harmonica/harp? Or do you mean a classical harp (like Harpo Marx)?
I did play the harmonica but sadly no more.I play the classical and spanish harp. Also a bit of traditional but I don't really like it.
I started playing autoharp a couple of years ago - mainly I like to sing and the autoharp is a great thing to sing with. I have a nice 21-chord Oscar-Schmidt with fine tuning.
I played electric bass years ago (but my left thumb got crunched, so had to give it up).
What is a Spanish Harp? I am familiar with Irish harps and other 'traditional' harps, but have not heard of Spanish Harp.
Yeah I only really took up harp to accompany my singing as well.A spanish harp is fairly similar to the classical except it's a higher pitch and a bit smaller, it also only has 5 octaves, and the style of playing is different.
Is a Spanish Harp cross-strung with the C-major strings (= piano white keys) on one course, and the diatonics (=piano black keys) on the other course? Heard one of these at a recital once years ago and was fascinated with the sound and versatility of the instrument.
The one I saw wasn't very large maybe just 3 octaves. A 5-octave harp must be pretty substantial.
What sort of stuff have you been finding on Chordie for your harp?
No it's not.Iv never seen a harp that strung like that it must be interesting.
To be honest I mainly use chordie to find songs for the piano. I usually write my own chords for the harp because it's really difficult what with the accidentals and all that to find find chords that are actually harp playable.But I mainly like to do slow aired songs,songs from musicals and the like.
Perhaps you should start a piano topic under the 'other stringed instruments' section of the forum. I'm sure there are other pianists who visit Chordie to get lyrics & chords.
Another good source for songs is this site:
<a href="http://www.guntheranderson.com/" target="_blank">http://www.guntheranderson.com/</a>
Plenty of songs from musicals as well as other great stuff to be found. Site doesn't have all the neato-keano functions as Chordie, but worth looking at.
heya james i think d kind of harp ur thinkin of is d welsh harp. it has 3 rows of strings going down an d 2 outside ones r d same (both lik white keys) but d inside ones r d semitones (black keys) so d harp has no blades r pedals on it.
now whats this autoharp business?! sorry i should prob know r else find out myself...
kimmi
Hi all ,
This topic reminds me of about ten years ago . My wife has never been real musical but she wanted to join in at our jams . After thinking about this for a while , I remembered the autoharps that they used to have in grade school , and that anybody could play them . So I got one for her ,
a nice O.S. 21 chord . The only problem was volume . I tried just about every thing , a mag pickup , a transducer ,
even tried just a mic . Nothing seemed to work well enough . Some one must have figured out a way to amp these things , they really
do sound nice................
Hi G S E,
Yep - volume is an issue. Since the soundbox is rather tiny and the strings are relatively short, there just isn't a lot of sound produced (compared to guitar). Oscar-Schmidt makes models with pre-installed pick-ups, but I can't afford a whole new instrument.
Try this - a Lavalier mic (one of those little lapel-clip gizmos).
The player wears it on their chest so that it is pressed up against the back of the instrument.
Seems strange, but this is what many professional autoharpists use.
A little experimentation is needed to find the sweet spot.
Of course, the autoharp needs strap buttons - easily installed. I use a guitar strap that I shortened by sewing part of it together. The strap just goes just around my neck (not across my back).
Basic Lavalier mics are not too expensive ($40 US). Presently, I am saving up for a slightly nicer one that also has a USB fitting for jacking directly into my computer. I'll let you know how it works.
Guitar chord forum - chordie → Other string instruments → Autoharp
