Since last writing the internet has been a nightmare! I finally gave up trying so it was such a surprise to get on finally today!
We have had such fun over Christmas and I meant to fill you in as it went on ... however, I now start with the goodbye!
My sister, husband, daughter and son flew over from Boston for a traditional Christmas and we have done everything and been everywhere!!! Last time she came over we parted at a bus stop in Oxford, outside Debenhams. I have brought up my kids with a certain sort of originality which meant the dining table stayed upside-down most of the time as we played 'sharks'. We invented our own version of snakes and ladders with real ladders up stairs and over settees and the snakes were knotted ropes dangling from attics and haylofts.
Me and my sister boarded the 'park and ride' bus almost in tears and left eldest son and daughter at the bus stop outside the bus. The automatic doors closed but the bus didn't go anywhere. Quick as a flash Luke started playing charades - we were yelling the answers through the window and people moved across the bus to join in. The bus driver had never seen anything like it.
This time it was a final meal of fish and chips (apparantly they don't taste quite like it on Cape Cod (?!). I wrote down the directions to the Airport as best I could and we parted on the roundabout on the Skipton bypass! Arms waving out of windows, tears and huge cheers as our car headed up the Keighley road and they turned up the Clitheroe road ...
Wednesday 29 December 2010
Sunday 12 December 2010
Ginge got stuck
Well, my camper van, Ginge, has been pulled out at last! It was stuck for well over a week. Firstly with the snow and then with the 2 inch layer of sticky mud that was left behind. This place isn't called 'Marsh' for nothing!
It has been a week of struggling against the elements. I walked 2 miles to post Dave's son's Jack's birthday present (phew, so many apostrophes...). Decided to wear walking boots to get extra grip but the snow was so deep heading off down the field that my boots were full of cold snow by the time I reached the village so came home up the icy pavements. We squashed the harp into Dave's little 4 wheel drive which meant I had to sit in the back on one of the tiny fold-down seats. I had to unfold myself out of the car to get on stage but it was quite comfy.
I spent nearly an hour pushing two vans out. They narrowly missed sliding into the ancient standing stones stuck at the side of the cottage next door.
I got a mention in the Epoch Times Music Review - 'one of the outstanding highlights at Musicport' - this is making the cold/flu bug seem less nasty so THANK YOU!!! :) xxx etc ....
It has been a week of struggling against the elements. I walked 2 miles to post Dave's son's Jack's birthday present (phew, so many apostrophes...). Decided to wear walking boots to get extra grip but the snow was so deep heading off down the field that my boots were full of cold snow by the time I reached the village so came home up the icy pavements. We squashed the harp into Dave's little 4 wheel drive which meant I had to sit in the back on one of the tiny fold-down seats. I had to unfold myself out of the car to get on stage but it was quite comfy.
I spent nearly an hour pushing two vans out. They narrowly missed sliding into the ancient standing stones stuck at the side of the cottage next door.
I got a mention in the Epoch Times Music Review - 'one of the outstanding highlights at Musicport' - this is making the cold/flu bug seem less nasty so THANK YOU!!! :) xxx etc ....
Monday 6 December 2010
revolutions brewing ...
Wednesday 8th December 6-9 pm - Cobbles and Clay, Haworth
Thursday 9th December 7.30 pm - Shoulder of Mutton, Castleford - www.revolutionsbrewing.co.uk
Click on the link, they can explain their beer better than I can! Yorkshire Music - they say - brilliant. 'Yorkshire Rocks' was the heading a few months back on the front of a magazine! (with me stood on top of ... yes, a Yorkshire rock)
Well, another gig cancelled because of the snow alas. Wycoller wasn't to be. The road down to the village does tend to be a bit like a stream, awash with water at the best of times. Yesterday we had a bit of a thaw and we passed a car stuck into a massive snow drift opposite the pub. It was almost completely covered over by snow and no-one had attempted to get it out. It reminded me of a tale from the past. We lived near Blubberhouses and the road got very bad with snow every year. My Dad got a call one night from a friend who had to abandon his car and walk home. He asked Dad to go up and put some more markers on it as he was worried it would be hit by the snow plough. He had tied his tie to the aerial and had found an old fence post to mark the back. Trouble was - what to put on that? My Dad roared with laughter and it was a few days before us girls found out. (The only thing he could think of was his underpants.)
Well, its either see you for a cup of tea, or see you for a beer?
Thursday 9th December 7.30 pm - Shoulder of Mutton, Castleford - www.revolutionsbrewing.co.uk
Click on the link, they can explain their beer better than I can! Yorkshire Music - they say - brilliant. 'Yorkshire Rocks' was the heading a few months back on the front of a magazine! (with me stood on top of ... yes, a Yorkshire rock)
Well, another gig cancelled because of the snow alas. Wycoller wasn't to be. The road down to the village does tend to be a bit like a stream, awash with water at the best of times. Yesterday we had a bit of a thaw and we passed a car stuck into a massive snow drift opposite the pub. It was almost completely covered over by snow and no-one had attempted to get it out. It reminded me of a tale from the past. We lived near Blubberhouses and the road got very bad with snow every year. My Dad got a call one night from a friend who had to abandon his car and walk home. He asked Dad to go up and put some more markers on it as he was worried it would be hit by the snow plough. He had tied his tie to the aerial and had found an old fence post to mark the back. Trouble was - what to put on that? My Dad roared with laughter and it was a few days before us girls found out. (The only thing he could think of was his underpants.)
Well, its either see you for a cup of tea, or see you for a beer?
Thursday 2 December 2010
the phone keeps ringing
Sunday 5th December 1-4 pm Wycoller Country Park
Wednesday 8th December 6-9 pm Cobbles and Clay Cafe, Main Street, Haworth
Thursday 9th December 8 pm - Revolutions Brewery Opening, Castleford
Well, I can't complain - folks out there want to keep hearing harp! (thank you)
The snow has arrived thick and fast and the cold is unbelievable. I have now finished making curtains which fit so well to stop the draughts. I have raided skips over the last few years and retrieved old shutters and wardrobe doors and fitted them over the huge windows at the front of our house with great effect. I'd say it adds on about 10 degrees in those rooms.
I may have said this before but my Dad always kept saying the definition of a Yorkshire man was one who could buy something off a Jew and sell it to a Scotsman and make a profit ... I am proving to be all Yorkshire! Sometimes it works well being 'canny'. I saved a huge amount of money by buying the top-of-the-range, lightest duvet the other day - they had one super-king left in the sale at half the price of the others. The question was 'would I be able to cram it into my existing king-size duvet covers?' - answer - YES (of course!).
When both sheepdogs had pups the other week and the father, Mac, was left without an abode - I quickly converted an old compost bin and put it under a row of Scots Pine trees in a lovely sheltered spot overlooking the farm. Don't worry he is now in the old caravan 'livin it up' but it helped us out for a few days till we got sorted! Funily enough he took to it straight away and I think he rather liked it!
I am off now to see how to fasten bells to the harps. It has flumuxed me a bit but I am sure it is possible if I keep thinking about it!!! Mystic-Al and Vand-Al are now holding their tune well and I need to find the time to finish off the decoration - it's time to take them out on a gig!
Wednesday 8th December 6-9 pm Cobbles and Clay Cafe, Main Street, Haworth
Thursday 9th December 8 pm - Revolutions Brewery Opening, Castleford
Well, I can't complain - folks out there want to keep hearing harp! (thank you)
The snow has arrived thick and fast and the cold is unbelievable. I have now finished making curtains which fit so well to stop the draughts. I have raided skips over the last few years and retrieved old shutters and wardrobe doors and fitted them over the huge windows at the front of our house with great effect. I'd say it adds on about 10 degrees in those rooms.
I may have said this before but my Dad always kept saying the definition of a Yorkshire man was one who could buy something off a Jew and sell it to a Scotsman and make a profit ... I am proving to be all Yorkshire! Sometimes it works well being 'canny'. I saved a huge amount of money by buying the top-of-the-range, lightest duvet the other day - they had one super-king left in the sale at half the price of the others. The question was 'would I be able to cram it into my existing king-size duvet covers?' - answer - YES (of course!).
When both sheepdogs had pups the other week and the father, Mac, was left without an abode - I quickly converted an old compost bin and put it under a row of Scots Pine trees in a lovely sheltered spot overlooking the farm. Don't worry he is now in the old caravan 'livin it up' but it helped us out for a few days till we got sorted! Funily enough he took to it straight away and I think he rather liked it!
I am off now to see how to fasten bells to the harps. It has flumuxed me a bit but I am sure it is possible if I keep thinking about it!!! Mystic-Al and Vand-Al are now holding their tune well and I need to find the time to finish off the decoration - it's time to take them out on a gig!
Friday 26 November 2010
Let it snow, let it snow ...
Wycoller Country Park next weekend - Sunday 5th December - and will it snow?!
For the past fifteen years or so I have been lucky enough to play at Wycoller before Christmas. It usually starts in Pepper Hill Barn, all set up for wildlife enthusiasts and learning. Loads of little ones making cards and playing my little harps and cimbalas. Then we carry everything down to the main old barn for a bit of a sing-song and as many tunes as the biting cold will allow!
It's funny but I suffer from terrible chillblains and my fingers swell to double the size and turn purple for most of the winter months but it doesn't ever affect the playing. I swop the rings to my little fingers and the beaded rings I wear for the drumming are old curtain rings so can be bent to fit!
Two years ago it snowed heavily. I gingerly drove through cut out walls of snow, just wide enough for one car and over 6' high in places over the moor top. The road into Wycoller was a sheet of ice and somehow I managed to park between a brand new Range Rover and convertible Bentley without mishap. I did pray all day that the owners would move them - but alas, it was not to be so had to enlist the amused help of Rangers to get me out! They stood at each corner to make sure I didn't slide! The road, however, was just unpassable and a tractor was needed to tow 2 cars at a time up the hill!
The setting however was just perfect. Just before the concert started we were stood in silent awe watching the snow cover the trees and ruined house when a deer stepped into the scene for a few minutes.
For the past fifteen years or so I have been lucky enough to play at Wycoller before Christmas. It usually starts in Pepper Hill Barn, all set up for wildlife enthusiasts and learning. Loads of little ones making cards and playing my little harps and cimbalas. Then we carry everything down to the main old barn for a bit of a sing-song and as many tunes as the biting cold will allow!
It's funny but I suffer from terrible chillblains and my fingers swell to double the size and turn purple for most of the winter months but it doesn't ever affect the playing. I swop the rings to my little fingers and the beaded rings I wear for the drumming are old curtain rings so can be bent to fit!
Two years ago it snowed heavily. I gingerly drove through cut out walls of snow, just wide enough for one car and over 6' high in places over the moor top. The road into Wycoller was a sheet of ice and somehow I managed to park between a brand new Range Rover and convertible Bentley without mishap. I did pray all day that the owners would move them - but alas, it was not to be so had to enlist the amused help of Rangers to get me out! They stood at each corner to make sure I didn't slide! The road, however, was just unpassable and a tractor was needed to tow 2 cars at a time up the hill!
The setting however was just perfect. Just before the concert started we were stood in silent awe watching the snow cover the trees and ruined house when a deer stepped into the scene for a few minutes.
Monday 22 November 2010
10 green bottles
Wycoller Country Park - music workshops followed by short concert (3 pm'ish) on Sunday 5th December - more details from the Countryside Wardens/Tourist Information - free event
Well, I have just been asked to play at yet another Brewery! I played at the Barearts on Friday night and they have shelves of beer and wine stacked right up the walls. I played in the corner with all these bottles behind me. There is a wooden floor and every time I banged my feet on the ground with the bells there was an audible tingle of jangling glass all the way round the room! I was so afraid that the bottles would creep forwards in the middle of one of my 'flamenco' tunes or 'irish jigs' and the lot would come crashing down behind me! As if to confirm my worst nightmares there was a blackboard with a special offer on advertising one of their beers - 'Cascade' - arghhhhhhhhh!!!
The owners seemed to think this was hillarious and after a huge daft debate throughout the bar about whether my public liability insurance would cover the cost we carried on with no mishaps - phew!
Playing at a Faith Forum tonight in Huddersfield.
Well, I have just been asked to play at yet another Brewery! I played at the Barearts on Friday night and they have shelves of beer and wine stacked right up the walls. I played in the corner with all these bottles behind me. There is a wooden floor and every time I banged my feet on the ground with the bells there was an audible tingle of jangling glass all the way round the room! I was so afraid that the bottles would creep forwards in the middle of one of my 'flamenco' tunes or 'irish jigs' and the lot would come crashing down behind me! As if to confirm my worst nightmares there was a blackboard with a special offer on advertising one of their beers - 'Cascade' - arghhhhhhhhh!!!
The owners seemed to think this was hillarious and after a huge daft debate throughout the bar about whether my public liability insurance would cover the cost we carried on with no mishaps - phew!
Playing at a Faith Forum tonight in Huddersfield.
Thursday 18 November 2010
Border Collie Pups for Sale
Border Collie Puppies for sale £200 each
Ready 13th of December 2010
£100 deposit secures
We have both Males and females available ,
Both parents can be seen
Both parents are working sheep dogs
These dogs make excellent pets are highly intelligent and are loyal and obedient
If you would like to come and see the pups
Please give us a call on 01535 642581
The Barearts, Todmorden, Friday 19th November 7.30pm
Hello again
Just briefly to let you know kick-off is at 7.30 pm tomorrow night at The Barearts! Am going to use my new pick-ups, specially designed for the Quad harp so here's hoping for a great sound again!
Must dash, didn't get chance to do anything at all today ... spent the day in waiting rooms, first at the Doctors, then at the hospital ... ughh. Good outcome though so worth it!
Hoping to see you tomorrow night. Music from Ancient Mesopotamia, South America, Spain, Ireland ...
Just briefly to let you know kick-off is at 7.30 pm tomorrow night at The Barearts! Am going to use my new pick-ups, specially designed for the Quad harp so here's hoping for a great sound again!
Must dash, didn't get chance to do anything at all today ... spent the day in waiting rooms, first at the Doctors, then at the hospital ... ughh. Good outcome though so worth it!
Hoping to see you tomorrow night. Music from Ancient Mesopotamia, South America, Spain, Ireland ...
Tuesday 16 November 2010
poltergeists
The BAREARTS this Friday 19th in Todmorden, opposite Morrisons. 'Proper' beer, served in jugs, good company and the harp, of course - see you there? (starts early-ish - not sure myself yet but they have a website!)
We have had over 2 weeks of peace and quiet in the house so I dare write about it now! For the past 23 years we have lived with several ghosts. The house is Edwardian and the site has a very interesting history. No-one knows exactly when the poltergiest activity started but the teenage lad who lived here before us refused to sleep inside the house and took up residence in a caravan parked in the field at the back. The more sceptical the visitor, the more this particular 'spirit' played up. One guest left ashen-faced at 3 in the morning after he woke up to hear heavy breathing and someone sat on his bed. He gave a 'jungle' roar, leapt out of bed and charged out of the room, only to find the corridor outside his door had been blocked with a huge tower of chairs, cuddlies, toys and slippers.
In the last month we have been pelted with the crabapples I had picked; whilst teaching one afternoon we heard thud, after thud, on the music room door. My pupil had to help pick up all the apples which were still rolling round the floor outside the room. The tricks were numerous and after a few weeks of moving a particular piece of furniture every day, or a particular prank it would move onto something else. Occasionally we would have a few months of peace. I tried to find a pattern by keeping a diary but there was none.
Last night another pupil reminded me that last year it had attacked the Christmas Tree on every possible occasion. I would say goodbye to one pupil and walk into the room with another pupil minutes later and there would be baubles rolling round the floor and the tree would be on top of furniture looking like it had just been through a tornedo!
Things got so bad last month we decided to call in help. We had been kept awake for 5 nights in a row with tappings and very loud bangs on the bedroom door and on the bedhead. At 5 am one morning my exhausted husband shouted ... 'at least *** tap in rhythm'! The house had been exorcised 5 times but to no avail. We needed to do research and find the cause.
As a child one of my Dad's friends had sold a ghost in the local newspaper so I had even wondered whether we should put it on Ebay but the solution proved far simpler. I will have to leave you guessing as to how, but if anyone out there is as desperate as we were - just get in touch!!!
