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The Harp in the Orchestra book by Beatrice Schroeder Rose

“The sight and sound of the harp belie the fact that it is one of the most difficult instruments to master.” -Beatrice Schroeder Rose

From her extensive years as a professional harpist and Principal Harpist of the Houston Symphony, Beatrice Schroeder Rose has compiled this reference book for the orchestral harp. Her book has a four-fold purpose: to give harpists solutions to the many problems in orchestral harp music, to guide composers who include harp in their orchestral scores; to raise conductors’ awareness of the time and effort their harpist will spend preparing for a performance, and to give teachers an aid in preparing students at any level for the challenges they will face as an orchestral harpist.

Beatrice writes, “Composers, arrangers, and conductors are not harpists. Because of the unique demands made upon harpists involved in orchestra playing at every level from school to symphony, this reference book is offered as a guide, not only for the performer, but for all who are in need of gaining insight into the problems and pitfalls too often found in music written for the harp.”

The Harp in the Orchestra includes the following topics and musical excerpts:

Introduction
A Harp is Not a Piano, The Differences, Composers and the Harp, Conductors and the Harp, Guidelines for the Orchestral Harpist

Section I: Enharmonics and Harmonics
Prelude to “The Afternoon of a Faun” (Debussy), The Pines of Rome (Respighi), The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (Dukas), Piano Concerto in G (Ravel), Symphony No. 5 (Shostakovich), Russian Easter Overture (Rimsky-Korsakov)

Section II: Late 19th-Century and Early 20th-Century Excerpts
La Mer (Debussy), Symphony No. 3/ Das Lied von der Erde (Mahler), La Valse (Ravel), Russian Easter Overture/ Capriccio Espagnol (Rimsky-Korsakov), Overture to La Forza del Destino (Verdi)

Section III: 20th-Century Masterworks
Violin Concerto/ Concerto for Orchestra (Bartók), Wozzeck (Berg), War Requiem / The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra / A Ceremony of Carols (Britten), Salome’s Dance / Der Rosenkavalier Suite (Strauss), Notation Errors in Don Juan / Ein Heldenleben (Strauss)

Section IV: Chamber Works
Fantaisie pour Violon et Harpe (Saint-Saëns), Introduction et Allegro (Ravel)

Section V: Glossary, Definitions & Terms