Monthly Archives: May 2026

This is not that

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So many of us struggle to get our practice in. Whether we’re just starting or are simply reacting to daily life, finding the time can be a struggle. But sometimes it’s not finding the time at all.

Sometimes it’s about masking our feelings not our calendars.

I have yet to meet a harper who is unaccomplished, uninteresting, or unmotivated in life.

And that is part of the problem! Because when you are accomplished, interesting, and motivated, it can be more than a little humbling to be confronted by something that kicks your metaphorical butt!

And harp is kind of a bully – it looks so effortless. It sounds so effortless and ethereal. It is so soothing and relaxing. And then it knocks you for six, slaps your face with a fish, and laughs as it saunters away.

And here we are, accomplished, interesting, motivated adults, known for our acumen and accomplishment in the rest of our life, being humiliated by a fish wielding bundle of kindling!

But this is not that.

We can put up plenty of “barriers” to avoid confronting that playing the harp is a lot more challenging than it looks. That it requires all the skills we have already developed and then requires a whole load more that we have to work on – continuously!

I swear I’ve heard my harp sneer, “but what have you done for me today?” And that can wear you down. It may feel as if your harp laughs in the face of your previous accomplishments. That does not make us any less than. In fact, it only makes us more.

Here’s another way to think about it – you grow best when you are under load. That’s true for both physical and cognitive growth. The real challenge is how you respond to that load. The part of us that has already accomplished so much might want to know why we have to do this given that we’re already so lauded and recognized for our high ability and expertise. 

Rather than letting the smarty boots part of you derail your practice, think instead about the load (practicing) as being not so heavy*. And that if you divide it up over time, it becomes feather weight (granted – it’s still intimidating, but it becomes more manageable!). It’s like the elephant – you eat it one bite at a time.

Struggle makes us better, no matter how uncomfortable it might be. What you did before prepares you for what you do now. You do not need to hide from your harp – this is not that. This is this!

And you know it – you’ve got this!

Want to share a thought or leave a comment? Just click here – I love hearing from you!

* Also, don’t let something you’re very proficient at just now let you forget how much work you put in when that was the difficult challenge in your life!

Your comments

Jen- this is the most realistic rendition of harp study EVER.  I agree wholeheartedly!   The harp i s Gorgeous to look at, etherial to hear and damn difficult to learn to play!

Yes,  we are intelligent, educated, often professional adults and the harp says  ” you want it When?” – Kate  😵‍💫

You don’t say

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I had a conversation with one of my students the other day*. She said that she had seen so much progress this week. WOW! Yay! What teacher doesn’t want to hear that?

I asked what had changed to make that happen and she shared that she had practiced every day that week. And now she could actually see progress. And she was (justifiably) very proud! All I could think was, “You don’t say.” After all – those are the words every teacher longs to hear!

All this progress because the week before I had simply suggested that a small and manageable amount of practice every day was much more conducive to success than one-off marathon sessions the day before we met.

When I say small, I mean small. There is no amount of time that is too small. Only have 5 minutes. I have a plan for that! Some days only get 2 minutes – I know how you could spend them to move forward! Spend a week only plopping onto the bench and then leaping up to do other things – no problem!

Because we all only make progress when we get consistent. It’s not about trying to get 3 hours of practice every day – but rather to have some time at the harp nearly every day. Really, we want to build our practice of practicing. To make it something we do every day – like brushing our teeth.  To build the consistency it helps to have a plan.

That plan starts by being sure that your harp is easy to access when you need it. This can be challenging because we also have to protect the harp (from pets, small children, windows, vents, etc. Within those constraints, try to keep your harp where you see it! So many people have a drastic change when they move their harp from the spare room (that no one goes into ever) to their living room (or office, or other room they go in all the time). Simply seeing it will radically alter your practice time.

And the best thing is, that once you start practicing a little but consistently, you will begin to see progress.  And that progress will feel amazing! And then you might find that your small consistent practice grows and becomes a longer consistent practice. Because you love playing the harp – so you might as well do it – every day you get to!

One of you asked if my students don’t get upset when I share something they’ve said. FYI, whenever I say “one of my students” I’m actually referencing something they have (nearly all) said. This is never a single student, but rather a concatenation of all of my students and their comments over time. I’m not singling anyone out or putting anyone on report!

Summer

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Spring is zorching past and summer will start soon. I hope you will find a harp event that is near and dear to you in which to participate. And I’d like to suggest that you participate in the Ohio Scottish Arts School – it’s my favorite summer camp!

You might think that of course I would push OSAS since I have the joy of teaching there, but you’d be wrong! I push OSAS because it changed my life!

