News

Harp-o-tunities

1 August 2008

Anyone who's ever thought about trying out the harp but been put off by the expense could take inspiration from this small group in Coventry. Harp-o-tunities is a community music project aiming to give everyone the chance to play the harp, regardless of whether or not they can afford to buy their own.

The group started out by offering workshops for newcomers to try out the harp, then with some funding they were able to support more classes through the local council by providing harps to the students. And now there's a thriving community of local harpers!

As Jack Shuttleworth, from Harp-o-tunities says: ‘We want to ‘de-posh' the harp. Everyone wants a go on a harp, and it's possibly the easiest instrument to start on. The strings are organised as a simple ‘doh, re, mi' and it sounds fantastic the first time you touch it.'

Harp-o-tunities' newest venture involves running children's harp clubs in Coventry's Herbert Art Gallery, with a series of workshops exploring the acoustics and aesthetics of this prestigious new building. And if you're thinking of Christmas already, why not book one of their December workshops?

For more information visit www.harpotunities.co.uk

If you're interested in buying a harp, you could look at these registered Take it away shops:

Clive Morley Harps www.morleyharps.co.uk
Hobgoblin Music www.hobgoblin.com
The Early Music Shop www.earlymusicshop.com