We have had over 2 weeks of peace and quiet in the house so I dare write about it now! For the past 23 years we have lived with several ghosts. The house is Edwardian and the site has a very interesting history. No-one knows exactly when the poltergiest activity started but the teenage lad who lived here before us refused to sleep inside the house and took up residence in a caravan parked in the field at the back. The more sceptical the visitor, the more this particular 'spirit' played up. One guest left ashen-faced at 3 in the morning after he woke up to hear heavy breathing and someone sat on his bed. He gave a 'jungle' roar, leapt out of bed and charged out of the room, only to find the corridor outside his door had been blocked with a huge tower of chairs, cuddlies, toys and slippers.
In the last month we have been pelted with the crabapples I had picked; whilst teaching one afternoon we heard thud, after thud, on the music room door. My pupil had to help pick up all the apples which were still rolling round the floor outside the room. The tricks were numerous and after a few weeks of moving a particular piece of furniture every day, or a particular prank it would move onto something else. Occasionally we would have a few months of peace. I tried to find a pattern by keeping a diary but there was none.
Last night another pupil reminded me that last year it had attacked the Christmas Tree on every possible occasion. I would say goodbye to one pupil and walk into the room with another pupil minutes later and there would be baubles rolling round the floor and the tree would be on top of furniture looking like it had just been through a tornedo!
Things got so bad last month we decided to call in help. We had been kept awake for 5 nights in a row with tappings and very loud bangs on the bedroom door and on the bedhead. At 5 am one morning my exhausted husband shouted ... 'at least *** tap in rhythm'! The house had been exorcised 5 times but to no avail. We needed to do research and find the cause.
As a child one of my Dad's friends had sold a ghost in the local newspaper so I had even wondered whether we should put it on Ebay but the solution proved far simpler. I will have to leave you guessing as to how, but if anyone out there is as desperate as we were - just get in touch!!!
Friday 12 November 2010
wow - someone reads this
Wow! - not only did a lot of you keep your fingers crossed for me but I can't believe the response to find alternative venues for the 11th. Big thank you. Alas we have tried right across the mid-band of England from Hull to Liverpool and everything is booked up to Christmas but we have re-booked Clayton for early February so will keep you posted.
I am not sitting here doing nothing (as if!) - no, I have loads of 'corporate' work, after-dinner speaking and school work to keep me practised!
We have been counting the cost of the storm. Half my new greenhouse roof has been smashed, and a couple of shed roofs flew away. When I was little there was a very bad storm in the night and when we went out we had gained a complete shed, door fastened shut and about 10 hens still sat inside! They belonged to Mr Morris who lived in the farm up a very steep hill just above us. It was just near enough for my Mum and Mr Morris's housekeeper, Mrs Spence, to shout conversations at eachother when they were hanging their washing out. It was uncanny how many times this happenned. My Mum didn't think it was lady-like to bawl as loud as she could up the hill but Mrs Spence was brought up to be very polite and it would be rude not to engage in pleasantries so she just shouted louder and louder till Mum gave in.
Re: all the harp gluing I did the other day:- I hardly dare say but will 'whisper' very quietly ... the gluing has worked so far ... the soundboard has not sprung away from the soundbox. Please keep crossing your fingers - I can scarcely believe my luck.
I am not sitting here doing nothing (as if!) - no, I have loads of 'corporate' work, after-dinner speaking and school work to keep me practised!
We have been counting the cost of the storm. Half my new greenhouse roof has been smashed, and a couple of shed roofs flew away. When I was little there was a very bad storm in the night and when we went out we had gained a complete shed, door fastened shut and about 10 hens still sat inside! They belonged to Mr Morris who lived in the farm up a very steep hill just above us. It was just near enough for my Mum and Mr Morris's housekeeper, Mrs Spence, to shout conversations at eachother when they were hanging their washing out. It was uncanny how many times this happenned. My Mum didn't think it was lady-like to bawl as loud as she could up the hill but Mrs Spence was brought up to be very polite and it would be rude not to engage in pleasantries so she just shouted louder and louder till Mum gave in.
Re: all the harp gluing I did the other day:- I hardly dare say but will 'whisper' very quietly ... the gluing has worked so far ... the soundboard has not sprung away from the soundbox. Please keep crossing your fingers - I can scarcely believe my luck.
Wednesday 10 November 2010
double-booked
Clayton Village Hall phoned today all embarassed - they had double-booked the 11th December. We had sold over 30 tickets already so are looking for another venue. If we don't find one we are re-arranging for Clayton in the New Year so I will keep you posted.
I am busy - again!!! I have again managed to confine all the harps into the music room but there are a few laid down like coffins taking up all the floor space. The trouble is that yesterday I had a 'gluing day'. I had an old Barometer to mend, a coffee table and 3 harps. I found a strip of oak that just fitted onto the forepillar of Mystic-Al. It had come off an old piano I had stripped for pegs etc last year. The pegs are going to be used in my version of small 'Cimbalas' - like a small zither that can sit on your lap but with harp strings - not wire ones. I have 4 old drawers from an old wardrobe. They are labelled 'gloves' and 'socks'!
That is my next project. I am being asked to go into more and more Schools which I love. I am booked as a 'birthday' surprise for a local Special Needs School.
I have glued a pupil's harp - the soundboard had popped off after it was left by a window in full sunlight whilst they were on holiday ... whoops ... not a good idea. Fingers crossed for me that the glue is strong enough!
The other harp had to be 'paper mached'. The new quad design gives a slightly wider neck at the top of the soundboard so I am left with a few gaps to fill. The expanding glue was a near-disaster so a new method was needed. Fingers crossed again please!!!
I am busy - again!!! I have again managed to confine all the harps into the music room but there are a few laid down like coffins taking up all the floor space. The trouble is that yesterday I had a 'gluing day'. I had an old Barometer to mend, a coffee table and 3 harps. I found a strip of oak that just fitted onto the forepillar of Mystic-Al. It had come off an old piano I had stripped for pegs etc last year. The pegs are going to be used in my version of small 'Cimbalas' - like a small zither that can sit on your lap but with harp strings - not wire ones. I have 4 old drawers from an old wardrobe. They are labelled 'gloves' and 'socks'!
That is my next project. I am being asked to go into more and more Schools which I love. I am booked as a 'birthday' surprise for a local Special Needs School.
I have glued a pupil's harp - the soundboard had popped off after it was left by a window in full sunlight whilst they were on holiday ... whoops ... not a good idea. Fingers crossed for me that the glue is strong enough!
The other harp had to be 'paper mached'. The new quad design gives a slightly wider neck at the top of the soundboard so I am left with a few gaps to fill. The expanding glue was a near-disaster so a new method was needed. Fingers crossed again please!!!
Saturday 6 November 2010
Concert in Clayton
Dave has booked Clayton Village Hall on Saturday 11th December - 8 pm. This is the first of many (we hope!) - I have always had a large amount of people asking where to see me so we are going to book venues and get on with ourselves! Clayton is on the outskirts of Bradford - more details later on how to get there but it has its own bar and I am joined by Eddie Lawler.
I have just realised I never got to describe the Cambridge visit! The party was set in Queens College. The Porter directed us to the 'first door' - we entered the Quad. On the left hand side is a cloistered walk leading underneath the 3 storey 'boat' building. Apparantly the College expanded in the 16th Century and needed accommodation for the new Dean and his family so acquired an old ship, turned it upside down and placed it on top of a warehouse. Worked brilliantly.
We puzzled over exactly which could be the first door in the dimly lit quad. On asking students they couldn't help either - all apologising for their inability to help us. Eventually we decided to enter the first door in the centre with a light over it. There was certainly a party going on but my Mum and me were the only females present! Whoops... Guests there knew exactly where we were meant to be, however.
We had stilton tart, duck, lemon desert and birthday cake. The table was Georgian mahogany and huge. It was also very wide and we couldn't reach across to pass the butter dish but discovered it slid fabulously well if you nudged it ...
Afterwards we went to the student bar. It was halloween party night. Mum did very well and we stayed for over an hour - no-one batting an eyelid at the two 'older' guests that night.
Today one of my students is collecting the upright piano. I really enjoyed having 2 pianos when Philiy came home for duets but I just don't have the space and am struggling with its upkeep. I am looking forward to getting all the harps into one room as well! I will also have room to start work on them again - can't wait! I have some new plans which should sound amazing - more soon!
I have just realised I never got to describe the Cambridge visit! The party was set in Queens College. The Porter directed us to the 'first door' - we entered the Quad. On the left hand side is a cloistered walk leading underneath the 3 storey 'boat' building. Apparantly the College expanded in the 16th Century and needed accommodation for the new Dean and his family so acquired an old ship, turned it upside down and placed it on top of a warehouse. Worked brilliantly.
We puzzled over exactly which could be the first door in the dimly lit quad. On asking students they couldn't help either - all apologising for their inability to help us. Eventually we decided to enter the first door in the centre with a light over it. There was certainly a party going on but my Mum and me were the only females present! Whoops... Guests there knew exactly where we were meant to be, however.
We had stilton tart, duck, lemon desert and birthday cake. The table was Georgian mahogany and huge. It was also very wide and we couldn't reach across to pass the butter dish but discovered it slid fabulously well if you nudged it ...
Afterwards we went to the student bar. It was halloween party night. Mum did very well and we stayed for over an hour - no-one batting an eyelid at the two 'older' guests that night.
Today one of my students is collecting the upright piano. I really enjoyed having 2 pianos when Philiy came home for duets but I just don't have the space and am struggling with its upkeep. I am looking forward to getting all the harps into one room as well! I will also have room to start work on them again - can't wait! I have some new plans which should sound amazing - more soon!
Wednesday 3 November 2010
Porters
The BBC have decided to sell dvds of The Yorkshire Symphony - £10 each I gather with £5 going to charity. This is the only information I have to date so will keep you posted in good time for Christmas!
My eldest, Philippa, was 25 at the weekend and had a huge 'posh' party. The dinner was held at Queen's College, Cambridge (where she is doing a phD) and we were to meet for pre-dinner drinks beforehand. To get into these Colleges you have to talk to the 'Porters'. They sit in little rooms just behind the big gates surrounded by 'pidgeon holes' - one for every student to receive letters and messages. They wear uniform, often with bowler hats. I have had reason to chat to various Porters over the years. They are the 'life-blood' of every college.
On her very first day (this was at Queen's College, Oxford) we were late... The car exhaust had fallen off on the outskirts of Oxford. Luckily I was in the AA. As it worked out, the easiest plan was for the AA man to take Philiy to college and for me to follow when the car was fixed with all her gear (including a harp, of course). I was left at a local garage and Philiy set off sat on the front seat of a huge yellow tow-truck. She was deposited at the porter's lodge, without her gown, with minutes to spare to attend her first 'formal dinner'. They have a system of 'family' support members. It amused me - she was asigned a 'college Mum', 'Dad', 'husband', 'sister' etc. This came into play straight away. The Porter rang for her 'Mum' who arrived with spare gown and swept Philiy into dinner, no fuss!
At 11 pm that night I drove down into Oxford centre to try and find the right college. There was no-one to ask, Philiy had taken the map and there are no signs. They open the huge oak, studded gates in the daytime and place a very tasteful wooden sign on the pavement so that the tourists can see who they are! Eventually I spotted an open gate. Inside the Porter gave me a map and directions to Queens. He also phoned so that they could unlock the gate! Sure enough a small door in the gate was opened and I was let in. I sat waiting on one of those old luggage carts next to a blackboard with wonderful messages on. 'hockey practice at 11 am tomorrow' 'Sarah's birthday drinks tomorrow night in the bar' 'we won the match' etc. On the walls at the side of the quad were beautiful shields depicting recent matches with College teams and scores, all drawn in chalk. Eventually Philiy appeared with a gang of her new 'family' to help carry harp and gear back to her lodgings. That was 6 years ago but I shall always remember.
My eldest, Philippa, was 25 at the weekend and had a huge 'posh' party. The dinner was held at Queen's College, Cambridge (where she is doing a phD) and we were to meet for pre-dinner drinks beforehand. To get into these Colleges you have to talk to the 'Porters'. They sit in little rooms just behind the big gates surrounded by 'pidgeon holes' - one for every student to receive letters and messages. They wear uniform, often with bowler hats. I have had reason to chat to various Porters over the years. They are the 'life-blood' of every college.
On her very first day (this was at Queen's College, Oxford) we were late... The car exhaust had fallen off on the outskirts of Oxford. Luckily I was in the AA. As it worked out, the easiest plan was for the AA man to take Philiy to college and for me to follow when the car was fixed with all her gear (including a harp, of course). I was left at a local garage and Philiy set off sat on the front seat of a huge yellow tow-truck. She was deposited at the porter's lodge, without her gown, with minutes to spare to attend her first 'formal dinner'. They have a system of 'family' support members. It amused me - she was asigned a 'college Mum', 'Dad', 'husband', 'sister' etc. This came into play straight away. The Porter rang for her 'Mum' who arrived with spare gown and swept Philiy into dinner, no fuss!
At 11 pm that night I drove down into Oxford centre to try and find the right college. There was no-one to ask, Philiy had taken the map and there are no signs. They open the huge oak, studded gates in the daytime and place a very tasteful wooden sign on the pavement so that the tourists can see who they are! Eventually I spotted an open gate. Inside the Porter gave me a map and directions to Queens. He also phoned so that they could unlock the gate! Sure enough a small door in the gate was opened and I was let in. I sat waiting on one of those old luggage carts next to a blackboard with wonderful messages on. 'hockey practice at 11 am tomorrow' 'Sarah's birthday drinks tomorrow night in the bar' 'we won the match' etc. On the walls at the side of the quad were beautiful shields depicting recent matches with College teams and scores, all drawn in chalk. Eventually Philiy appeared with a gang of her new 'family' to help carry harp and gear back to her lodgings. That was 6 years ago but I shall always remember.
Saturday 30 October 2010
schools
I love taking the harps into schools. Every now and then a child is scared of the harps and starts to cry but usually they love it too. I was in a school yesterday and I had played them Tchaikovsky, now known as Walt Disney's Sleeping Beauty music (... groan), they had danced to Irish Jigs and pretended the music was waves, wind or fairys dancing. It was time for them to have a go and a teacher started at one end of the line and I started at the other. I held the harp for a very small child and he was brilliant. Ignoring all his class mates he tried each string and immediately put both hands to work accompanying himself. Wonderful delicate music. I asked how old he was. No reply. His classmates chipped in: 'he's seven' - 'no he's not, he's only five' - 'I thought he was still four' . No reply from the tiny musical child totally absorbed.
I tried again. 'So what do we call you then'. Again no reply but his classmates were in one voice 'Titus' - they shouted. Fantastic name! :)
I tried again. 'So what do we call you then'. Again no reply but his classmates were in one voice 'Titus' - they shouted. Fantastic name! :)
Tuesday 26 October 2010
The Spa Theatre
Gosh! - I thought when I saw the size of the theatre at Bridlington. I needn't have worried as there were very few seats left. It was far too hot but the harps coped. First we pulled up at the back of the Theatre and the sea was crashing up against the wall sending spray over onto the cars. I used to have covers for every harp but gave up a few years ago as it is a lot easier to carry them and also when they are stuck up inside the car its a lot easier to see through them and drive safer!! The point of saying that is ... I can get the harps out of a hot car, get them sprayed with freezing cold surf, put them backstage - and they don't break a string (that's good maths/design for you). Thanks to everyone who came ... and clapped and cheered ... I had a fantastic time too!
I have kept Mystic-Al and Hand-Al in tune and they are doing fine. I have not, however, attempted to finish all the decoration. Too much plaster dust around! We are getting there slowly but there is still one room left to plaster and until that is done I'm not risking any painting!
I made a load of Crabapple jelly. Our resident poltergeist has been throwing apples around all week so that's put a stop to his games! I was teaching on Thursday and we kept hearing bangs against the door. When we came out the floor was absolutely covered with apples!
I have kept Mystic-Al and Hand-Al in tune and they are doing fine. I have not, however, attempted to finish all the decoration. Too much plaster dust around! We are getting there slowly but there is still one room left to plaster and until that is done I'm not risking any painting!
I made a load of Crabapple jelly. Our resident poltergeist has been throwing apples around all week so that's put a stop to his games! I was teaching on Thursday and we kept hearing bangs against the door. When we came out the floor was absolutely covered with apples!
