Re: [Harp-L] Tift Merritt plays harp



I dislike the whole "harp as accessory" thing and to me that's what's going on here. Most performers, especially professionals, wouldn't strap on a guitar or sax without first achieving some reasonable level or proficiency. I think Dylan, Young, Springsteen et al without even realizing it caused some of this by strapping on a rack and playing in their stark, discordant styles but we know they are capable more (in some cases).

Tift is not bad in the other areas though. I'm a fan of Magda Hiller (who sticks to what works for her and as far as I know doesn't play harp).

In any case, we can't tell folks what to play. There was another video link posted a while ago of a young female playing and singing fantastically but ruined the whole thing with some really bad-sounding (to me) harp playing (this one couldn't even be described as intentionally stark or discordant).

Then again, on the indie radio stations (like xpn out of philly which I listen to) there seems to be a trend toward really, really bad off-key singing, i assume to amplify the "angst" of the song?

Bill Hines



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