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Dhá Clairseach Here I am with my sometime harp
partner Irminsul, with his usual Aries pre-gig face on ("Whaddaya mean,
real
men don't wearskirts?") We don't always play together, because we each
have some personal harp agendas, but we have been performing and recordingtogether
in Salt Lake City, intermittently since 1994. We played together
at the Scottish Festival in 1995, 1996 and 1998, at the St. Patrick's Day
festivities at Crompton's (a former Salt Lake City landmark, now regrettably
closed after 20 years of serving the community,) at the Medieval Feast
of the Hibernian Society, and were featured on KRCL radio's New Age music
program Nexus, discussing Celtic music and playing pre-release
cuts from our first recording, Aisling.Some
years ago we were the featured artists at the opening of Lost Arts,
an art gallery and
We
are shown here with our matched set of Lyon and Healy Troubadour
harps. Irminsul's is a Troubadour IV (Nessa) and I play
a Troubadour III (Gwydion). Uncle Irmy's other harp is a 22-string
wire-strung Markwood Celt, yclept Avalon, and my other harps include
a 22-string Gothic Witcher (Dierdre)
built in 1980, a lovely copy by local harpbuilder Keith Rogers of the Witcher
standing Gothic harp, strung in wire, whose name is Niamh (bright) and
an Argent Fox Brother Ambrosius (another wire) called Ceol (song.) (Yes,
I know...our harps have names! What do you expect from a couple
of Celtic Reconstructionists with Medieval attitudes?)
Uncle Irmy also occasionally whips out
one of several tinwhistles, and I have lately begun the
bowed psaltery, which appears on my solo recording Waterharp,(expected
release Spring 2004). The variety of instruments (yes, all
those harps do sound different from each other, even the two
Future plans for Dhá Chlairseach (which is pronounced " hah KLARshah" and is Irish Gaelic for "Two Harps") include a followup to Aisling (poet's vision), tentatively entitled Amhran (song), as well as possible opportunities for private gigs such as weddings, and charity concerts through Heart and Soul. Each of us will also pursue our individual harp agendas, Irminsul with Stonecircle and as a solo performer, and I in the studio and on the Millennium Harp Quest sponsored by Harping for Harmony. Irminsul's other musical endeavors may be found at http://www.irminsul.biz, while my own musical realm, shared with my partner and sound engineering expert Briana, is http://www.technoharp.com |