Wednesday 20 October 2010
Musicport this Saturday 23rd October
I seem to remember promising Dave that my culinery skills might improve if I had a proper pantry ... So far it's not evident alas! Perusing recipes is not my thing but I generally make good 'fodder'. Today I remembered to take out the blackberry and apple crumble I put in the Rayburn two days ago. It was so solid that I think it will take another two days of soaking before I can scrape it out of my favourite baking dish. Cooking coelliac pasta was my next disaster. I thought I had it all worked out but today it turned into corn soup mush in less than 5 minutes flat. Oh dear ...
Today's job was to pick the last of the apples but something happenned last night to put me off. I was actually teaching in the music room when I heard footsteps walking diagonally above us. I didn't say anything but it is actually impossible to walk in that direction. Nearing the end of the lesson we suddenly heard lots of banging and clattering above. We both looked at eachother and got up to investigate. Dave came running in to say he had just been pelted with apples coming from the attic! Sure enough when we went up there were loads of apples along the corridor. Later we set off to the garage to buy some anti-freeze and when he put on his coat guess what was in the pocket ...?
Today's job was to pick the last of the apples but something happenned last night to put me off. I was actually teaching in the music room when I heard footsteps walking diagonally above us. I didn't say anything but it is actually impossible to walk in that direction. Nearing the end of the lesson we suddenly heard lots of banging and clattering above. We both looked at eachother and got up to investigate. Dave came running in to say he had just been pelted with apples coming from the attic! Sure enough when we went up there were loads of apples along the corridor. Later we set off to the garage to buy some anti-freeze and when he put on his coat guess what was in the pocket ...?
Sunday 17 October 2010
Appearing at Musicport this Saturday 23rd
I am amazed. The 'ghost child' is drawing away in the pantry and we now have 6 stick figures drawn. Some of them have skirts on. The plaster has been finished today so I can move in tomorrow and clean up the mess!
I have been busy outside wearing my 'Australian' leather hat to stop me burning in the sun! I have been searching for any stones useful for dry-stone walling and have dug them out of hedgerows and nettle patches. My back is about to break! I had to seal all the gaps underneath the shed and clean it out as the sheepdog is about to have pups.
My next job is 'progging' and I started building the bonfire today with all the prickly prunings.
My hands survived the ordeal in their old gardening gloves - good job I'm not like the harp player I was told about at a wedding the other day from Romania. She won't even wash up to 'save her hands' - ha ha!!!
I have been busy outside wearing my 'Australian' leather hat to stop me burning in the sun! I have been searching for any stones useful for dry-stone walling and have dug them out of hedgerows and nettle patches. My back is about to break! I had to seal all the gaps underneath the shed and clean it out as the sheepdog is about to have pups.
My next job is 'progging' and I started building the bonfire today with all the prickly prunings.
My hands survived the ordeal in their old gardening gloves - good job I'm not like the harp player I was told about at a wedding the other day from Romania. She won't even wash up to 'save her hands' - ha ha!!!
Friday 15 October 2010
shelves in a pantry
Musicport - Saturday 23rd October - 10 pm
Last year I played at Musicport. It had taken Dave a lot of persuasion to convince the organisers that I could do it but they finally gave in and let me have a small room (capacity 80) people in the afternoon. Imagine my amazement when I arrived to try and carry the harp up the corridor and there were literally hundreds of people queuing to get in! Thought I must have the wrong room at first but no, they really were there to hear harp! This year I am on the main stage ... Brilliant! This is what the last 7 years of hard work were for - more please!!!
I have a brand new set of pick-ups. The trouble with inventing your own instrument is that you have no standards to rely on - just advice - loads of it from well-meaning folk. We have discovered that the pick-ups work the opposite way to what you think, eg stick one in the base of the harp and it becomes treble-high ...?! The biggest problem I have is that I cannot hear properly anymore so cannot do a soundcheck myself. As a child I used to hold a sea-shell up to my ear and listen to the 'waves' - now it sounds like that all the time!!!
Oh well, my little 'ghost' in the pantry has now drawn me 4 little stick figures - one of them whilst we had guests. Dave was interrupted cutting a sheet of plasterboard and left his pencil on top of it. One of the guests was the last to leave the room and the first to go back into it and there it was, clear as anything, about 6'' big, drawn on the plasterboard! Beautiful!
Last year I played at Musicport. It had taken Dave a lot of persuasion to convince the organisers that I could do it but they finally gave in and let me have a small room (capacity 80) people in the afternoon. Imagine my amazement when I arrived to try and carry the harp up the corridor and there were literally hundreds of people queuing to get in! Thought I must have the wrong room at first but no, they really were there to hear harp! This year I am on the main stage ... Brilliant! This is what the last 7 years of hard work were for - more please!!!
I have a brand new set of pick-ups. The trouble with inventing your own instrument is that you have no standards to rely on - just advice - loads of it from well-meaning folk. We have discovered that the pick-ups work the opposite way to what you think, eg stick one in the base of the harp and it becomes treble-high ...?! The biggest problem I have is that I cannot hear properly anymore so cannot do a soundcheck myself. As a child I used to hold a sea-shell up to my ear and listen to the 'waves' - now it sounds like that all the time!!!
Oh well, my little 'ghost' in the pantry has now drawn me 4 little stick figures - one of them whilst we had guests. Dave was interrupted cutting a sheet of plasterboard and left his pencil on top of it. One of the guests was the last to leave the room and the first to go back into it and there it was, clear as anything, about 6'' big, drawn on the plasterboard! Beautiful!
Wednesday 13 October 2010
Missing Post
Hi it is Dave here I received a letter this morning which I think was something probably intended for Fiona Katie.
Unfortunately the envelope was damaged and there was nothing in it
Royal Mail had put the empty envelope into a little neat polythene bag but since the envelope was empty I do not know who it was from!!!!!
If you send me a letter then please get in touch I cannot how frustrating this is ha ha!!!
Unfortunately the envelope was damaged and there was nothing in it
Royal Mail had put the empty envelope into a little neat polythene bag but since the envelope was empty I do not know who it was from!!!!!
If you send me a letter then please get in touch I cannot how frustrating this is ha ha!!!
Thursday 7 October 2010
a car named 'spider'
My son tells me he is only the 5th person in history to drive 'Spider', a 1930's racing car. He was racing his Frazer Nash at the weekend and the Chairman of the Club was invited to try Spider out but couldn't get it to start so asked my son to try. In a 'glossy' car magazine last month it said he drives as if 'his pants are on fire'. Must have done the trick as he had it to 120 mph on the straight. It doesn't actually have any brakes, just a hand brake outside the body. He is also over 6' tall and Spider is very thin, so much so that the body flexed as he squashed into it!
On the harp front - very exciting news today. A Luthier has started work on the stables so that harp production can move into there. The first job was the roof and to keep any rain out overnight we covered it with an old 'bill board' canvas advertising some Merlin/Wizard film with a 10' wide owl looking up at the sky.
To write this I had to clamber over a 4' pile of washing and boxes and boxes of very important bits and pieces from, what used to be my pantry, until the ceiling fell in! Plastering is under way and today the washing machine was fixed. A manufacturer's fault apparantly. They don't fix the electronic panel behind the buttons so every time you press a button it pushes the panel further away. Eventually nothing registers.
Tomorrow night at East Morton Institute - 7 pm - with Eddie Lawler, the Bard of Saltaire
tel 01274 564653 or email rhtassell08@live.co.uk or just turn up! (opposite the Busfield Arms)
On the harp front - very exciting news today. A Luthier has started work on the stables so that harp production can move into there. The first job was the roof and to keep any rain out overnight we covered it with an old 'bill board' canvas advertising some Merlin/Wizard film with a 10' wide owl looking up at the sky.
To write this I had to clamber over a 4' pile of washing and boxes and boxes of very important bits and pieces from, what used to be my pantry, until the ceiling fell in! Plastering is under way and today the washing machine was fixed. A manufacturer's fault apparantly. They don't fix the electronic panel behind the buttons so every time you press a button it pushes the panel further away. Eventually nothing registers.
Tomorrow night at East Morton Institute - 7 pm - with Eddie Lawler, the Bard of Saltaire
tel 01274 564653 or email rhtassell08@live.co.uk or just turn up! (opposite the Busfield Arms)
Sunday 3 October 2010
A trip down memory lane
I have been asked to play at the East Morton Village Institute this Friday (8th October - 7.30-11 pm) alongside the Bard of Saltaire, Eddie Lawler. On the poster (if you believe such things) it will tell you I am a singer ... hmmmmm???!!!! 'Fraid not folks!!! Eddie wrote a song about me - rings on her fingers and bells on her toes, or is it strings on her fingers? It's beautiful.
By strange coincidence East Morton has connections to both Dave's and my family. My Dad was brought up there and Dave's ancestors were the Busfields - as in the Busfield Arms!
On the present-home front my pantry/utility room is nearly finished. A few weeks ago disaster struck as the roof acquired a major leak and everything looked as if it was going to fall down. We nearly got all the 'clobber' out before the ceiling caved in... Everything is covered with a layer of plaster dust but I shall be able to get on with the painting stage after tomorrow.
Cleaning the multi-strung harps between the strings is tricky so I use feathers. They are coated with natural oil and do the job well. I daren't actually count up the number of strings-on-harps in this house! Tripleharps have around 93 and the quads have about 122+ . I do also have a few single-strung harps for teaching.
See you this Friday? It should be an entertaining evening as they have real ale and wine and candles! Phone 01274 564653 for tickets in advance £5 or on the door £6 - all in aid of the Village Institute.
By strange coincidence East Morton has connections to both Dave's and my family. My Dad was brought up there and Dave's ancestors were the Busfields - as in the Busfield Arms!
On the present-home front my pantry/utility room is nearly finished. A few weeks ago disaster struck as the roof acquired a major leak and everything looked as if it was going to fall down. We nearly got all the 'clobber' out before the ceiling caved in... Everything is covered with a layer of plaster dust but I shall be able to get on with the painting stage after tomorrow.
Cleaning the multi-strung harps between the strings is tricky so I use feathers. They are coated with natural oil and do the job well. I daren't actually count up the number of strings-on-harps in this house! Tripleharps have around 93 and the quads have about 122+ . I do also have a few single-strung harps for teaching.
See you this Friday? It should be an entertaining evening as they have real ale and wine and candles! Phone 01274 564653 for tickets in advance £5 or on the door £6 - all in aid of the Village Institute.
Thursday 30 September 2010
two harps nearly ready
'Cautiously optimistic' ... It's cool being an inventor, albeit, only of harps. The quad 'traditional' harp (Mystic-Al) is sounding absolutely phenomenal. I can't wait to play it. I am busy cutting trim and staining the last few bits of wood. The other harp is Hand-Al. This harp was the first harp Philippa took to Oxford. I believe she played for the Bruch Concerto on it. It was one of my first harps so I decided to re-make it and improve it. I once played Hand-Al in one of those huge optigan things at Towneley Hall. I cannot remember what they call them now but they were all the rage a few years back - they looked cool from a distance, huge plastic bubbles which you could walk round - when you play in one for a few hours you realise how much duck tape is used to plug the holes! One day disaster struck and one flew up in the air.
The harp is strung up with wire strings on the right and standard nylon on the left. I have made the bass strings by twisting up very long lengths of nylon together. It has worked well though and the bass has a punchy woody sound. All this on a 3' high frame - not bad eh?!!!
The harp is strung up with wire strings on the right and standard nylon on the left. I have made the bass strings by twisting up very long lengths of nylon together. It has worked well though and the bass has a punchy woody sound. All this on a 3' high frame - not bad eh?!!!
Friday 24 September 2010
Harp Concertos
I have been asked to play an arrangement of Mozart's Harp Concerto - 2nd movement for the entrance of the Bride. The last time I played the 1st movement it was very difficult - The venue looked stunning. They had strung fishing line across the ceiling in a grid and threaded daisies upsidedown from it. They were all at different heights and filled the entire ceiling.
The room was as packed as the ceiling and I was squashed between Grandma and her stick and bridesmaids in huge ballerina net dresses. Trying to play Mozart without elbow room was limiting - matters were made massively worse though when 'Grandma' decided to adjust her stick and it fell into the harp ... arghhhhhhh!!! Split second decision to take the left hand off to catch the stick but the right hand didn't drop a note - ha ha!!
It often gets quite hazardous when playing for the drinks receptions inside. Brides never expect it to rain and often we are all squashed in. I have had drinks spilt on the harp too many times but the worst is when people steady their balance by holding onto the top of the forepillar. Luckily every time this has happenned I have managed to stop playing and grab the harp and pull it back but one of these days disaster might take over and harp and person will crash headlong to the floor ...
The room was as packed as the ceiling and I was squashed between Grandma and her stick and bridesmaids in huge ballerina net dresses. Trying to play Mozart without elbow room was limiting - matters were made massively worse though when 'Grandma' decided to adjust her stick and it fell into the harp ... arghhhhhhh!!! Split second decision to take the left hand off to catch the stick but the right hand didn't drop a note - ha ha!!
It often gets quite hazardous when playing for the drinks receptions inside. Brides never expect it to rain and often we are all squashed in. I have had drinks spilt on the harp too many times but the worst is when people steady their balance by holding onto the top of the forepillar. Luckily every time this has happenned I have managed to stop playing and grab the harp and pull it back but one of these days disaster might take over and harp and person will crash headlong to the floor ...
Monday 20 September 2010
The Barearts
When Dave and I need cheering up we treck across the moors to Todmorden to The Barearts. Trevor brews his own beer (on a massive scale) and Kathy paints pictures (nudes actually and incredibly clever) - hence The Barearts. I love the way that they both welcome everyone through the door, no-one is ever left alone and they always introduce people. I always try to introduce people as well - it seems to be falling out of fashion in 'real life' but I am always pretty useless when it comes to Facebook!
We keep meaning to give Kathy a 'bare-harp' to paint. It would probably be pink and we would probably call it 'Virgin-Al'. Everything is painted bright pink - it shows off the paintings well and the serious beer drinkers don't seem to mind. Beer is served in jugs (posh-like).
Well I got a telephone call today wanting the harper who had been on Woman's Hour a couple of weeks back - big surprise to me as ever! It was recorded quite a few years ago when I made my first-ever harp. On the way back from recording in Manchester I got stuck on the M62 for 2 hours in scorching weather and the harp exploded in the back of the car ... Couldn't be mended so had to start all over again (now you know why so many trips to The Barearts are needed ...)
We keep meaning to give Kathy a 'bare-harp' to paint. It would probably be pink and we would probably call it 'Virgin-Al'. Everything is painted bright pink - it shows off the paintings well and the serious beer drinkers don't seem to mind. Beer is served in jugs (posh-like).
Well I got a telephone call today wanting the harper who had been on Woman's Hour a couple of weeks back - big surprise to me as ever! It was recorded quite a few years ago when I made my first-ever harp. On the way back from recording in Manchester I got stuck on the M62 for 2 hours in scorching weather and the harp exploded in the back of the car ... Couldn't be mended so had to start all over again (now you know why so many trips to The Barearts are needed ...)
Sunday 19 September 2010
rings on her fingers and bells on her toes
You know you've made it when someone writes a song about you - thank you Eddie (Lawler)! I had heard it before but it was lovely to hear it sung last night at Saltaire Festival. Eddie is the 'Bard of Saltaire' and wrote Saltairey Tales. I like his song about the Lord of Frizing Hall as well.
Today we were supposed to be having a day out. I packed a picnic and we set off hopefully in the rain (in the car). We got as far as 'Salt and Pepper' above Cross Hills and thought we would climb the tower. Dave got to the top and his hat blew off! It blew over the cliff and landed back near the car again. By this time the rain was blowing sideways and we gave up on the idea of a walk, ate the sandwiches in the car and went shopping in Colne!
This week's job is to get Vand-Al back on track. I tried to string it up with triple rows of strings onto a quad-luted soundbox but it just won't take the stress. I had to try it though because you just never know! I have now to take all the strings off, re-do the soundbox and re-string it with 4 sets of strings .... Mystic-Al on the other hand is starting to sing - sounds wonderful and no signs of stress anywhere. It is holding its tuning quite well - I sneak it up a quarter of a tone in places everyother day - not bad at all.
