AP US History

So and so Infantry Comic

Harp

Aragonaise from Carmen 

Just hearing the orchestra arrangement of the Aragonaise, I think this opera is dark and violent. The opera will not end well for our protagonist. I love hoe the piece dances around in the higher register, but I think it will be challenging to play at tempo. The Argonaise contrasts with the Prelude in its playfulness and incorporation of the tambourine in percussion. I think it will be super interesting how the arrangement interprets the oboe and piccolo solos on the harp. I predict the most challenging part of learning this piece is putting all of the parts together. The dancing in the opera really helped illustrate the context of the piece. 

Habanera from Carmen

Habanera is a Cuban dance and one of the most famous opera pieces in the world. Watching the Operas performance shows us how provocative and strong-willed Carmen is as a character. I think the musicality of the piece will be the most challenging to perfect when it comes to performance time.

Playful Pizzicato

The song is going to be fast and jumpy (maybe Latin sounding?), with difficult key changes throughout. 

• FAST!!

• Has slower parts sprinkled throughout

• sound very scheming, like a kid getting up to no good

Acariciar by Harriet Adie

• Tricky rhythms

• Lots of downward scales 

• bottom rhythm running throughout

• Sounds like the opening to a Studio Ghibli movie

• Repetitive- might lose track

• Tight pedals

Charlie Brown Medley

I LOVE Charlie Brown music. If I want to study, or get into a fall/holiday mood, the Vince Guaraldi soundtracks are my go-tos. Growing up, my dad would play Linus and Lucy on the piano so my sisters and I could dance. I think the medley will be a mix of the slower, jazzier pieces, and the more upbeat "Linus and Lucy"-type stuff. 

• Charlie Brown translate really well to the harp!

• Just the xmas stuff

The Nutcracker

The Nutcracker is a seasonal ballet that follows  a girl named Clara and an animated Nutcracker through a fantastical world after a battle with the Rat King. There are many dances that showcase this world such as the dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies and Trepak. I have seen the ballet at the Fox Theater and  have seen animated adaptations of the ballet's story. 

Trepak

The piece we are playing is Trepak or Russian Dance. It is a speedy piece that is played in 2/4 but is often conducted in 1 due to the speed of the piece. In the ballet, either a large ensemble or two dancers dance in a Russian style that features a lot of leaps and landing on one's heels. This shows one of the man performances put on for Clara and the Nutcracker as they travel through the Kingdom of Sweets. 

Malecki: Concerto For Two Harps

This piece reminds me of montage scenes in a movie in which a team is carrying out a grand heist from an art gallery. The piece is very rushed and it seems the harppart works to accent the melody brought about by the orchestra. The harp part settles in the higher octaves and seems both devious and playful. My personal goal for this piece is to be able to count my rests properly and come in on time based on my counting.

Harp Development In History

• Harps started from archer's bows

• Most harps lacked columns, which caused them to break more easily]

• Instruments can be strung perpendicular (harps) or parallel (most other instruments)

• Lyre and Kithara were popular in Greece

• Kithara was much more commonly played by professional musicians

• Harp versions spread throughout the world as time progressed

• Range and chromaticism was limited 

• First columns were developed in the Medieval/Renaissance 

• Bray harp had pegs which created buzz on notes

• Celtic harp had all metal strings and was played with fingernails (no levers or chromatics)

• Italians double-strung harps on the Arpa Doppia for extra range/notes

• Spanish took on the double-strung harp with cross-strung

• wales introduced the triple-strung harp

• Early lever harps were referred to as hook harps (16th-17th century) in Austria

• Mozart wrote for the single-action pedal harp (only went one half step)

• there was an 8th pedal that could open shutters in back o harp (like sustain pedal)

• Sebastian Erard patented the double action harp

• American manufacturers innovated larger soundboards for larger sound (Lyon and Healy, Wurlitzers)

• 5 majr harp producers globally: Lyon and Healy, Salvi, Camac, Aoyama, Horngacher

Brandee Younger Tiny Desk Concert

This concert included both classical and jazz techniques on solo harp and with a jazz ensemble. I enjoyed the use of the harp to add to the melody and natural flow jazz has naturally. It truly felt like each piece gave Brandee Younger's expert technique and improvisation time to shine. The addition of vocals in the piece "A Brand New Life" added a sense of relaxation and ease to the overall mood. I noticed techniques such as rolled chords, arpeggios, cadenzas, and harmonics. Her solo pieces were expertly played and I loved the inclusion of her piece "Unrest" which was composed in the context of the George Floyd protest of 2020. When the percussion and bass joined in, it added another dimension to the beauty of the harp's cadenzas and rolled chords.

Malecki: Concerto For Two Harps

This piece reminds me of montage scenes in a movie in which a team is carrying out a grand heist from an art gallery. The piece is very rushed and it seems the harppart works to accent the melody brought about by the orchestra. The harp part settles in the higher octaves and seems both devious and playful. My personal goal for this piece is to be able to count my rests properly and come in on time based on my counting.

ReVision (Film and AP Language)