Harp

HARP. - Legendary tales recount the obscure, very ancient origin of the h. Egyptian monuments depict h. variously ornamented, which over the course of time were perfected, increasing in proportions and in the number of strings. Greeks and Romans used above all the lyra. Nevertheless they knew two types of h.: the Assyrian one and the trigon (triangular in shape). In the 12th century the Irish held a true primacy in the use of the h. and in the technique of its construction, since in all the manifestations of their life the h. played a very great part. The Irish h. soon spread to Germany, to Flanders, to France, to Spain, to Italy, and enjoyed the greatest favor at the courts, especially in the period of the Renaissance; with the first melodramas it began to form part of the orchestra. After the improvements made by the best makers, Nadermann, Cousseneau, and especially by Sébastien Erard (1712-1831), who brought it to its present perfection, the h. is considered an integral part of an orchestral score.

In large concert organs a percussion h. stop is often provided that imitates the sound of the orchestral instrument of the same name.

Alessandro Santini