Today we were supposed to be having a day out. I packed a picnic and we set off hopefully in the rain (in the car). We got as far as 'Salt and Pepper' above Cross Hills and thought we would climb the tower. Dave got to the top and his hat blew off! It blew over the cliff and landed back near the car again. By this time the rain was blowing sideways and we gave up on the idea of a walk, ate the sandwiches in the car and went shopping in Colne!
This week's job is to get Vand-Al back on track. I tried to string it up with triple rows of strings onto a quad-luted soundbox but it just won't take the stress. I had to try it though because you just never know! I have now to take all the strings off, re-do the soundbox and re-string it with 4 sets of strings .... Mystic-Al on the other hand is starting to sing - sounds wonderful and no signs of stress anywhere. It is holding its tuning quite well - I sneak it up a quarter of a tone in places everyother day - not bad at all.
Thursday 16 September 2010
'famous' people
I was asked to do a radio interview for Radio Leeds but this one was different. They emailed me the questions beforehand so that I could prepare the answers. Ha ha! - me!! Words are not my thing - they tumble out completely unorganised, often making no sense, and, even though I had elocution lessons for years as a child, the stutter comes back ...
Imagine my surprise when a 'famous' person knocks on the door to do the interview. Ian Clayton apologised and said that he had 2 more interviews and miles to travel so he had to leave in an hour. I can't quite remember when it was but certainly much more than an hour later Ian set off to Leyburn.
I had yet another reporter here yesterday. We were supposed to be up on the moor tops taking pics. It was 'wuthering' - majorily wuthering actually. Luckily Dave is quite an up-and-coming photographer so we have a 'bank' of pics of me-plus-harps on rocks (Yorkshire rocks). Well, it turned out that Roy and Ian live in the same area and go to the same pub on Friday nights!
I got a hug goodbye from both men to which Dave chuntered under his breath 'don't they have women in Castleford or something' !
The Square Chapel, Halifax, tomorrow night - 8 pm - see you there?
Imagine my surprise when a 'famous' person knocks on the door to do the interview. Ian Clayton apologised and said that he had 2 more interviews and miles to travel so he had to leave in an hour. I can't quite remember when it was but certainly much more than an hour later Ian set off to Leyburn.
I had yet another reporter here yesterday. We were supposed to be up on the moor tops taking pics. It was 'wuthering' - majorily wuthering actually. Luckily Dave is quite an up-and-coming photographer so we have a 'bank' of pics of me-plus-harps on rocks (Yorkshire rocks). Well, it turned out that Roy and Ian live in the same area and go to the same pub on Friday nights!
I got a hug goodbye from both men to which Dave chuntered under his breath 'don't they have women in Castleford or something' !
The Square Chapel, Halifax, tomorrow night - 8 pm - see you there?
Monday 13 September 2010
and pretty maids on all a row ...
Three weddings in three days - and they all got the sun! I sat next to two ancient (absolutely huge) coffers in the Church, iron bars strapped round the edges, black split oak - absolutely gorgeous.
I have never seen a vicar blush so deeply for so long. I can't actually remember him saying 'you can now kiss the bride'. The Groom grabbed his Bride and launched straight into a very long, very passionate snog! I could see the panic on the Vicar's face as he tried to look above them as it passed the 2 minute mark and there was no sign of it ending. The Congragation was doubled over laughing egging them on!
Two weddings before I had loads of young fascinated bridesmaids and pageboys. 'But HOW do you do it?' they kept asking. Short answers inbetween sets were not enough alas. Eventually I abandoned the set list given by the Bride and entertained them with jigs and reels. The bells were hidden under my long dress but they had spotted them. They were dancing around but suddenly ended up in a long row - like line dancers - all stamping their right foot in time and slapping their thighs. I started drumming on the soundboard. Slight puzzlement, then one of them turned and drummed on the back facing her, so they all did the same!
The Square Chapel this Friday - 8 pm - thanks to everyone who has bought tickets - (Wow!!) :)
I have never seen a vicar blush so deeply for so long. I can't actually remember him saying 'you can now kiss the bride'. The Groom grabbed his Bride and launched straight into a very long, very passionate snog! I could see the panic on the Vicar's face as he tried to look above them as it passed the 2 minute mark and there was no sign of it ending. The Congragation was doubled over laughing egging them on!
Two weddings before I had loads of young fascinated bridesmaids and pageboys. 'But HOW do you do it?' they kept asking. Short answers inbetween sets were not enough alas. Eventually I abandoned the set list given by the Bride and entertained them with jigs and reels. The bells were hidden under my long dress but they had spotted them. They were dancing around but suddenly ended up in a long row - like line dancers - all stamping their right foot in time and slapping their thighs. I started drumming on the soundboard. Slight puzzlement, then one of them turned and drummed on the back facing her, so they all did the same!
The Square Chapel this Friday - 8 pm - thanks to everyone who has bought tickets - (Wow!!) :)
Friday 10 September 2010
Valour
My Mum says that people are behaving so badly because they are not scared of the 'devil'. It used to be drummed into everyone every Sunday morning and if they didn't come to Church the likes of Haworth's Grimshaw would round them up in the pubs! There is literally nothing to be frightened of anymore.
I love researching history and spend a lot of time playing to specific groups of people/children. The Celts used to take music therapy very seriously and laid down the rules very early on ...
'bring about an atmosphere of repose and slumber, bring them through to valour and tears but, always, always, leave them with the foot atapping ... '
I am in need of my own therapy today! After the ripple of nastiness has upset and affected people's lives the only thing we can do for them is pray ...
Bring back good old fashioned valour ...
still smiling :)
I love researching history and spend a lot of time playing to specific groups of people/children. The Celts used to take music therapy very seriously and laid down the rules very early on ...
'bring about an atmosphere of repose and slumber, bring them through to valour and tears but, always, always, leave them with the foot atapping ... '
I am in need of my own therapy today! After the ripple of nastiness has upset and affected people's lives the only thing we can do for them is pray ...
Bring back good old fashioned valour ...
still smiling :)
Wednesday 8 September 2010
Near Calamity
The worst thing you can hear on a harp is the sound of wood creaking - like an old boat. Sometimes it is barely audible to me but I sense it first. The design of Mystic-Al is very radical. I have succeeded in making a modern quad harp but had never tried making a traditional sound - ie more 'sweet' but involves more stress. I am no joiner so the first few weeks of tuning up are quite stressful. You are loading over 2 tons of stress onto a frame which could 'explode' at any time.
Mystic-Al was holding its tuning - usually a good sign - but I suddenly noticed that the forepillar didn't look quite right. It is made up of 3 pieces of wood and the point where all the stress 'hits' is about a foot up from the floor. One of the pieces of wood - mahogany - had started to warp along the grain. Astounding - the wood is about 4 inches wide and 1 inch deep and it was bending along its length not across the inch depth!
I stood transfixed and fascinated by the sound and then leapt into action. I had to loosen all the strings below middle C - being careful not to create a see-saw action by taking the stress off un-evenly. Getting clamps onto a triangular shape is not easy so I have an old margarine tub full of off-cuts. I had to find the right size and angle of wood and hold it onto the forepillar with my teeth whilst I tightened the clamp under the base of the harp using both hands! It took 3 clamps before I could persuade the wood to straighten again.
Dave came in at this stage from glazing my greenhouse and took one look and got his drill! It takes him half the time to drill holes and then drill the screws in - a knack I have never managed to master so do it laboriously by hand!
As I write this blog the harp has come back up to pitch and is holding its tune well - phew!!!
I have 3 weddings this week but am back on stage next Friday at The Square Chapel, Halifax.
Mystic-Al was holding its tuning - usually a good sign - but I suddenly noticed that the forepillar didn't look quite right. It is made up of 3 pieces of wood and the point where all the stress 'hits' is about a foot up from the floor. One of the pieces of wood - mahogany - had started to warp along the grain. Astounding - the wood is about 4 inches wide and 1 inch deep and it was bending along its length not across the inch depth!
I stood transfixed and fascinated by the sound and then leapt into action. I had to loosen all the strings below middle C - being careful not to create a see-saw action by taking the stress off un-evenly. Getting clamps onto a triangular shape is not easy so I have an old margarine tub full of off-cuts. I had to find the right size and angle of wood and hold it onto the forepillar with my teeth whilst I tightened the clamp under the base of the harp using both hands! It took 3 clamps before I could persuade the wood to straighten again.
Dave came in at this stage from glazing my greenhouse and took one look and got his drill! It takes him half the time to drill holes and then drill the screws in - a knack I have never managed to master so do it laboriously by hand!
As I write this blog the harp has come back up to pitch and is holding its tune well - phew!!!
I have 3 weddings this week but am back on stage next Friday at The Square Chapel, Halifax.
Sunday 5 September 2010
Pick of the Week
I was on Pick of the Week on Radio 4 today - huge surprise!! This is the link:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qpdd
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qpdd
Saturday 4 September 2010
The Weasal Dance
Dave has a new hobby. The superb weather has brought about a spate of chinese lanterns. We can sit at the kitchen table and watch them appear over the horizon and float up the valley and can work out where they might crash land. Dave then sends me out to rescue them and tapes another night-light in and sends them off again!
Had a fun gig at Cobbles and Clay in Haworth last night. It is so nice to play near home! I used to be terrified of playing infront of friends or family but this crowd was a blast, or was it the wine? It is quite an experience to hear a crowd of people joining in singing Italian Neapolitan at the top of their voices!
Had to repair Mystic-Al this morning. A screw had popped out with all the pressure on the soundboard so stuck a few more in. Eventually it will have wooden trim over the top of the screws but it is one of the last jobs. We are repairing a harp that was left in the sun (apparantly Dad had cut a tree down in the garden and they didn't notice that the harp wasn't in shade anymore). The whole soundboard has popped off all the way up. Luckily a clean break so have taken all the strings off, then: re-glue, re-string and tune up again ...
Dave at present working on downloading a new video taken at Limetree - The Weasal Dance - its good!
Had a fun gig at Cobbles and Clay in Haworth last night. It is so nice to play near home! I used to be terrified of playing infront of friends or family but this crowd was a blast, or was it the wine? It is quite an experience to hear a crowd of people joining in singing Italian Neapolitan at the top of their voices!
Had to repair Mystic-Al this morning. A screw had popped out with all the pressure on the soundboard so stuck a few more in. Eventually it will have wooden trim over the top of the screws but it is one of the last jobs. We are repairing a harp that was left in the sun (apparantly Dad had cut a tree down in the garden and they didn't notice that the harp wasn't in shade anymore). The whole soundboard has popped off all the way up. Luckily a clean break so have taken all the strings off, then: re-glue, re-string and tune up again ...
Dave at present working on downloading a new video taken at Limetree - The Weasal Dance - its good!
Thursday 2 September 2010
stonehenge
Our neighbour next door is having a new garage built ... Whilst digging the foundations the builders have hit rocks - loads of them - so many in fact that they were desperate to get rid of them. Luckily they bumped into Dave ...
The first dumper-full arrived two nights ago and my son, Albert, Dave and friend all strained with crow bars and scaffold pole to move them. They came up with quite a nice 'feature' of rocks interspersed with all the hedging bushes I planted last year (most of which died in the drought but are still there stuck up like little bare twigs cos I haven't the heart to pull them out - and they 'MIGHT' come back to life, mightn't they?) Then the builders saw it and said it would look much better if it was a solid wall of rocks. This time we arrived back from shopping to find a huge pile. If grassed over it would have actually made quite a good ski slope.
This time help was not forthcoming - just Albert and Dave. They came up with quite a good system of dragging them off with the tractor and tow strap from the other side of the fence. Now the 'car park' (don't think posh) is surrounded with a solid wall of rocks, sadly not rounded and artistic but nonetheless quite impressive.
On the harp front - Mystic-Al got through the night without breaking a string and stayed almost at concert pitch. This is like the feeling of waking up after a good nights sleep and finding your newborn baby has slept through as well - fantastic! Dave is absolutely amazed at the hours of work that has gone into tuning it already - and it will be another 6 months before it will be steady and start to 'sing'.
Thanks for the message re concerts - much appreciated. Tomorrow night at Cobbles and Clay, Haworth with Baritone, James Hutton. Think they may still be able to squeeze a couple more in. The Square Chapel Concert is on Friday 17th. More to come so hopefully will be able to see you there!
The first dumper-full arrived two nights ago and my son, Albert, Dave and friend all strained with crow bars and scaffold pole to move them. They came up with quite a nice 'feature' of rocks interspersed with all the hedging bushes I planted last year (most of which died in the drought but are still there stuck up like little bare twigs cos I haven't the heart to pull them out - and they 'MIGHT' come back to life, mightn't they?) Then the builders saw it and said it would look much better if it was a solid wall of rocks. This time we arrived back from shopping to find a huge pile. If grassed over it would have actually made quite a good ski slope.
This time help was not forthcoming - just Albert and Dave. They came up with quite a good system of dragging them off with the tractor and tow strap from the other side of the fence. Now the 'car park' (don't think posh) is surrounded with a solid wall of rocks, sadly not rounded and artistic but nonetheless quite impressive.
On the harp front - Mystic-Al got through the night without breaking a string and stayed almost at concert pitch. This is like the feeling of waking up after a good nights sleep and finding your newborn baby has slept through as well - fantastic! Dave is absolutely amazed at the hours of work that has gone into tuning it already - and it will be another 6 months before it will be steady and start to 'sing'.
Thanks for the message re concerts - much appreciated. Tomorrow night at Cobbles and Clay, Haworth with Baritone, James Hutton. Think they may still be able to squeeze a couple more in. The Square Chapel Concert is on Friday 17th. More to come so hopefully will be able to see you there!
Monday 30 August 2010
it sounds ok
I had a blast at Limetree thanks to a brilliant sound engineer. I cannot say how many times I have been on stage and the sound has been terrible - even after I have asked them to use a certain mic and told them the exact settings... I am the last to know as I am quite deaf - I only know if it sounds right by the reaction of the audience... A classic comment from Burnley the other week as my husband Dave tried to help the engineers, after they had blown up the pick-up in the harp and were frantically trying to stick mics into the harp as I was playing on the main stage - 'but we can't make it sound like a harp' - NO!!! - that is the whole point actually! They got it right for the last tune ...
I took my inspiration from a medieval poem about the storytellers who played harp after battles - their strings 'shook the floor'. The resonance builds up as you play and on single strung harps you can 'damp' it with either hand - not so on the multi-strung harp as you have separate strings for each hand. The trick is to have longer strings with a wonderful 'bass' tone and to damp as you play.
As I write I am about to go on the radio yet again - Radio Leeds 3-4 pm Bank Holiday Monday - The Making of the Symphony for Yorkshire. I am hoping that they are able to fit in some of my music that originally impressed Benjamin Till so much - I am adding this just after listening to it - and thank you Benjamin Till and Ian Clayton ... as my step daughter, Olivia, used to say 'you can't grumble at that' !!!
Oh yes, I nearly forgot to say - I am booked at Limetree 'every year' now!
I took my inspiration from a medieval poem about the storytellers who played harp after battles - their strings 'shook the floor'. The resonance builds up as you play and on single strung harps you can 'damp' it with either hand - not so on the multi-strung harp as you have separate strings for each hand. The trick is to have longer strings with a wonderful 'bass' tone and to damp as you play.
As I write I am about to go on the radio yet again - Radio Leeds 3-4 pm Bank Holiday Monday - The Making of the Symphony for Yorkshire. I am hoping that they are able to fit in some of my music that originally impressed Benjamin Till so much - I am adding this just after listening to it - and thank you Benjamin Till and Ian Clayton ... as my step daughter, Olivia, used to say 'you can't grumble at that' !!!
Oh yes, I nearly forgot to say - I am booked at Limetree 'every year' now!
Thursday 26 August 2010
Magical Music
Actually managed to do some weeding yesterday in the garden due to the break in the weather. We're all waiting for decent weather. Two of my 'kids' (all in their twenties now!) more than most. My daughter is taking part in a gliding competition and my son is 'crewing' for someone in return for beer money ... Imaginations are running into overdrive as they try and distract themselves. Yesterday my daughter woke up sealed into her caravan with ropes and tape -mysteriously towed into the middle of the airfield - ha ha! I gather my son might find himself in a much 'worse' situation this morning - we await news!
Hoping for a less blustery gig this Saturday at Limetree. Thank you Sean for inviting me back! A lot of people think that solo harp may be a little soporific - NOT SO (for anyone who hasn't heard it live). I have literally spent every day (and sometimes night) for the past 7 years designing a harp, composing music and learning new techniques to produce music that blows your mind. 'Magical' is the most used comment ... See you there!!!
