


Meet Sally – Helping to Reinvent an Orchestra on Solo Harp
“I let go of my perfection obsession and accepted imperfect completion.” Sally Walstrum The Birth of a new solo harp piece: Merceditas Sally tells her story: I started playing harp as a child and had a strictly classical background. And I mean...
Meet Fern, fulfilling a Bluesy goal
“I told him the family that plays together stays together, and he agrees.” Fern Nelson Fulfilling a Bluesy Goal Fern saw a harpist as a child and always wanted to play, but it wasn’t until a couple years ago that she got her first harp and started to play....
Meet Louise – and her jazz love-child of Satie & Pachelbel
Ever been curious to know what you get when you combine the music of Erik Satie and Johann Pachelbel? Well, this harpist was, and you can hear the result. But first … Meet Louise Bell Louise is an Australian harpist, pianist, singer, performer, composer,...
Strings of Passion 2021 Projects
Once upon a time, during one of the severe pandemics in the 21st century, when all people were forced to stay at home and could not meet and play music together … … an international community of DARING harp players met each week in a Virtual Academy to...
Do Animals get the Blues? (Yes! If they’re lucky enough to be on Susanne’s farm)
Not all harpists live a life of luxury, waltzing around in long flowing gowns. This harpist spends her day mucking out the manure … but on this day, she brought her harp with her. So … do animals get the Blues? Well … yes, if they’re lucky...
Money … or music? (How to Fund your Creative Growth)
When do you have to choose between money and music? Last month I got an email from a student who’s learning improv and performance in my Hip Harp Academy. She was asking how to make the best use of her 4th year of membership – and how to rationalize the...
Charlene Elderkin’s New “Harp to Heart” Show
Early this year, Charlene Elderkin came to a Hip Harp Academy chat and said she had committed to putting on an outdoor concert in Viroqua, Wisconsin, using everything she’d learned in Hip Harp Academy. Not just a solo concert, but a concert with friends –...
Ten 30-Second Improv Tips from my Instagram feed
My online Academy for harpists is all about learning ways to use the skills of improv, arrangement and performance to express yourSELF – and it’s incredibly inspiring to me I see people use these skills. My goal in the Academy is to free each individual...