By Anne Sullivan
You have a smartphone, right? Good for you. As technology becomes ever smarter, musicians know their smartphones are powerful tools to help them be better musicians.
The voice...
By Anne Sullivan
Do you memorize your music, what we often call “playing by heart”?
When I was a student, playing from memory was expected and required, not for every piece, but...
By Anne Sullivan
It’s time to make your summer plans. And if your plans include doing some extra playing in public and maybe earning a little money, you need to read this post.
...
By Anne Sullivan
I learned to play in orchestra very early in my harp journey. My teacher was Marilyn Costello, principal harpist of the Philadelphia Orchestra, so obviously she was an expert at...
By Anne Sullivan
Sometimes the impossible...isn’t.
In 1954 when Roger Bannister became the first person to run a mile in under four minutes, he didn’t just break all the records....
By Anne Sullivan
"And your étude for this week…”
When I was a young student, hearing my teacher say those words made my heart sink. An étude meant boring. dull and...
By Anne Sullivan
Roadrunners are birds known for their speed. If you’re a fan of classic cartoons, you know they can be pretty tricky too.
When your day is jam-packed with school and...
I have an entire closet filled with music. It’s organized and filed in boxes, or at least most of it is. And four of those boxes are dedicated just to etudes and exercises. Those books of...
By Anne Sullivan
At Harp Mastery® and Harp Quest we talk a lot about harp happiness. Harp happiness can mean many different things, but in a general sense it means playing the music you...
By Anne Sullivan
Tired hands, sore fingers, tense shoulders. These are all signs of a harpist who is having a busy December with lots of playing.
Sure, playing is fun, but it's not so much...
By Anne Sullivan
“To change the fingering or not to change it; that is the question.” If Hamlet had been a harpist, his famous speech might have started with those words.
We...
By Anne Sullivan
Holiday parties are fun if you’re a guest. But when you’re the band, they can be tiring, monotonous, and if you’re not careful, a minefield of...