There's a feature on Limetree on BBC 1's Look North tonight - (Harry Gration called me the 'exotic harpist' at the Symphony Premiere - hmmmm!)
Hoping for a less blustery gig this Saturday at Limetree. Thank you Sean for inviting me back! A lot of people think that solo harp may be a little soporific - NOT SO (for anyone who hasn't heard it live). I have literally spent every day (and sometimes night) for the past 7 years designing a harp, composing music and learning new techniques to produce music that blows your mind. 'Magical' is the most used comment ... See you there!!!
There's a feature on Limetree on BBC 1's Look North tonight - (Harry Gration called me the 'exotic harpist' at the Symphony Premiere - hmmmm!)
Monday 23 August 2010
locked out
My Dad and me used to spend hours digging 'the moat' at the back of our house. It was a hunting lodge in the old Forest of Knaresborough used up until the end of the 14th Century. We laid out all the bits of pot on the dried up bank. He used to tell me this tale that we were beaten by a family who had a castle near Leeds in the 12th Century. This incident was always referred to as a deeply personal affront that still touched a nerve.
I have done a few weddings in this 'castle near Leeds' but this one was ruled by a certain officious photographer (and wife). None of the guests were allowed a drink and he clung to his list of photographs and executed the order with military precision. I had played for the Ceremony and followed the guests as quickly as I could to play for the drinks reception, outside, the weather was windy but dry. These medieval castles were built without doors - obviously. No point in making things easier for the enemy. I lifted the sash window and opened the shutters below and slowly manouvoured the harp through. I appeared into the backdrop of a perfectly ordered photograph of 'bride and groom and guests of the groom' ... and got shouted at. The guests ushered me through but the photographer looked daggers at me as I stumbled in long frock with harp down the stone steps. I found a 'seat' on the stone wall overlooking the terrace and started to play. Didn't even finish the first tune - the photographer informed me (via his wife) that he would need the whole wall to stand on at any time.
Nothing for it but to sit it out. I carried the harp round the other side of the castle and waited with the waitresses and trays of champayne (going flat). Eventually most of the guests got fed up and defected for a drink to the bar - which of course was on the other side and we couldn't go through the door so we all ended up walking round the moat, me with harp ...
Imagine my dismay when I arrived at the Museum of Photography for a spot on the radio this morning at 10 only to be told that they wouldn't let anyone in early for any reason and I had to walk all the way round (with harp) to the door nearest the radio staff to try and attract their attention .... grrrrr!!!!
(Mystic-Al is about 2 tones down - I tune the 122 strings up twice a day. Hand-Al, the much needed small, carriable harp has all its strings on and is due to start tuning up tomorrow. Dav-Al is looking fantastic, awaiting its last coat of lacquer.)
I have done a few weddings in this 'castle near Leeds' but this one was ruled by a certain officious photographer (and wife). None of the guests were allowed a drink and he clung to his list of photographs and executed the order with military precision. I had played for the Ceremony and followed the guests as quickly as I could to play for the drinks reception, outside, the weather was windy but dry. These medieval castles were built without doors - obviously. No point in making things easier for the enemy. I lifted the sash window and opened the shutters below and slowly manouvoured the harp through. I appeared into the backdrop of a perfectly ordered photograph of 'bride and groom and guests of the groom' ... and got shouted at. The guests ushered me through but the photographer looked daggers at me as I stumbled in long frock with harp down the stone steps. I found a 'seat' on the stone wall overlooking the terrace and started to play. Didn't even finish the first tune - the photographer informed me (via his wife) that he would need the whole wall to stand on at any time.
Nothing for it but to sit it out. I carried the harp round the other side of the castle and waited with the waitresses and trays of champayne (going flat). Eventually most of the guests got fed up and defected for a drink to the bar - which of course was on the other side and we couldn't go through the door so we all ended up walking round the moat, me with harp ...
Imagine my dismay when I arrived at the Museum of Photography for a spot on the radio this morning at 10 only to be told that they wouldn't let anyone in early for any reason and I had to walk all the way round (with harp) to the door nearest the radio staff to try and attract their attention .... grrrrr!!!!
(Mystic-Al is about 2 tones down - I tune the 122 strings up twice a day. Hand-Al, the much needed small, carriable harp has all its strings on and is due to start tuning up tomorrow. Dav-Al is looking fantastic, awaiting its last coat of lacquer.)
Friday 20 August 2010
call for help
Every now and then Dave's bones give way and he takes a nasty fall. The cancer has left him with osteoporosis you see. Well this week was one of those weeks. I found him trapped inbetween furniture and had to help him free himself. The agony of watching him try and unravel his limbs is bad enough - the real thing must be horrendous.
I dosed off in front of the telly and suddenly heard this faint, strangled voice shouting 'Kate'. It sounded twice before I woke up and realised he was calling. I ran toward the direction of the sound, up the stairs and along the corridor. When I reached the bathroom I was confused - nothing there. Then it sounded again - very clearly through the window - a sheep bleating....!
We have about 20 sheep and one of them has this very strange 'baaa' - any kids walking the footpath fall about laughing if they hear it and I was caught out well and truly by this one!
Dav-Al is looking amazing. We are just waiting for some water slide decals... They have to be stuck on and then it is lacquered. It has had 3 coats of undercoat, 4 coats of black paint, 2 coats of sparkle and is waiting for another 4 coats of lacquer. (Then I have to pluck up the courage to drill the holes for the strings....!!!!)
I am at Burnley Community Festival this Sunday afternoon. In the woodland tent and a spot on the main stage.
I dosed off in front of the telly and suddenly heard this faint, strangled voice shouting 'Kate'. It sounded twice before I woke up and realised he was calling. I ran toward the direction of the sound, up the stairs and along the corridor. When I reached the bathroom I was confused - nothing there. Then it sounded again - very clearly through the window - a sheep bleating....!
We have about 20 sheep and one of them has this very strange 'baaa' - any kids walking the footpath fall about laughing if they hear it and I was caught out well and truly by this one!
Dav-Al is looking amazing. We are just waiting for some water slide decals... They have to be stuck on and then it is lacquered. It has had 3 coats of undercoat, 4 coats of black paint, 2 coats of sparkle and is waiting for another 4 coats of lacquer. (Then I have to pluck up the courage to drill the holes for the strings....!!!!)
I am at Burnley Community Festival this Sunday afternoon. In the woodland tent and a spot on the main stage.
Tuesday 17 August 2010
opera singers anon
Well, I completely forgot to tell you that it's not me that does the opera singing - definitely not!!!
I have been accompanying James Hutton for about 10 years or so now. He lives in Stanbury near us and is officially a Baritone ... but has been known to sing Tenor on occasion. In fact he tells me his voice is getting higher and is trying to change the keys of a few tunes. I say 'trying'. It is sometimes impossibly difficult and takes a huge amount of time to change keys on the tripleharp. Every 'move' has to be planned and practised - not like the piano where you can learn your scales and it gives you a thorough grounding. Also whereas the piano has 5 'black notes' for every 7 'white notes' the multistrung harp has 7 for each!
Anyway, back to the point, James and I have a gig coming up in Haworth at Cobbles and Clay on 3rd September and will be dueting our mostly Neapolitan repertoire - with added bells ... hmmmm! (James wasn't sure at first but I persisted and the audience loved the added touch of flamenco.)
I am at Burnley Community Festival - on main stage and mostly in the Woodland Tent this Sunday. Last year I had a wonderful afternoon. Robin Shepherd was making his clogs and did a spot on his violin every now and then. Fantastic stuff. All my kids wore clogs for the first 5 years (alas the school couldn't stand the noise of them clattering across the wooden floors...).
More news of harps very soon - with pictures - amazing developments afoot ....
I have been accompanying James Hutton for about 10 years or so now. He lives in Stanbury near us and is officially a Baritone ... but has been known to sing Tenor on occasion. In fact he tells me his voice is getting higher and is trying to change the keys of a few tunes. I say 'trying'. It is sometimes impossibly difficult and takes a huge amount of time to change keys on the tripleharp. Every 'move' has to be planned and practised - not like the piano where you can learn your scales and it gives you a thorough grounding. Also whereas the piano has 5 'black notes' for every 7 'white notes' the multistrung harp has 7 for each!
Anyway, back to the point, James and I have a gig coming up in Haworth at Cobbles and Clay on 3rd September and will be dueting our mostly Neapolitan repertoire - with added bells ... hmmmm! (James wasn't sure at first but I persisted and the audience loved the added touch of flamenco.)
I am at Burnley Community Festival - on main stage and mostly in the Woodland Tent this Sunday. Last year I had a wonderful afternoon. Robin Shepherd was making his clogs and did a spot on his violin every now and then. Fantastic stuff. All my kids wore clogs for the first 5 years (alas the school couldn't stand the noise of them clattering across the wooden floors...).
More news of harps very soon - with pictures - amazing developments afoot ....
Monday 16 August 2010
Chinese Lanterns
We tried to launch one of those Chinese Lanterns last night. The weather conditions were 'perfect' just as the sun was setting. We struggled not to tear it as we wrote 'Happy Birthday Olivia, we love you, miss you and will never forget you'. Then we took it outside, following the instructions. It lit well, inflated and then the moment of truth! It went up ... sort of ... then drifted off towards Hebden Bridge and crashed! We will try again!
I finished putting the strings on at 9.30 pm last night - phew. Dav-Al is hung up in the rafters of the barn drying. A fantastic sight - one day there will a a whole row of them!! (Barn-Awls?)
Do you fancy a Night at the Opera - Haworth style? Informal with a glass of wine (or two), good company and lots of laughs - September 3rd - Cobbles and Clay - their telephone number is on the dates page
I finished putting the strings on at 9.30 pm last night - phew. Dav-Al is hung up in the rafters of the barn drying. A fantastic sight - one day there will a a whole row of them!! (Barn-Awls?)
Do you fancy a Night at the Opera - Haworth style? Informal with a glass of wine (or two), good company and lots of laughs - September 3rd - Cobbles and Clay - their telephone number is on the dates page
Sunday 15 August 2010
Fishing line but no fish
I am taking a break. It has just taken 3 hrs and 40 minutes to get the first 42 strings on. (another 80 to go - arghhhh!!) I had to take most of the pegs off another harp (which is second in line to be repaired). I use fishing line - not because I am a 'skin-flint' but because my harps are designed to sound different and to do this I have altered the lengths of the strings. All mathematics. When I asked the string manufacturers for quotes to buy rolls they wouldn't let me have them - only pre-cut lengths available. Huh!! Eventually a fellow musician who owned a fishing supplies wholesale company let me have every guage he had in stock!
Another problem I had was that I have to use harpsichord pegs to hold the strings onto the harp. To get more than one set of strings on the top (head) of the harp you have to be pretty organised - there isn't much room! The harpishord pegs have a standard width of hole in the end to thread the wire string through before you start winding it on and tightening it. The hole is much too small for the first octave of nylon strings. Solution ... to hammer the end of the string flat on an old shoe last and carefully cut a thin sliver off so it fits through!
As I write this the air is acrid because a local mill burnt down yesterday in Haworth, also Dave is outside spraying the first coat onto Dav-Al. Be patient Dave!!! He is so excited to see the finished result he worked till midnight in the barn the other night... (but I can't wait either!).
At Burnley Community Festival next Sunday - Queen's Park
Another problem I had was that I have to use harpsichord pegs to hold the strings onto the harp. To get more than one set of strings on the top (head) of the harp you have to be pretty organised - there isn't much room! The harpishord pegs have a standard width of hole in the end to thread the wire string through before you start winding it on and tightening it. The hole is much too small for the first octave of nylon strings. Solution ... to hammer the end of the string flat on an old shoe last and carefully cut a thin sliver off so it fits through!
As I write this the air is acrid because a local mill burnt down yesterday in Haworth, also Dave is outside spraying the first coat onto Dav-Al. Be patient Dave!!! He is so excited to see the finished result he worked till midnight in the barn the other night... (but I can't wait either!).
At Burnley Community Festival next Sunday - Queen's Park
Friday 13 August 2010
Making DavAl
Actually exhausted myself and overslept - usually up with the lark (or the cockrells on our farm). I have been finishing the new 'Elizabethan' quad harp, Mystic-Al and helping my husband, Dave, to finish the modern 'harp of all harps', DavAl. Thank you to all those who have asked when AngAl will be made.... and also my son who added when is FinAl going to be made!!! He has a point and I have struggled to make these harps as Dave is now realising. It is not easy. I have 2 re-makes, 2 harps to mend and am in the process of re-making HandAl, alongside MysticAl. THAT WILL BE IT!!!! My arms ache!!!
Talking of which... we ordered the specialist long drill bit so the drill is on charge! Today's job is to start drilling the outer string holes on MystiCal - reinforce the head with long screws and put together the soundboard of HandAl - a remake. This was the harp my daughter took to Oxford with her and caused a huge stir down there. It was then I realised I had some very serious 'fans' who were following my career, albeit from a distance and unknown to me. HandAl was very heavy and the soundboard wasn't brilliant so hence the re-make.
I am playing at the event Incredibly Edible Rossendale this Saturday 11.30'ish. Just past Kingfisher House on lhs coming out of Bacup on Rossendale road. All about growing yr own veg...
Talking of which... we ordered the specialist long drill bit so the drill is on charge! Today's job is to start drilling the outer string holes on MystiCal - reinforce the head with long screws and put together the soundboard of HandAl - a remake. This was the harp my daughter took to Oxford with her and caused a huge stir down there. It was then I realised I had some very serious 'fans' who were following my career, albeit from a distance and unknown to me. HandAl was very heavy and the soundboard wasn't brilliant so hence the re-make.
I am playing at the event Incredibly Edible Rossendale this Saturday 11.30'ish. Just past Kingfisher House on lhs coming out of Bacup on Rossendale road. All about growing yr own veg...
Tuesday 10 August 2010
proud to be widdop!
Last night we attended a meeting of the Aire Valley Vintage Machinery Club in Keighley. The talk was by Michael Laycock, formally of Widdop Engineering.
It was fascinating - really! The Widdop engineering works was HUGE and so well respected, even 55 years on. There were men there who had worked for 14 months, back in the fifties, and came up to me enthusing about their experience. Apparantly it was one of the best attended meetings - there was talk at the end of setting up a proper archive somewhere - I hope so. The engines were mainly for boats - from barges to trawlers and were legendary in their reliability.
I was touched to be treated with such respect by these dedicated engineers - as a harp designer - thank you!
Thank you also to the information about drill bits - will do!
It was fascinating - really! The Widdop engineering works was HUGE and so well respected, even 55 years on. There were men there who had worked for 14 months, back in the fifties, and came up to me enthusing about their experience. Apparantly it was one of the best attended meetings - there was talk at the end of setting up a proper archive somewhere - I hope so. The engines were mainly for boats - from barges to trawlers and were legendary in their reliability.
I was touched to be treated with such respect by these dedicated engineers - as a harp designer - thank you!
Thank you also to the information about drill bits - will do!
Friday 6 August 2010
Gluing the Laurel and Hardy way
It took a whole week to get the glue off my hands! I am making my new 'Elizabethan' harp, Mystical, with 4 sets of strings which means it will have a luted soundboard and therefore a different design. I started joining the top of the soundbox to the 'neck' of the harp and discovered a problem ... screws and drillbits are just not long enough. I tried to buy some - must be very specialist as the local DIY shop couldn't help. Nevermind I thought - I will use some of that expanding glue.....arghhhhhhh....(as it turned out).
The plastic container of glue had been put deliberately to the back of the cupboard after the last attempt. It sets so fast that I could feel that the top half was solid, but, if I sawed the bottle in half (I am impossibly practical - 'waste not, want not'). I thought I was prepared - a metal tray, old honey jar at hand to pour it into, masking tape and plastic stuck all over the harp, newspaper on the floor, etc etc.
Two hours later it had finally set hard and I had finished scraping all the 'runs' off the harp and had trimmed my hair from its new fashion of 'christmas-tree-like' baubles. It burst straight through the masking tape, managed to fill the tray and expand to the table and all attempts at keeping my hands clean were futile. ... BUT ... it did solve the problem ... however ... do I do this again or can a better method be found?
