Back to the Old Country CD by Harpa: Scandinavian CDs

Harpa is a group of folk harp performers, coming together from diverse parts of the US, united by their love for Scandinavian music. Beth Kolle, Sharon Knowles, Sue Richards, Aryeh Frankfurter, John Peekstok, Kevin Holsinger, and Susan Easthouse share their interpretations of music from Northern Lands: Norway, Sweden, Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. This compilation CD is titled Tilbake til det gamle landet, or Back to the Old Country. Four of the 15 tracks are solo harp, one is a harp duet, and the others are enhanced by flutes or other traditional instruments.
Some of these pieces are also found on CDs that we sell by the individual performers.

Click on an arrow below to hear a sample of that song.
(If you are using Internet Explorer 7, click on an arrow to activate Flash, and then click it again to “play.”)

Beth Kolle
Beth Kolle was one of the first of a growing number of performers who are exploring the ancient Scandinavian music tradition with the harp. In addition to lever harp, Beth plays flutes and whistles, she also sings in Norwegian, Swedish and Gaelic. When she isn’t teaching workshops or performing solo, Beth can be found accompanying Seattle area bands Crookshank and Greensleeves. In 2006 she traveled to Norway with the Harpa 06 tour, to perform and promote the harp. She has many recordings featuring her unique combination of Gaelic and Scandinavian music, and has written two books of harp music.

Aryeh Frankfurter
Aryeh Frankfurter’s uncommon approach to the Celtic harp and folk harp repertoire has gained him substantial recognition both within and outside of the Celtic harp community. Aryeh has performed in the summer of 2001 for an audience of 3400 at the amphitheatre Dalhalla in Rattvik Sweden. He is a mainstay performer at San Francisco's Ghirardelli Square. He was a workshop speaker and performer at the Harpcon 2000 held in Monterey California and has performed internationally in Sweden's oldest and largest music festival Musik Vid Siljan and at the Falum Musical Festival in the summer of 1996. Aryeh now pursues a career as a full time free lance musician performing widely throughout the San Francisco/Bay Area region of California.