The Instruments
The Musicians |
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The Celtic Harp. There are two kinds of harps. Most people are familiar with the big golden harp they see in orchestras. This kind of harp I play is a much older version that was popular in the 15th/16th Century called the Celtic Harp. You can also call it a folk harp, or a lever harp. They come in all sizes, the smallest sits on the lap and the largest is about 5 feet tall.
The harp I usually play has 34 strings, the lowest being “C”.The strings run in order like Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So,La, Ti, Do, the same as the white keys of a piano. The levers that you see on top allow each note to be sharpened, or moved up half a step, so C can become C#, and so on.
The harp body is hollow inside and weighs only about 24 lbs. I have a collection of these harps that I take around to visit various nursing homes, schools, hospitals etc.so that others can have the experience of play ing too. I call that program “Harps for Hearts”
Click here for more info about harps
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| The Irish Bouzouki, or octave mandolin is my favorite fretted instrument. It has eight strings and its the same as playing a mandolin but one octave lower. Mine is made by Tom Fellenbaum in Asheville, North Carolina |
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The Mandolin has eight strings also but it is an octave higher than the bouzouki. My current mandolin that I mainly use in my music is made by Breedlove Mandolins. |
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The Bandura is a 5th century Ukranian folk instrument. It is played by holding it up like a guitar and using your left hand to pluck the bass strings. I also play it flat on my lap when recording. Like my harps, each string has a lever that allows you to sharpen each note by half a step. Pictured here is my old bandura. I was in my favor-ite instrument shop in Los Angeles, when the owner said “I have saved something special for you” and he brought this out. I had to buy it and I love it, it has made appearances on almost all of recordings. My brand new Bandura that I just ordered from Canada is made by William Vetzel. It just arrived and it’s wonderful. I will post pictures of it soon. |
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The Bass: I started playing bass when I was about 17 years old. I already played guitar but none of the garage bands at the time wanted girl guitar players. There was a shortage of bass players so thats how I got in. I ended up loving bass, got into progressive music and heavy metal music for awhile which strengthens the hands for sure. |
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| I ended up making my living playing bass in Top 40 bands and biker bands from when I was 21 to about 30 years old. I toured Alaska and Greenland and many a shady bars in my day. I still play the bass on most of my own recordings but now I prefer the warm fat acoustic sound. I approach the bass a lot simpler than I used to and I still enjoy doing it. Its made by Tacoma. |
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The Guitar: I must mention guitar since it was the beginning of my musical journey. I was 7 years old when my cousins got a guitar and I couldn't stop trying to play it. I found my passion in life and soon earned guitar lessons and have played ever since. I had given it up for awhile but in the past year I picked it up again and an now playing on my new recordings. The guitar I have is a Taylor. I like using open tunings and a capo when needed. |
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| The Appalacian Dulcimer: It has six strings and sits on the lap. It is plucked or strummed with the right and, and chorded with the left hand. I use this on a lot of my earlier recordings and Christmas CD. |
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| The Musicians |
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