The plastic container of glue had been put deliberately to the back of the cupboard after the last attempt. It sets so fast that I could feel that the top half was solid, but, if I sawed the bottle in half (I am impossibly practical - 'waste not, want not'). I thought I was prepared - a metal tray, old honey jar at hand to pour it into, masking tape and plastic stuck all over the harp, newspaper on the floor, etc etc.
Two hours later it had finally set hard and I had finished scraping all the 'runs' off the harp and had trimmed my hair from its new fashion of 'christmas-tree-like' baubles. It burst straight through the masking tape, managed to fill the tray and expand to the table and all attempts at keeping my hands clean were futile. ... BUT ... it did solve the problem ... however ... do I do this again or can a better method be found?
Sunday 1 August 2010
Harpist - Look North
Had a really nice day , we took a walk into Haworth this afternoon after watching the BBC symphony for Yorkshire on the BBC website
Dave is off to collect some more wood tomorrow for a new fore pillar for the new harp
looking forward to seeing more on the news tomorrow
Look North BBC1 - 6.30pm
Dave is off to collect some more wood tomorrow for a new fore pillar for the new harp
looking forward to seeing more on the news tomorrow
Look North BBC1 - 6.30pm
A Symphony for Yorkshire
Well, we just heard it full blast on the computer (where everything is heard these days)! I am looking forward to actually seeing it again next week - Benjamin Till has huge creativity and sensitivity, not just for music and his ability to include a whole multitude of musicians and make them feel special - but wait till you see what he does with directing a camera ... You will see a steam train puffing in time to the music - done in one take apparantly! A beautiful girl with such a sense of fun blowing through her thumbs in perfect tune - on top of a bus! a surf board dancing in the middle of Sheffield .... Everytime you will see something different.
Things are tough for a lot of people out there at the moment, we are hanging on by a thread it seems but this will make you want to dance!!!! Looking forward to watching it next week - see you there!!!!
Things are tough for a lot of people out there at the moment, we are hanging on by a thread it seems but this will make you want to dance!!!! Looking forward to watching it next week - see you there!!!!
Friday 30 July 2010
chicken rescue at midnight
In the corner of our field by the wood all overgrown with nettles is an old caravan. It has been taken over by chickens and last night Dave was locking them in when he heard a sound. Sadly, a dying hen - maybe a fox attack or mink. He was about to come back in when he heard a tiny squeak and out from under the caravan rolled a chick.
It took 2 car jacks, an awful lot of nettle stings and a neighbour's help but eventually he passed out the chicks and then the eggs and I rushed back to the house. The eggs were cold and one of the chicks had 'done the splits' and wasn't moving much.
I stuck the box into the oven of the Rayburn - (and left the door open!) Found the incubator and turned it on in the living room. It took about an hour to heat up and all the time I had to monitor the oven temperature by leaving the door wide open or closing it slightly again ... but ... amazingly all the chicks were soon jumping around and cheeping loudly and the eggs were 'chipping'. This morning we have 9 beautiful bouncing fluffy chicks and one egg still to hatch - a 'blooming miracle'!!!
Thank you so much for the 'comment' - so funny and thanks to Circus Envy for the mention on yr blog - all the best to you all
Thursday 29 July 2010
Yorkshire Symphony
My harp room is a bit like the set from Goldilocks. There are so many variations of harps and people that over the years I have collected loads of different stools to sit on. I am forever lugging harps and chairs around and usually I find myself with nothing to sit on... Last night I 'stole' the posh laminated sign from my seat at the Preview and it says 'Reserved for Fiona-Katie Roberts - BBC' - oh yes - serious respect now please!!!!
Seriously though - the film is fantastic - the BBC kept asking whether I had reached for my hankie - perhaps I am just too practical but I didn't! I found it very uplifting and a joy to watch and listen to - you never knew what was going to happen next! Apparantly the 'train shot' was taken in one go - the steam train was in time with the music! Harry Gration called me the Exotic Harpist and I got to talk to the Carillonneur from York Minster .... oh yes .... serious respect, again.
Seriously though - the film is fantastic - the BBC kept asking whether I had reached for my hankie - perhaps I am just too practical but I didn't! I found it very uplifting and a joy to watch and listen to - you never knew what was going to happen next! Apparantly the 'train shot' was taken in one go - the steam train was in time with the music! Harry Gration called me the Exotic Harpist and I got to talk to the Carillonneur from York Minster .... oh yes .... serious respect, again.
Tuesday 27 July 2010
building harps
Well the race building harps continues. Thought I had got nothing done yesterday as it took so long to saw the top of the soundbox into exactly the right shape and get some massive bolts in to hold it to the head. My arm was aching badly by the end of it all! This is why I don't want to make any more harps after the next 3 (all re-builds so not as bad). None of my friends believe me but honestly it is hard work. I will still have to repair harps, string them and would love to decorate them still but no more jigsaws and clamps!
I am googling away trying to find an image of an owl to use on Mystic-Al. My last harp (Celesti-Al) I found a poem on a 15th lute. It reads 'I was silent in the woods, cut down by the cruel axe but in death I sweetly sing'. I copied the poem in latin on one side and english on the other and painted 2 trees at the bottom. Mystic-Al has a reinforced forepillar, made out of an old bed frame, and I came across an oak leaf carving in the wood pile which I think had come off an old piano I was stripping. The oak leaf just covers the join perfectly and above it will be the owl.
The Yorkshire Symphony preview is on Wednesday this week and I am trying to find a time for another interview on Radio Leeds.
I am googling away trying to find an image of an owl to use on Mystic-Al. My last harp (Celesti-Al) I found a poem on a 15th lute. It reads 'I was silent in the woods, cut down by the cruel axe but in death I sweetly sing'. I copied the poem in latin on one side and english on the other and painted 2 trees at the bottom. Mystic-Al has a reinforced forepillar, made out of an old bed frame, and I came across an oak leaf carving in the wood pile which I think had come off an old piano I was stripping. The oak leaf just covers the join perfectly and above it will be the owl.
The Yorkshire Symphony preview is on Wednesday this week and I am trying to find a time for another interview on Radio Leeds.
Saturday 24 July 2010
Hilditz
The nuns at my old school are in trouble again. They want to sell land to build a Tescos. The townsfolk (according to national news) want a Sainsburys built on industrial land. The last time I recollect the nuns being in trouble was when the school shut. The Mother Superior made a statement to the press that in hindsight the school had been far too repressive and she regretted this. We were not allowed access to TV, radio or allowed to play music - we were allowed one phone call home on our mother's birthday although if you were lucky you could blag one a term. We were allowed to receive and send one letter a week and they read through our letters and if one didn't suit them they read it out to class to humiliate us.
From starting the school the nuns had me playing the piano in chapel and soon I was having to get up earlier than everyone else to play for mass at 7 and evensong later on. I was also the musical entertainment - any pop songs were sung to me and I could easily come up with an arrangment on one of the many old pianos scattered around the old school. I cannot remember why but for some reason as a punishment the nuns locked all the pianos and to retaliate I unpicked the locks with a hairgrip and played them a death march at midnight. The funny thing was they were not allowed to speak after 9 pm so they would signal their displeasure and I was locked in the laundry cupboard for the rest of the night!
From starting the school the nuns had me playing the piano in chapel and soon I was having to get up earlier than everyone else to play for mass at 7 and evensong later on. I was also the musical entertainment - any pop songs were sung to me and I could easily come up with an arrangment on one of the many old pianos scattered around the old school. I cannot remember why but for some reason as a punishment the nuns locked all the pianos and to retaliate I unpicked the locks with a hairgrip and played them a death march at midnight. The funny thing was they were not allowed to speak after 9 pm so they would signal their displeasure and I was locked in the laundry cupboard for the rest of the night!
Friday 23 July 2010
you can't rush a good wine - er I mean - harp
Yes - lots of time waiting for paint to dry. I am enjoying this part of making Mystic-Al. Loads of intricate patterns with gold and black paint. I have studied the decoration on antique harps - postcards, graves, church windows, Christmas cards, museums of course and once got to see the most amazing original 15th Century book on instruments. I was asked if I wanted to look at it - in a private collection at Micklethwaite. The most amazingly wierd collection of instruments ever - they literally tried everything! Most of my willow experiment died in the drought earlier this year but I shall just plant some more next year - this is to try and grow it into the right shape before it is cut...a long term project to make some wierd and wacky instruments especially for people like me.
Anyway back to the point... the decoration is looking fabulous and then comes the difficult part of staining the wood and polishing over without losing the decoration. I have just finished one side and am waiting for it to dry. It is laid out on top of the dining table as I type. This decoration was inspired by the walls of Mitton Hall. The oldest Great Hall in England I think - a huge dragon stretching half way across the main beam high up overlooking the minstral's gallery. Not very easy to see nowadays as the new owners have hung a huge modern chandeliar and you cannot see past the glare. No comment.
Anyway back to the point... the decoration is looking fabulous and then comes the difficult part of staining the wood and polishing over without losing the decoration. I have just finished one side and am waiting for it to dry. It is laid out on top of the dining table as I type. This decoration was inspired by the walls of Mitton Hall. The oldest Great Hall in England I think - a huge dragon stretching half way across the main beam high up overlooking the minstral's gallery. Not very easy to see nowadays as the new owners have hung a huge modern chandeliar and you cannot see past the glare. No comment.
Tuesday 20 July 2010
Mystic-Al and Dav-Al
Me and my son took a friend of mine out - in a car that turned out to be the same age as he was! Originally belonging to the Maharaja of India the Delage it was built in the 20s and painted Bugatti blue - not the blue I know about but a very light colour that looked white in the twilight. My son was taking it through its paces after an engine rebuild before it sets off next month for the Peking to Paris rally. It had a rather large dent in the fender - turned out it hit a rock in a river in Kazakhstan on a previous rally.
Not my favourite car though! I was asked to be the judge (which meant I had to wave the chequered flag) at Cadwell Park when I was 13 and I was always so thrilled when the Fraser Nashs (chain gang) won.
On harp matters - Dav-Al is coming along - the soundbox is finished (not painted) and is like glass to touch it is so smooth. I never got the holes drilled in Mystic-Al - will try again tomorrow!
Not my favourite car though! I was asked to be the judge (which meant I had to wave the chequered flag) at Cadwell Park when I was 13 and I was always so thrilled when the Fraser Nashs (chain gang) won.
On harp matters - Dav-Al is coming along - the soundbox is finished (not painted) and is like glass to touch it is so smooth. I never got the holes drilled in Mystic-Al - will try again tomorrow!
Sunday 18 July 2010
Aoelus
Well that's the last time I mention God's of Wind in my lessons! (Attempts at glissando) Non-stop, it has been. Blown all the gorgeous scented rose petals off the bushes in the yard that usually last the month.
We officially live in a hamlet - originally there were 12 families living here. We are still assigned one yellow street light. It has a nice community feel about it at the moment. Always someone around to chat to! Builders are doing up the cottages next door. It cost us a bottle of wine because they left the gate open and our trainee sheepdog took advantage and chased all the sheep into the next door farm's garden .... whoops. She then got them cornered by the patio window and sat by them till we found her and gave her new instructions. A few chairs knocked over and the gravel churned up but no lasting damage, thankfully!
We officially live in a hamlet - originally there were 12 families living here. We are still assigned one yellow street light. It has a nice community feel about it at the moment. Always someone around to chat to! Builders are doing up the cottages next door. It cost us a bottle of wine because they left the gate open and our trainee sheepdog took advantage and chased all the sheep into the next door farm's garden .... whoops. She then got them cornered by the patio window and sat by them till we found her and gave her new instructions. A few chairs knocked over and the gravel churned up but no lasting damage, thankfully!
Thursday 15 July 2010
barbed wire harps
Well I'm back at Wycoller - wonder if 'Squire Cunliffe' will be there? I chatted to him a couple of years ago and he told me his Grandma had taught Harpo Marx to play the harp. He told me a wonderful story about Harpo (but you have to come to my concerts to hear it) but he seemed more at home in his long curly grey whig, tights and high-heeled black shiney shoes with huge silver buckles showing everyone around his old Hall ...
Thank you to the person who gave me a picture of the harp Salvador Dali made for Harpo - with barbed wire - fantastic. I try and think of a suitable name and all I can come up with at present - with apologies - is Painf-Al.
Thank you also for the comment on the last blog.
See you at Wycoller for a pure Celtic, historical harp indulgence - Sunday 2-4 pm (yes the times have changed - we're very laid back there)
Thank you to the person who gave me a picture of the harp Salvador Dali made for Harpo - with barbed wire - fantastic. I try and think of a suitable name and all I can come up with at present - with apologies - is Painf-Al.
Thank you also for the comment on the last blog.
See you at Wycoller for a pure Celtic, historical harp indulgence - Sunday 2-4 pm (yes the times have changed - we're very laid back there)
Sunday 11 July 2010
Bells in A
Bob Hoskins smiled at me! A long, slow smile across a crowded room, just a couple of seconds. I was playing the harp at a wedding and he was apparantly related somehow to one of the couple. The hotel is a favourite of mine, no flashiness to impress, very classy and I often chat to people and come away and think - was that ...?
Last summer I was sat at the bottom of the 'back stairs' playing at a wedding when I noticed a girl sat half way up, almost hidden, in a white track suit. We shared a couple of laughs at the goings on of the guests and young bridesmaids. It was only afterwards that the staff told me it was Kiera Knightly.
I am playing at Wycoller Park next Sunday afternoon - we thought this had gone with the cuts but I am valued apparantly. I will be playing my version of Owen O'Rourke with the big bell in A.
Last summer I was sat at the bottom of the 'back stairs' playing at a wedding when I noticed a girl sat half way up, almost hidden, in a white track suit. We shared a couple of laughs at the goings on of the guests and young bridesmaids. It was only afterwards that the staff told me it was Kiera Knightly.
I am playing at Wycoller Park next Sunday afternoon - we thought this had gone with the cuts but I am valued apparantly. I will be playing my version of Owen O'Rourke with the big bell in A.
Friday 9 July 2010
daisy chains and recording
Well, we didn't want to waste the Yorkshire Symphony dress so decided to do a video today. Alas the vicious wind is still blowing whipping dress and hair around and blowing the harp over. No good for Aeolian harp either alas. When filming we found a few spots on the moor where the harp hummed by itself but we didn't get the wild screaming that sends shivers down your spine. I remember going up to the moor top with the kids when Haley's Comet was passing overhead. We had a superb vantage point and the kids took rain sticks, small harps and percussion to play their own Symphony to the sky.
I have kept the sprig of heather that Benjamin Till put into my hair whilst filming! He made himself a chain of Colt'sfoot flowers, apololgising to each flower for picking it first - of course! I loved the bits of music I heard on the 'ghetto-blaster' (held out of camera shot behind the rock I was stood on). Hearing is, as ever, such a problem for me and playing against the wind in time was a challenge! My finger ends became too cold to play by the end but at least the rain held off!
I have kept the sprig of heather that Benjamin Till put into my hair whilst filming! He made himself a chain of Colt'sfoot flowers, apololgising to each flower for picking it first - of course! I loved the bits of music I heard on the 'ghetto-blaster' (held out of camera shot behind the rock I was stood on). Hearing is, as ever, such a problem for me and playing against the wind in time was a challenge! My finger ends became too cold to play by the end but at least the rain held off!
Saturday 3 July 2010
buzzing
I am taking a break from sewing flowers in organza for the Yorkshire Symphony dress and sorting out a 'buzzing' sound on Recyc-Al. The Yorkshire Symphony are filming me on Tuesday on the moors above our farm. I still haven't heard the tune - just snatches here and there very briefly.
This afternoon I met my daughter Philippa in Warrington to hand back her harp, now mended with few new strings and a bit of polish. Didn't have time to clean it - the best way to get between the strings/pegs is to use bird feathers. I now have an excuse to carry on that childhood habit of picking up feathers. They also have oil on them which polishes the wood a bit. A Flautist told me - its an ancient trick to clean Ebony flutes.
The buzzing appeared after the harp was stuck in the car for 2 hours the other afternoon in scorching sunshine. Normally if I have a gig/wedding I set off very early and find somewhere to park under a tree and take a picnic and a good book until its time for the wedding. I don't have a very modern car so no air-con. This time however we were summoned to a recording studio in the centre of Leeds - slow traffic and definitely no trees. I covered the harps up with old sleeping bags but it still got too hot for them. I took a 'back-up' harp and the damage was 2 broken strings and the 'buzzing'...