I cannot state that emphatically enough. Literally impacted me so much as to have changed the trajectory of my life. Between expanding my technical ability and steeping me in the tradition, OSAS has always been the tractor beam of my harp life. It is there that I have made lifelong friends, learned to dance, laughed until I cried (and cried until I laughed), eaten too many cookies, sat at the knees of icons of the harp, learned to appreciate stellar musicians of multiple instruments, learned tunes, taught tunes, and been awakened by the pipes year after year.

I look forward to attending all year. I plan what I want to hang on my door, what to pack, how to load the car. I excitedly await time with friends I only get to see while I’m in Ohio. I imagine the new people I’ll meet and look forward to the tunes we’ll play together – all harps or collections of harp, fiddle, small pipes, and songs.

Simply – I love it!

In case you were wondering, trad harps are all invited – whether your harp is nylon, fluorocarbon, gut, wire, horsehair – all are welcome (ok, not pedal – but that’s not a trad instrument!).

This year, OSAS will run June 27 – July 3! Registration is open through May 29, 2026 (although it may close before that if the class fills). Here’s a link to the form: Registration Information page

Our harp instructors this year are an exciting group, and each brings incredible chops! We have the amazing and well-known Sharon Knowles and Jo Morrison joined by up-and-comers Stephanie Claussen and Rhiannon Skye! Their bios are available on the website.

And we’re fortunate to also have fiddle instructors Mari Black and Elke Baker – so bring your fiddle friends!

Separately, but definitely related, Tiffany Schaefer continues to coordinate an excellent and well-run competition at the Ohio Scottish Games on Saturday 26 June – a fitting start to the week. Come out to compete or to cheer for the competitors and to show support for the harp at the Games. Preregister on their website: https://ohioscottishgames.com/games/harp

We have full days of music, music, music. It really is immersion – in the best possible way. If you have questions or want more information, check the website, or send me an email!

Your comments

What a wonderful tribute! Made me misty and proud and I can’t wait! And every word is true; the best part for me is how many friendships have happened. And also, how many young harpers have gone on to study in Scotland. Yay!! Sue

Sue, you have every right to be proud – I love that you are a “Main Character” in the development of my character!

All 4 it!

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We all have our favorites moves – and we often cater to them. Why do some things become our favorites? Probably because they come easily to us. Or because they feel natural. Or because they make sense to us within our worldview of playing.

But what about our un-favorites? Those things we dread doing (or the more dramatic of us would say hate doing). Just like our favorites, our un-favorites are there for the exact opposite reason – they don’t fit the way we look at the world, or they feel unnatural, clumsy, or just plain wrong!

For me, these are slides. I will turn myself inside out to avoid doing a slide! I will endure some crazy fingering just to avoid a slide of any ilk!

And what does this tell us? Yup – I need to practice them more!

So, the one of you that asked how to do a 4 slide didn’t know my love/hate relationship – but now you know where that look on my face came from!  Since you asked…

…let’s learn to do a 4 slide! I made you a video to follow along. The most important thing that cannot be overstated is – TAKE IT SLOW! Let your hand, your arm, your brain each learn what you’re asking them to do. Don’t be in a rush. Don’t accept shoddy. Don’t give up! And perhaps most importantly, keep in mind that you are never going to do a 4 slide in isolation – you will always be going up to somewhere else, so don’t waste time trying to do it without your other fingers (don’t ask me how I know how pointless this is).

Take a look. Give it a try. Take it slow and don’t think this is a one-and-done activity! I have found that, like so many of our harp techniques, at first you may struggle. Then you’ll be brilliant and delighted. And then you’ll hit the ungainly adolescent phase of the technique when you’ll play like you’ve never seen a harp before. And then it all gels and you are a strong, confident performer of 4 slides!

And as always, let me know how you go – I love hearing from you!

Your comments

This is something I’ve never attempted. I know what I’ll be trying this afternoon. Thank you.

Regards — Kate

Yuk! Overly dramatic me HATES that. But what do I know? The way that I’ve tended to deal with a 5-note run is 3-2-1-2-1 (mostly). Who uses a 4th finger slide that much?

I hear you! Typically, I do the 3-2-1×2-1 too. But for some (unknown to me) reason, sometimes that 4 slide just comes in handy! More practice!!

Which reminds me – I like to think I’m fairly ok at webpage stuff, but I’m not really. I have taken the comment form off the posts because when it worked, I brought me loads of spam. So, feel free to send me an email (use the contact form which does work) with your comment and I’ll append it to the post so others can see and chime in as well!