A NOTE REGARDING LAYOUT OF LEVER CHANGES

Lever changes are shown as diamond notes enclosed in boxes, generally on the lower stave. Where there is a clef (usually treble) also inside the box next to the note, this relates only to the lever change, and the following normal notes revert to the existing clef. Of course, clefs not in boxes indicate genuine changes of clef which apply both to diamond and normal notes.

As levers will usually be operated one at a time, multiple lever changes are generally slightly spaced apart. However, in some cases, they may be shown as a ‘chord’ of diamond notes. This is purely for layout reasons and does not imply that the levers should be changed simultaneously although this may indeed be possible where they are close together.

The order in which multiple lever changes are actually performed may be decided by the player (or their teacher, where appropriate).

COMPOSERS NOTES

TOCCATA - David Snell
This piece is all in one tonality and should be played very precisely (sempre ritmico) with the melody brought out in the right hand and with a melodic middle section.

IDYLL - Nigel Springthorpe
This piece started out as a setting of a poem by W.S.Collins called June Twilight for tenor voice and piano. The poem is one of a collection written at the turn of the 20th century describing life in rural Ireland, June Twilight describing a tryst between lovers down a wooded lane. The unashamedly pastoral and romantic music lent itself well to adaptation for lever harp. The performer should try to contrast the introductory and accompanying music (bars 1-4, and bars 14, 16, 35 and 37) which was originally the piano with the cantabile vocal line. In general, the music should be played flexibly, keeping in mind the words “dallying down the lane’

DANCE - Fiona Clifton-Welker
‘Dance’ was written in January 2000 for the Trinity non-pedal harp syllabus. London was dull, dreary, wet and cold at the time so I decided to compose something that would evoke a balmier climate. I wanted the two outer sections to sound like slow, fluid improvisations to contrast with the middle section which is in strict tempo.

RAG-BAG - David Gough
This is a re-writing of an experimental piece composed originally for piano. I started with a fairly basic pastiche of a Scott Joplin rag. Using a combination of technology and research, I then imposed on each section a number of traditional and ‘World Music’ modes (Lydian mode, Indian Ragas, Oriental scales etc.) selecting the most appropriate style for each section and compositionally welding them together. Some awkward accidentals have had to be removed but I hope the essence and fun of the rag is still present.

HOUSE MUSIC - Danielle Perrett
Most people in Britain associate lever harps with traditional music, but as players we know the instruments are capable of far more. This piece is both an attempt at dispelling any ideas of the lever harp’s limitations and also a study in lever glissandos and agile lever changes.

THE HEART’S JOURNEY - Nigel Springthorpe
This is another adaptation of a song for high voice and piano. There is also a choral arrangement of the piece. The text is a poem by Siegfried Sassoon which describes the ecstatic joy and feelings of great yearning created by new love - the opening line is “A flower has opened in my heart’: The music should be performed with boldness and great momentum.

THE GREEN MAN - David Bessell
I had in mind when writing, the idea of villagers dancing at a festival in honour of the traditional pagan figure of the Green Man. As the dance progresses a stranger (the Green Man in disguise) merges with the dancers, signified by a change from conventional to synthetic modes and a subtly more ambiguous mood (bar 19). As the dance finishes the stranger disappears and we are returned to the tranquillity of rural England (bar 31) and familiar modes.

VARI8 - Paul Ayres
Vari8 was written in February 2000, after the composer was demonstrated the lever harp by Jade Hamilton. The work is constructed around a gradually-changing 8-note scale, reflected in the many lever changes, which keep the player very busy! “in” is a dynamic level between “mp" and “mf’ ie. a medium volume, which is neither “a little soft” nor “a little loud’

MILLENNIUM HOPE - Gabriel Currington
This piece was commissioned at the same time I lost a close friend of mine and the music has very much a bearing on my thoughts at that moment. The theme in the middle section of the piece represents the happy and kind person my friend was. The other parts aim to reflect the hectic and frenzied culture we live in today and no matter what the result is we should never give up hope of a brighter and optimistic future, hence the unresolved ending.

AFTER DEBUSSY - Danielle Perrett
Why should only pedal harpists have the whole colouristic range of impressionist music at their disposal? This piece is unashamedly a pastiche of Debussian style, form and in the use of modes rather than conventional major and minor scales. Experiment with the tonal colours possible on your instrument and try to make these an important feature in your interpretation.

RONDO - Nigel Springthorpe
Rondo is an original piece for lever harp. It commences with a kind of moto- perpetuo which contrasts with the more lyrical and rhapsodic sections commencing in bars 24 and 64. The poco meno mosso should not be played too slowly though, but with flexibility and rubato.