Well, must get drilling and see if I can fix it... (now you know why harps were predominantly played in the cooler parts of the world).
This afternoon I met my daughter Philippa in Warrington to hand back her harp, now mended with few new strings and a bit of polish. Didn't have time to clean it - the best way to get between the strings/pegs is to use bird feathers. I now have an excuse to carry on that childhood habit of picking up feathers. They also have oil on them which polishes the wood a bit. A Flautist told me - its an ancient trick to clean Ebony flutes.
The buzzing appeared after the harp was stuck in the car for 2 hours the other afternoon in scorching sunshine. Normally if I have a gig/wedding I set off very early and find somewhere to park under a tree and take a picnic and a good book until its time for the wedding. I don't have a very modern car so no air-con. This time however we were summoned to a recording studio in the centre of Leeds - slow traffic and definitely no trees. I covered the harps up with old sleeping bags but it still got too hot for them. I took a 'back-up' harp and the damage was 2 broken strings and the 'buzzing'...
Well, must get drilling and see if I can fix it... (now you know why harps were predominantly played in the cooler parts of the world).
Wednesday 30 June 2010
pupils and tea partys
I promised you the name of the Festival but its all to no avail as its sold out anyway...! Hoping for more off the back of this one though - keep spreading the word!
Well, Dave actually cut the lawn today - a major benchmark for the garden. Someone actually noticed how fantastic it was looking. The pergola is causing comment - it looks like a wigwam without its canvass.
I had an afternoon of teaching. I have noticed mothers arriving early and leaving late which usually means there is a sort of party going on in my dining room whilst I teach - hillarious! Oh well, am determined to 'leave my mark' - some seriously good harpers coming through.
Well, Dave actually cut the lawn today - a major benchmark for the garden. Someone actually noticed how fantastic it was looking. The pergola is causing comment - it looks like a wigwam without its canvass.
I had an afternoon of teaching. I have noticed mothers arriving early and leaving late which usually means there is a sort of party going on in my dining room whilst I teach - hillarious! Oh well, am determined to 'leave my mark' - some seriously good harpers coming through.
Thursday 24 June 2010
pergola
Dave is not impressed with the pergola. (Actually I'm not, that's the whole point). It is a temporary one to give me some shade till I can find the time to make a proper one. Might as well get the honeysuckle to start growing up something! A friend of mine thinks I should grow Italian Squashes - huh! - fat chance of me achieving that.... The flowers in the garden are all easy to grow. Loads of herbs - they fascinate me and there are so many growing naturally around the farm as it used to belong to monks in the 13th-16th Centuries. It also fascinates me how strong they are. It is no secret that Dave has been extremely ill and certain herbs help him de-tox but I used to use half a leaf of Lovage in a stew - adds a lovely peppery taste. In the past girls used to stuff Lovage leaves under their armpits to stop BO. Just a small leaf brings Dave out in huge lumps and a high temperature... Talking of which - another difficult day for harps!!!! - YES - spare us a thought! High temp and high humidity - and a wooden instrument - this is the sort of day harps explode. Now you know why I have back-up harps!
Wednesday 23 June 2010
weeding
I have tar on my knees, my hands and my feet! Came about with my new method of eradicating the nettles and docks from my garden. Dave bought a job lot of roofing felt on Ebay a year ago so I though I would use that under the flags to keep the weeds down. It is mega-thick with tar in the middle and in all this hot weather it has melted... It works a treat but gets everywhere!
On the harp front - I have had a couple of sell-out concerts and more and more people seem convinced that I am worth listening to and, that it really is different! It has taken such a long time to invent the harp, the technique, compose the tunes and learn how to make the harps. Looking back I don't think I would have started if I knew what a long job it was! There are 3 harps in construction - a long slow process - mostly waiting for glue to dry!
Well, am off back outside - just a six foot section of small wall to build and the walling is finished. Its too hot to plant anything so that will have to wait to the normal English summer comes back...(don't blame me!)
On the harp front - I have had a couple of sell-out concerts and more and more people seem convinced that I am worth listening to and, that it really is different! It has taken such a long time to invent the harp, the technique, compose the tunes and learn how to make the harps. Looking back I don't think I would have started if I knew what a long job it was! There are 3 harps in construction - a long slow process - mostly waiting for glue to dry!
Well, am off back outside - just a six foot section of small wall to build and the walling is finished. Its too hot to plant anything so that will have to wait to the normal English summer comes back...(don't blame me!)
Thursday 17 June 2010
sleeping beauty
I did a wedding a few weeks ago at the most gorgeous old castle. Somebody's home, and somebody who loved their gardens. I sneaked a walk round afterwards whilst the guests were eating. I am presently working on my garden - a nettle wilderness for the past few years alas. Yesterday I moved a load of stone and got the main wall built. Today's job is digging all the dock and nettles out of the next stretch...
The wedding was a Chinese one. I was asked to learn one Chinese harp piece. At the front of the Great Hall were two huge wooden antique chairs - a lot of the furniture and flowers in this Castle had obviously come from the East. The guests were invited to sit in these chairs and the bride and groom knelt in front and gave them a special cup of tea. The guests would then announce their 'gift' - happiness, prosperity etc. Starting with the Bride's parents this went on for 40 minutes. Every time there was a mention of babies or children the Chinese guests collapsed in a fit of giggles. I can see where the inspiration came for the fairytale now. Needless to say my 4 minute Chinese tune ran out half way through the first pledge so had to improvise. Luckily no-one seemed to notice the Chinese 'versions' of 'She' and 'Queen of Sheba' (the tunes chosen as Processional and Recessional)...
See you this Saturday at Otley Courthouse - 8 pm - with Andy Hill (hillarious songwriter)
The wedding was a Chinese one. I was asked to learn one Chinese harp piece. At the front of the Great Hall were two huge wooden antique chairs - a lot of the furniture and flowers in this Castle had obviously come from the East. The guests were invited to sit in these chairs and the bride and groom knelt in front and gave them a special cup of tea. The guests would then announce their 'gift' - happiness, prosperity etc. Starting with the Bride's parents this went on for 40 minutes. Every time there was a mention of babies or children the Chinese guests collapsed in a fit of giggles. I can see where the inspiration came for the fairytale now. Needless to say my 4 minute Chinese tune ran out half way through the first pledge so had to improvise. Luckily no-one seemed to notice the Chinese 'versions' of 'She' and 'Queen of Sheba' (the tunes chosen as Processional and Recessional)...
See you this Saturday at Otley Courthouse - 8 pm - with Andy Hill (hillarious songwriter)
Tuesday 15 June 2010
Church at Malham
Actually gone through the skin on my thumb I have been practising so much this week - hence the lack of blogs... Recording tomorrow and I am so looking forward to playing for pleasure after that!
Played at the Mela on Saturday. Nearly disappeared in the smoke from the machine at the back of the stage but had a good audience. The following morning my mum overheard a conversation at Church in Malham. They were talking about this amazing harpist at the Mela. She said it must be her daughter - what was her name? They didn't know, but didn't think it was her daughter as she was in her thirties and Irish....hmmm. Mum was absolutely convinced it was me so persevered. 'did she have a silver harp that she made herself?' - yes - but still more evidence was needed. In the end they were only convinced when she asked 'did she have a gap in her teeth?'
Next gig Otley Courthouse - this Saturday 19th - 8 pm Come and see me and Big Al ...
Played at the Mela on Saturday. Nearly disappeared in the smoke from the machine at the back of the stage but had a good audience. The following morning my mum overheard a conversation at Church in Malham. They were talking about this amazing harpist at the Mela. She said it must be her daughter - what was her name? They didn't know, but didn't think it was her daughter as she was in her thirties and Irish....hmmm. Mum was absolutely convinced it was me so persevered. 'did she have a silver harp that she made herself?' - yes - but still more evidence was needed. In the end they were only convinced when she asked 'did she have a gap in her teeth?'
Next gig Otley Courthouse - this Saturday 19th - 8 pm Come and see me and Big Al ...
Saturday 12 June 2010
towing trailers
What a torturous journey coming up the A1 is.... I always seem to be on it when the rain and wind are lashing sidewards and it is too scarey (for me) to attempt to overtake the lorries when it's just 2 lanes... Got stuck behind a glider trailer this time for a while! Nothing against gliders I hasten to add!!! (my daughter being a pilot). It cheered me up actually.
One of my favourite true stories is the one where 2 friends of my daughters were towing a certain university's glider to the south of France on the motorway. Everything seemed fine when a traffic report came on the radio. They turned it up at the mention of the very same motorway but didn't worry when the report said the tailback was 10 miles behind them. Then a word caught their attention... 'What exactly is glider in french?'... By the the next junction they had worked it out. They sped back down the motorway, passed the tailback, to the next junction, and came back up the hard shoulder very sheepishly.
The glider had quietly slipped out of the trailor leaving the doors flapping. Absolutely everyone had managed to avoid it and it was parked quite perfectly on the middle lane...complete with huge logo for one of the top universities on the side - ha ha - good one!
One of my favourite true stories is the one where 2 friends of my daughters were towing a certain university's glider to the south of France on the motorway. Everything seemed fine when a traffic report came on the radio. They turned it up at the mention of the very same motorway but didn't worry when the report said the tailback was 10 miles behind them. Then a word caught their attention... 'What exactly is glider in french?'... By the the next junction they had worked it out. They sped back down the motorway, passed the tailback, to the next junction, and came back up the hard shoulder very sheepishly.
The glider had quietly slipped out of the trailor leaving the doors flapping. Absolutely everyone had managed to avoid it and it was parked quite perfectly on the middle lane...complete with huge logo for one of the top universities on the side - ha ha - good one!
Monday 7 June 2010
another adventure
Only just back on the blog and off again in Ginge! Moving number one daughter, Philiy to a new house tomorrow. Ginge packed with a set of 6 Elm dining chairs, a blackcurrant bush, pans and a chicken caserole.
I rehearsed with Benjamin Till (composer of the Yorkshire Symphony) this afternoon - well he played my piano and I joined in a bit on the harp! I have such a distinctive style of playing it is important I don't add too much character to a piece when there's a full orchestra! The Yorkshire Symphony is recording next week.
Bradford Mela this Saturday 12-3 ish
I rehearsed with Benjamin Till (composer of the Yorkshire Symphony) this afternoon - well he played my piano and I joined in a bit on the harp! I have such a distinctive style of playing it is important I don't add too much character to a piece when there's a full orchestra! The Yorkshire Symphony is recording next week.
Bradford Mela this Saturday 12-3 ish
Sunday 6 June 2010
The tour bus - Ginge
Well, I'm back - not sure what happenned but the blog didn't work for a few days and indeed lost my last blog somewhere along the line...
Had a superb trip up the dales to Austwick yesterday in my camper van, Ginge. My son, Albert, had recorded 6 cds of music especially for me so was all set... I like the fact that other VW campers wave at me - not just a sedate hand but massive friendly, mad waves (we're all such happy people - ha ha!!!). The vicar of Clapham said I am a happy person so thank you for that. I discovered that the 'famous - folk on 2' resident of Austwick, or thereabouts, has a VW camper van - a posh one indeed. Ginge isn't bothered too much. Had a slightly extended visit as when I got back to the van after the concert I was blocked in by 2 range-rovers (uh). Nothing for it but to go for a walk till the pub shut.
Drove back at midnight with the windows open and the smell of wild garlic and the sounds of ... (Albert - who on earth was that bass player???!).
This Saturday - Kiwi Stage - Bradford Mela 12noon-3 ish, ish, ish - come and dance to the harp...
Had a superb trip up the dales to Austwick yesterday in my camper van, Ginge. My son, Albert, had recorded 6 cds of music especially for me so was all set... I like the fact that other VW campers wave at me - not just a sedate hand but massive friendly, mad waves (we're all such happy people - ha ha!!!). The vicar of Clapham said I am a happy person so thank you for that. I discovered that the 'famous - folk on 2' resident of Austwick, or thereabouts, has a VW camper van - a posh one indeed. Ginge isn't bothered too much. Had a slightly extended visit as when I got back to the van after the concert I was blocked in by 2 range-rovers (uh). Nothing for it but to go for a walk till the pub shut.
Drove back at midnight with the windows open and the smell of wild garlic and the sounds of ... (Albert - who on earth was that bass player???!).
This Saturday - Kiwi Stage - Bradford Mela 12noon-3 ish, ish, ish - come and dance to the harp...
Monday 24 May 2010
Superb Functions dont pay
Fiona Katie played for this agency in August 2009 and we still have not been paid , It has come to light today that they continue to book artistes and do not pay or pass any money on. I received this information from another Manager.
I would urge anyone who is owed monies from this agency to contact all the clients they did the work for direct and to inform them what they are doing.
You have no chance of getting any money from them and despite contacting the Musicians union we never got any money event the threat of court action did not change this.
They set up a sister company by the looks of things and then claim that the company which owes money has none despite this they are now in plush offices so I am told.
Anyone who is interested in setting up a joint action against this company should contact me .
our email address is David @tripleharps.com
In my opinion what this agency has done and continues to do is theft.
in our case we travelled to manchester whilst I was having treatment for a tumour , had petrol expenses, parking expenses plus my wife Fiona Katie worked for three and a half hours for them .
They did not pay and when we contacted the number for accounts a recorded message refused to let us leave a message . I wrote to them and they did eventually respond claiming they had severe financial difficulties then said if we were to take them to court we would get no money.
they repeated this several times in the letter stating they had no cash
The Musicians union has a handbook which contains a list of companies which they consider risky Superb functions.com, Superbfunctions, Superb Functions limited are all the same company
I can not stress strongly enough that the best thing to do is not to listen to them not to do any work for them and also to ask to be removed from their advertising literature on the internet as even after they did not pay they carried on advertising my wife until I insisted they remove her details.
The people who ring you to book you and beg and plead with you to do gigs are in on this , Steve Kynaston knew what was going on and promised me many times the moies owed but did not pay
I would urge anyone who is owed monies from this agency to contact all the clients they did the work for direct and to inform them what they are doing.
You have no chance of getting any money from them and despite contacting the Musicians union we never got any money event the threat of court action did not change this.
They set up a sister company by the looks of things and then claim that the company which owes money has none despite this they are now in plush offices so I am told.
Anyone who is interested in setting up a joint action against this company should contact me .
our email address is David @tripleharps.com
In my opinion what this agency has done and continues to do is theft.
in our case we travelled to manchester whilst I was having treatment for a tumour , had petrol expenses, parking expenses plus my wife Fiona Katie worked for three and a half hours for them .
They did not pay and when we contacted the number for accounts a recorded message refused to let us leave a message . I wrote to them and they did eventually respond claiming they had severe financial difficulties then said if we were to take them to court we would get no money.
they repeated this several times in the letter stating they had no cash
The Musicians union has a handbook which contains a list of companies which they consider risky Superb functions.com, Superbfunctions, Superb Functions limited are all the same company
I can not stress strongly enough that the best thing to do is not to listen to them not to do any work for them and also to ask to be removed from their advertising literature on the internet as even after they did not pay they carried on advertising my wife until I insisted they remove her details.
The people who ring you to book you and beg and plead with you to do gigs are in on this , Steve Kynaston knew what was going on and promised me many times the moies owed but did not pay
Saturday 22 May 2010
Byron's honeymoon
The things hotel's market! I have yet to 'google' this one but yesterday's wedding took place in the room where Byron had his first evening meal at the start of his honeymoon. The large plaque on the door actually states 'ill-fated' honeymoon! This fact apparantly inspired 4 brides yesterday. Nearly a disaster because I was setting up the harp when the next 'Groom' brought his flowers in and started taking the existing flowers out. The weddings were planned a mere half an hour apart - that's confidence for you!
Well, the harp survived the British high humidity thank goodness... The summer before last broke quite a few harps alas. I had a few phonecalls asking if they could borrow mine....answer 'yes - it has 4 sets of strings you know?' ... answer 'Oh my God, no' ...
Well, the harp survived the British high humidity thank goodness... The summer before last broke quite a few harps alas. I had a few phonecalls asking if they could borrow mine....answer 'yes - it has 4 sets of strings you know?' ... answer 'Oh my God, no' ...
