I'd appreciate the advice of forum members with respect to a dilemma.

A couple of years ago, I decided to go back to playing music and took up the harp. I really enjoy the instrument, but I've become increasingly despondent about my teacher and about my opportunities for playing with others. There aren't a lot of teachers around, so if I wanted to find another, it would involve travelling a considerable distance for lessons and I don't really want to spend the time I have available for music in the car, rather than playing. Even if I weren't frustrated with the teacher, I'd still be facing a situation where my progress only seems to lead to playing by myself. I enjoy that, but yearn for more. (One, though only one, of the obstacles to playing with others is that I don't have a car big enough to haul my pedal harp around in and don't want to start driving a petrol-guzzler just for the sake of the harp.)

So I've thought of discontinuing harp lessons (though continuing to play on my own) and taking up another instrument, where I'd have more choice of teachers and could perhaps work towards being able to play chamber music with others. The obvious option would be a bowed string instrument; I'd probably go for viola. I feel apprehensive about this: I had an unproductive year on the violin as a child. I foundered at least in part because I never grasped the importance of practice and my parents were much too bohemian to force a child to do anything. Even though I know my rotten violin playing was certainly related to never practising, I feel nervous at the prospect of going back to a bowed string instrument. I also wonder how long it would take me to get to the point where I could play with others.

Does anyone have any thoughts about this situation? Any parallel experiences?

Are there no amateur orchestras in your area that need a harpist?

We're looking for three...

The short response to your dilemma of finding three harpists: contact independent schools in your area. Although I wish it weren't the case, the fact is that outside Wales (where I gather schools have harps) the instrument is overwhelmingly the province of girls from well-to-do families. You'd be surprised at how many of these there are, though. If you get in touch with the head of music in some ritzy schools in your area, you'd probably find a solid contingent of grade 8-level harpists who would welcome the chance to play with an orchestra. Personally, I'd rather drown myself in a privvy than play harp with an orchestra (there was a reason I said I was interested in chamber music), but les jeunes filles probably wouldn't necessarily see things that way.

Hmm. I'm talking about a community orchestra in a rural area that's yet to recover from the death of the coal, coke and steel industries. We're the wrong area for private schools!

It's occured to me that sarah-flute and SueHM both play harp, so they might have suggestions for where you could look for a group.

Don't be put off picking up the viola by the childhood experience, adults have a very different approach to learning instruments and you now appreciate the need to practice, so I'm sure you would feel quite early on that you are progressing. With regards to playing in small groups there are quite a few adult orchestras that take people from grade 3 onwards, any viola teacher may also have harpist contacts who she can put you in touch with. Our local music service also runs ensembles for adult beginners.

Hope you find something.
D

Chamber music for harp very rarely comes with a ready made group- you have to organise your own. Do you know any flautists, violinists or singers? Then invite them around to your house and you don't need to take the harp anywhere! Harp duets can be fun too.

Are you sure there are no other teachers in your area? Have you asked people like Salvi and Pilgrim who else is near you? Sometimes there are a surprising number of harpists around.

PS only three short for your orchestra? This weekend I am playing with one which is four harps short!

Blimey, what are playing that requires 4 harps? I wouldn't mind betting most amateur orchestras struggle to find 1.

Yes, I too am fascinated to know which piece requires 4 harps - I don't think I've ever seen our professional symphony orchestra play anything with more than two........but perhaps this is just bad luck on my part? Do enlighten us!
Wolfnotes

The operas of the Ring Cycle call for 6, though Rhinegold is the only one which has 6 separate parts written out.

Come to think of it Rhinegold has an offstage harp too...

My harp teacher organises ensemble evenings for her students a few times a year. Teacher provides 3-4 harps and we take turn playing so we don't need to bring our own (although some do). Maybe this is something you could ask your teacher?

Panthera: I'm glad for your sake that your teacher organises ensemble evenings for students and I hope you enjoy these and learn from them. I could ask mine for something similar, but when I've asked for something as simple as a progress report (twice), she's just ignored it, as she ignored my requests to work on scales, arpeggios, technical work or sightreading. I've done theory on my own (paying music students to mark my workbooks) and have got a second teacher for aural training. Lessons consist in my playing through pieces and getting minimal feedback. Given how little she does of what she could reasonably be expected to do for her fee, I doubt she's going to spend time arranging evenings for students.

Erard: I'm aware that chamber music for harps doesn't come with ready-made groups. That's precisely the reason I'm thinking of switching to another instrument. As for asking about other teachers, unfortunately I know there's only one other teacher in the area and she focuses on very advanced students.

Prodigy: thank you so much for your encouragement. I'm beginning to think that maybe I could brave a bowed string instrument again after all.

Could you learn from one of this teacher's advanced students? If she's a good teacher then they should be well taught with a good understanding of what they are doing. She may have a student who would be interested in starting to teach or in doing something like a teachining diploma (which requires the candidate to have experience of teaching different standards - or at least used to) - so it could work very well for both parties.

DO, whereabouts are you based, and are there any particular chamber music pieces you're interested in playing? If you post something along the lines of "I'm based in W town/county/region, are there any players of X instrument who'd be interested in playing Y piece by Z composer" you might find someone who'd be willing to play chamber music with you (or even know of another harp teacher local to you)

Oh, and I heard a performance of La Damnation de Faust a couple of years ago which had EIGHT (count 'em!) harps.

Also, don't be put off the viola by experience with the violin. I was a perfectly lousy violinist. I changed to the viola and suddenly found myself propelled to grade 7 within 1 year of my grade 4 violin. Within 2 years of picking up viola I had a grade 8 with distinction and was auditioning for conservatoires. It's only when I got the hang of viola and went back the way to violin that I was able to make anything of it, but there's still an obvious gap. Viola may be the instrument for you. My local music shop used to do an orchestral trial day where they brought a load of student instruments to a large venue and a teacher took you through the very first lesson for the instrument in question and you got to rotate around everything and see which was the instrument that suited you. Many still hadn't got a note out of any woodwind by the end of the 90-minute session and went on to excel in brass. I think there is a strong case for matching a person to an instrument they are suited for, not a parent saying gosh, violin would be nice.

My goodness: well done! Your experience and your achievements are an inspiration!