Three Pieces to Launch You Into the New Year

By Anne Sullivan

Happy 2024, harpists! It’s a new year and you have lots of new music ahead of you. If you are looking for some new music ideas to add some rocket fuel to your harp playing, I have three pieces for you to consider adding to your “must learn” list today. 

How could I know exactly what pieces are right for you? Obviously, I don’t. I don’t know whether you’re a harp newbie or a superstar student who’s been playing for years, so I can’t give you specific titles. I can, however, give you three important categories of pieces and leave it up to you to choose the piece of music that will inspire and motivate you. So here goes…

1. A short, easy “play anywhere” piece. You know that you’re going to be asked to play sometime somewhere for someone, even if it’s only for your relatives, and you don’t want to be caught with nothing to play. Find a short (one page is okay) piece that’s easy for you. Learn it and even memorize it. You could even choose to review a piece you learned a while ago. Then play it as a warm-up every day until it’s practically second nature for you. Then the next time someone asks you to play something, you’ll have something ready. 
2. A “stretch” piece. You know the piece I mean. It’s your favorite harp piece, the one you want to play “someday.” Why not get a start on “someday” today? You could get the music and try the first page. You could ask your teacher to work on it with you. Your teacher may recommend that you start with another piece that will help you grow into your dream piece, and that’s great too. You may not get your stretch piece learned right away, but you’ll be one big step closer.
3. An “out of the box” piece. There are so many kinds of music in the world, but most of us tend to stick with what we know. Take a chance on something new. Have you ever thought of playing jazz or music from around the world or contemporary music or medieval music? Think about books that you love or places you want to travel to and let those inspire your music choices. Try arranging some music from your favorite movie or video game. The more we explore the wide world of music, the better musicians we become. 

Here’s to a wonderful new year of harp music!