Tuesday 18 May 2010
Mystic-Al
I spent the morning jigsawing. I cut up the old bedstead and it works perfectly. The weather was amazingly hot today so I glued the forepillar and the soundboard and left it in the sun to dry. This means that tomorrow I get to do the nice bit - staining and polishing and oiling. The head and forepillar get stained and polished with beeswax but the soundboard gets oiled and 'baked' in the sun (if we get any tomorrow). I managed to put the harp together tonight and got an idea of what it will look like. I can start to plan the decoration - no definite plans yet - I will get ideas from the grain and patina and start it tomorrow.
Monday 17 May 2010
Mystic-Al
Forced myself to get some work done on this harp again this morning! I have re-set the soundboard and have to sort the fore-pillar out tomorrow. I needed a piece of wood about 5'6'' long. Not the sort of thing you can find at the local woodyard as it has to be very strong. Eventually I remembered that we had an old Mahogany bedstead on the firewood pile behind the farm. I measured it and it was a perfect fit! Just a bit of jigsawing to do tomorrow. Also managed to find a small piece of wooden moulding from an old piano that was given to me. I will no doubt find somewhere to put it! The main feature will be a small owl that came from a car boot sale - seemed to fit the name Mystic-Al!
Thursday 13 May 2010
good wine
I messed up the soundboard on 'Mystic-Al' so am having to re-do it ...grrrr. I seriously need this harp though. My traditional 'Elizabethan' harp (Celesti-Al) was one of my first. It has a chocolate box ribbon glued down the inside join where the wood just wouldn't fit straight, brass plates, borrowed from my treddle sewing machine drawers, emergency roofing bolts added on the head and glitter covering up the cracks in the soundboard... Amazing that it is still in one piece at all really. It sounds sweet though.
More and more of my compositions need 4 sets of strings though and Celesti-Al is only a triple so I really must force myself to get Mystic-Al made soon. The harp I re-strung in October is just starting to settle and 'sing' - a very slow process (like good wine) but with my new design they just sound better and better as they get older - I wish I could hear them in a hundred year's time...
More and more of my compositions need 4 sets of strings though and Celesti-Al is only a triple so I really must force myself to get Mystic-Al made soon. The harp I re-strung in October is just starting to settle and 'sing' - a very slow process (like good wine) but with my new design they just sound better and better as they get older - I wish I could hear them in a hundred year's time...
Wednesday 12 May 2010
Hummel
Well, that last post produced some reaction - if only when I bumped into some friends in town! 'Bavaria' they said? As a tripleharper I know that Bavaria is one of the 3 countries who claim it's invention. Italy and Wales being the other countries.
The Bavarians boast that the harp can be heard 4 miles down the valley when it is played on top of the mountain - wish I had that joinery skill! I will have to try my harps sometime...
In answer to the music - YES - 'om pa' can be gorgeous! I will let you know when I have recorded Carolan's tune. (Have you heard Hummel's A minor concerto?)
I am now devoting all my spare time to harp matters (that is after cleaning, gardening and cooking). Dave has taken over looking after the chicks - my breathing was getting worse and worse - all the dust! I have 'tamed' about a quarter of the garden so far - people are noticing so its worth it. I have 4 more harps to make ...
The Bavarians boast that the harp can be heard 4 miles down the valley when it is played on top of the mountain - wish I had that joinery skill! I will have to try my harps sometime...
In answer to the music - YES - 'om pa' can be gorgeous! I will let you know when I have recorded Carolan's tune. (Have you heard Hummel's A minor concerto?)
I am now devoting all my spare time to harp matters (that is after cleaning, gardening and cooking). Dave has taken over looking after the chicks - my breathing was getting worse and worse - all the dust! I have 'tamed' about a quarter of the garden so far - people are noticing so its worth it. I have 4 more harps to make ...
Sunday 9 May 2010
Symphony for Yorkshire
I picked the wrong weekend to help hatch the chicks as I had 2 weddings. Luckily they have nearly all managed to hatch unaided. I am thrilled to have a few Polish (pom pom) chicks so can start again (the fox killed all mine 3 weeks ago). Dave rescued one poor chick who battled his way out of his own egg to find an empty shell roll onto him and completely cover him up again so he had to start all over again! Life's like that...
On the harp front I got email confirmation to arrange recording for the Symphony for Yorkshire.
I'm not sure what yet - absolutely no clues whatsoever!!!
Dave has just suggested he put a photo on from today's wedding. He is slowly teaching me computer skills and one day I may actually manage to work it out - fingers crossed.
Wednesday 5 May 2010
not a good idea to leave the rings behind in the hotel
Hello again - nice to be back - albeit briefly - although this week's weddings are not so far from home. I really enjoyed playing the piano and got asked to do some more weddings so the guests must have enjoyed it too! Did more of an impromtu concert on Sunday as the groom suddenly realised he had left the rings behind in his hotel - a 40 min drive down the motorway I gather - whoooops!!!! Had a captive audience so they had no choice but to listen ... ha ha. Nobody understood my 'joke' rendition of Bach though alas... In the 'old days' (am I that old now?) when something went wrong you got yr huge cigar lit and played Bach.
My Jacques Loussier version of Air on a G String has served me well so far. First time - played as the groom - a strong 6' ruddy faced chap - broke down in tears just as he was about to say his vows. The Registrar said he would take his new friend for a whiskey and be back in 10 and I played to huge cheers.
Second time - the best man got up with a huge wad of papers nervously. Read about a page and a half of ultra-boring stuff till he was quite sure the guests were fidgeting and bored, dropped all his papers under the table, disappeared to pick them up, lit his cigar... you get the rest - brought the house down as he shouted 'you didn't really think I was going to do a speech did you?'
My Jacques Loussier version of Air on a G String has served me well so far. First time - played as the groom - a strong 6' ruddy faced chap - broke down in tears just as he was about to say his vows. The Registrar said he would take his new friend for a whiskey and be back in 10 and I played to huge cheers.
Second time - the best man got up with a huge wad of papers nervously. Read about a page and a half of ultra-boring stuff till he was quite sure the guests were fidgeting and bored, dropped all his papers under the table, disappeared to pick them up, lit his cigar... you get the rest - brought the house down as he shouted 'you didn't really think I was going to do a speech did you?'
Wednesday 28 April 2010
Four weddings and a funeral
Actually have four weddings and a funeral this week so forgive the short blog! Bizarrely all four want The Queen of Sheba! One of the weddings I am playing the piano which will make a nice change. In the middle I am playing Chinese Harp for a tea ceremony!
I bought some material today to make a new dress for weddings as I have so many! The criterion:- fantastic design, always autumnal shades (to match the harp), not needing to be ironed, can screw up in a bag, appear beatifully again and dry on a washing line in 10 minutes - easy!!!
GIGS IN MAY
29th - Bacup (see previous posts or dates page)
GIGS IN JUNE
6th - Bandstand, Saltaire
13th - Trades Club, Hebden Bridge
l9th - Otley Courthouse
I bought some material today to make a new dress for weddings as I have so many! The criterion:- fantastic design, always autumnal shades (to match the harp), not needing to be ironed, can screw up in a bag, appear beatifully again and dry on a washing line in 10 minutes - easy!!!
GIGS IN MAY
29th - Bacup (see previous posts or dates page)
GIGS IN JUNE
6th - Bandstand, Saltaire
13th - Trades Club, Hebden Bridge
l9th - Otley Courthouse
Monday 26 April 2010
tadpoles
We managed to get out for a walk yesterday and bumped into young friends, William and Albert.
Fishing nets, plastic buckets, wellies and thousands of tadpoles. We caught up with them at a pond near Lumbfoot. I used to take my kids there and my son Luke lost his very first watch in the river there. Looks no more than a stream or beck but its actually the River Worth. Albert was named after my twin son - so theres young Albert and younger Albert now.
No broken strings this weekend - with 28 harps thats a major achievement!!! When the temperatures settle down its brilliant - the dodgy times are Spring and Autumn for stringed instruments. They hate going from hot to cold... and back again. I am just about keeping the incubator temperature level but that has been harder work than usual.
I painted a new sign for the farm - found an old serving platter in the shape of a hen at a car boot sale and used that...
Fishing nets, plastic buckets, wellies and thousands of tadpoles. We caught up with them at a pond near Lumbfoot. I used to take my kids there and my son Luke lost his very first watch in the river there. Looks no more than a stream or beck but its actually the River Worth. Albert was named after my twin son - so theres young Albert and younger Albert now.
No broken strings this weekend - with 28 harps thats a major achievement!!! When the temperatures settle down its brilliant - the dodgy times are Spring and Autumn for stringed instruments. They hate going from hot to cold... and back again. I am just about keeping the incubator temperature level but that has been harder work than usual.
I painted a new sign for the farm - found an old serving platter in the shape of a hen at a car boot sale and used that...
Friday 23 April 2010
surprise appearance on BBC 1 Look North
My Mum got such a surprise tonight and emailed us straight away. (We were out and missed it of course). I hardly noticed that the audition was filmed and never dreamt it would be on TV but there it was.
If you missed it - BBC l Look North - feature on Symphony for Yorkshire Auditions
www.tripleharps.com
If you missed it - BBC l Look North - feature on Symphony for Yorkshire Auditions
www.tripleharps.com
Four weddings and a funeral
We swopped a walking stick for stringing a harp today. It turned out to be a much longer job than first thought alas (why do these things always do that?). When I heard that a man had down-loaded a design of harp from the internet I assumed that the 'mathematics' of the instrument had been included. Not so! A long process of measuring the harp and working out where the holes will be on the soundboard and head. Each string has to be parallel and exactly 15 mm from the centre. Usually the strings run parallel with the forepillar - this one had a curved one .... Eventually I worked out the guages and lengths for each string and gave it to the man. He went away and drilled all the holes but when he brought the harp back - guess what - he had lost the guage.... Almost back to square one with measuring again...
Anyway - job done and I can now move on. Next week I actually have 4 weddings and a funeral - for the second time in my career! One of the weddings will involve playing chinese harp and a spot of piano for a change.
Next gig - Bacup (see earlier post for details - tickets from me)
Anyway - job done and I can now move on. Next week I actually have 4 weddings and a funeral - for the second time in my career! One of the weddings will involve playing chinese harp and a spot of piano for a change.
Next gig - Bacup (see earlier post for details - tickets from me)
Thursday 22 April 2010
auditions and incubators
Usually when I don't write the blog its not that I have nothing to write about its just that I have no time to write it! Such is the case and I could run off a list of events here and now or continue to chat away about a couple of nice things...
Mac the sheepdog is bouncing around back to normal and had his stitches out. I packed the incubator full of eggs and hopefully in 3 week's time we shall have a load more pompom chicks, wyandottes and copper blacks to replace the others.
This morning I went to an audition - tipped off by my Mum (who has time to read newspapers).
It went well - I am thrilled because they all seemed to understand the hours of slog I have put into designing the harp - and the different music I can achieve - hurrah....watch this space. It sounded pretty positive but they will get back to me in about 2 weeks time. Who knows what might have happenned by then on this farm!
Next gig: The Wyrd of Stake Moss Festival - 29th May 2010 - tickets by invitation only - please get in touch!
Mac the sheepdog is bouncing around back to normal and had his stitches out. I packed the incubator full of eggs and hopefully in 3 week's time we shall have a load more pompom chicks, wyandottes and copper blacks to replace the others.
This morning I went to an audition - tipped off by my Mum (who has time to read newspapers).
It went well - I am thrilled because they all seemed to understand the hours of slog I have put into designing the harp - and the different music I can achieve - hurrah....watch this space. It sounded pretty positive but they will get back to me in about 2 weeks time. Who knows what might have happenned by then on this farm!
Next gig: The Wyrd of Stake Moss Festival - 29th May 2010 - tickets by invitation only - please get in touch!
Wednesday 14 April 2010
Back at Barearts - this Friday
Nearing the end of a very busy spell now! This is just to thank all of you who came to the Wuthering Heights and remind you about the next gig. This Friday at the Barearts in Todmorden - 7 pm. If you like good company and good beer - and of course good music - see you there...
Sunday 11 April 2010
Wuthering Heights - next Tuesday
Hello there again - have been across the country E-W twice this week playing the harp. Did a fabulous wedding in the hot sunshine playing flamenco/latin and neapolitan....on a terrace overlooking a river. Rather a lot of people 'ear-wigging' - just a fabulous atmosphere.
3 concerts in a week as well!!! Loving it!!!! The next 'gig' is at The Wuthering Heights Pub in Stanbury (nr Haworth) on Tuesday evening.
Also have a new cd to sell with the two tracks - Gypsy and Indian Princess - not to mention Geoff's tune - all proving popular :)
3 concerts in a week as well!!! Loving it!!!! The next 'gig' is at The Wuthering Heights Pub in Stanbury (nr Haworth) on Tuesday evening.
Also have a new cd to sell with the two tracks - Gypsy and Indian Princess - not to mention Geoff's tune - all proving popular :)
Monday 5 April 2010
Easter eggs
We took a break from harps and lambing and decided to go for a walk. As we couldn't go far we decided to explore close to home. We ended up walking round Kildwick which was beautiful. Dave wasn't too sure about it at all but ended up really enjoying himself!
Dave's friend bought me a Thorntons Easter Egg but Dave ate it. Today he bought me a tellytubbies egg - on sale - he had waited especially until after Easter so they were on special offer.....!!!! (Now you know why his nick-name is 'Weasal')
Dave's friend bought me a Thorntons Easter Egg but Dave ate it. Today he bought me a tellytubbies egg - on sale - he had waited especially until after Easter so they were on special offer.....!!!! (Now you know why his nick-name is 'Weasal')
Saturday 3 April 2010
Antoinette and Harry?
Two lambs so far - the first was named Harry by Harriet so the second should be Antoinette for my son, Anthony? A huge lamb, needed help to be pulled out so perhaps a large name is appropriate! (Yes, ALL our sheep names....and most of the hens too)
Onto harps - I have at last managed to listen to the cd on a normal cd player and I haven't done a bad job! I have actually managed to get the treble louder than the bass which is very bizarre but think we can correct that. Some gorgeous moments and I am really pleased with the way my own compositions are coming along. I seem to have gone in two directions at once - 'gypsy baroque' and uniquely, F-K's own.
I am waiting for paint to dry on a new sign I have made to advertise the surplus eggs to passing walkers. I have painted a sheep, a sheepdog, a cockrell ... and of course, a harp on it. I need to make a 'gibbet' to hang it off but for the time being the washing line will have to do.
Onto harps - I have at last managed to listen to the cd on a normal cd player and I haven't done a bad job! I have actually managed to get the treble louder than the bass which is very bizarre but think we can correct that. Some gorgeous moments and I am really pleased with the way my own compositions are coming along. I seem to have gone in two directions at once - 'gypsy baroque' and uniquely, F-K's own.
I am waiting for paint to dry on a new sign I have made to advertise the surplus eggs to passing walkers. I have painted a sheep, a sheepdog, a cockrell ... and of course, a harp on it. I need to make a 'gibbet' to hang it off but for the time being the washing line will have to do.
Tuesday 30 March 2010
The Earnshaw House in Haworth
The 'real' Earnshaws used to live in our house. Their daughter was apparantly a friend of Emily Bronte. By the end of the week the house will be full again! - I don't mean with harps this time but nearly all the family and friends staying for Easter. I am even having to make the beds in the attic - more of a bunk room but it has a staircase and radiators.
No lambs yet but the sheep are huge and pacing a bit. The first are due tomorrow.
Ended up walking around Skipton yesterday in the rain - showed Harriet's Mum a walk that I find fascinating up behind the castle on a walkway that runs inbetween the canal (old moat?) and the beck. Managed to park on the cobbles - a rarity on market day - due to the incessant rain no doubt! Started the day at the auction mart looking at sheep. Dave was trying to persuade me that these sheep were a cross between a cow and a sheep - very long legs, black fleece, white feet and black heads with a wide white stripe....
No lambs yet but the sheep are huge and pacing a bit. The first are due tomorrow.
Ended up walking around Skipton yesterday in the rain - showed Harriet's Mum a walk that I find fascinating up behind the castle on a walkway that runs inbetween the canal (old moat?) and the beck. Managed to park on the cobbles - a rarity on market day - due to the incessant rain no doubt! Started the day at the auction mart looking at sheep. Dave was trying to persuade me that these sheep were a cross between a cow and a sheep - very long legs, black fleece, white feet and black heads with a wide white stripe....
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