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Harp Day
“It is music that lightens the heart of man
And sweetens every sorrow.”
~ Traditional
This beautiful tartan evokes the warm wood of a harp’s frame, whether the smaller folk harps of Scotland, Ireland, and Wales or the gleaming golden concert harps of the modern orchestra. Fine lines running through the sett suggest the instrument’s many shimmering strings and tuning pegs.
The harp has a particularly ancient place in the musical history of Scotland and Ireland. In the medieval Gaelic world, harpers were highly trained professionals and members of the learned bardic tradition alongside poets and historians. A skilled harper might perform ceremonial music for a clan chief, accompany heroic poetry, compose music in praise of a patron, and help preserve the stories and genealogies of great families.
The tradition remained particularly strong in the Hebrides and western Highlands, where Gaelic culture endured for centuries. Across the Irish Sea, the harp became so closely identified with Ireland that it eventually became the country's national emblem, appearing on coins, official seals, and the Irish coat of arms.
Among the best-loved figures of the tradition is Turlough O’Carolan (1670–1738), the blind Irish harper who travelled from household to household, composing pieces in honour of his patrons. His melodies — including Sí Bheag, Sí Mhór and Carolan’s Concerto — combine elements of the older Gaelic harp tradition with the fashionable European Baroque music of his time. Earlier celebrated harpers included Rory Dall O’Cahan in Ireland and Rory Dall Morrison in Scotland.
The ancient Celtic harp itself was rather different from the modern folk harp. Known in Scottish Gaelic as the clàrsach and in Irish as the cláirseach, the old instrument was traditionally strung with metal, particularly brass, producing a brilliant, bell-like sound with an unusually long resonance. Because the notes continued ringing after they were plucked, harpers developed distinctive playing techniques to damp unwanted strings while allowing others to sing out.
By the 18th century, this centuries-old professional tradition was fading. Political and social upheaval, the decline of Gaelic patronage and the clan system, and the growing popularity of instruments such as the fiddle and keyboard all contributed to its disappearance.
A revival beginning in the late 19th century and continuing through the 20th brought renewed enthusiasm for the clàrsach, inspiring the modern Celtic harp movement and, more recently, a rediscovery of the sound and playing techniques of the old wire-strung Gaelic harps of Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. 🤎 💛 🖤 🤎 🎶 🎶 🎶
Turlough O'Carolan (1670–1738) was one of the most famous Irish harpists and composers in history and is often described as the last great bardic harper of Ireland. Born in 1670 in Nobber, County Meath, he moved as a child with his family to Ballyfarnon in County Roscommon, where his father worked for the MacDermott Roe family, members of the Gaelic aristocracy who helped preserve Irish cultural traditions during a time of political change in Ireland.
At about eighteen years old, O'Carolan contracted smallpox, which left him blind. Rather than ending his prospects, this turning point shaped the course of his life. Mrs. MacDermott arranged for him to study the Irish harp, the prestigious instrument of the Gaelic bardic tradition. After several years of instruction, she provided him with a harp, a horse, and a guide, enabling him to travel the Irish countryside as a professional harper.
For nearly fifty years, O'Carolan travelled throughout Ireland performing for noble families, composing music in their honor, and continuing the fading tradition of the wandering Gaelic bard. In earlier centuries, harpers and poets held high status in Irish society, but by the late seventeenth century the old Gaelic order had largely collapsed. Travelling musicians such as O'Carolan helped preserve much of Ireland’s musical heritage during this period.
Many of his compositions were written as tributes to patrons and friends. These pieces often carry the names of the people they honored and are known as “planxties,” a term thought to refer to a praise composition or musical tribute. Well-known examples include Planxty Irwin, Planxty Kelly, Planxty Burke, and Planxty George Brabazon.
O'Carolan’s music is distinctive because it blends older Gaelic harp traditions with influences from European Baroque music. Through his contact with the Anglo-Irish aristocracy, he became familiar with the works of continental composers and incorporated elements of their style into his own compositions. This combination of traditional Irish melody with more structured harmonic ideas gives his music a unique character within the Celtic repertoire.
Many stories about O'Carolan survive in Irish folklore. He was remembered as witty, sociable, and fond of good company. One well-known tale recounts a musical challenge with the visiting Italian violinist Francesco Geminiani. After hearing Geminiani perform, O'Carolan reportedly composed Carolan’s Concerto overnight in the Italian style, demonstrating both his creativity and his ability to absorb new musical influences.
O'Carolan died in 1738 at the home of the MacDermott family near Alderford in County Roscommon. According to tradition, he composed one of his final pieces, Carolan’s Farewell to Music, toward the end of his life.
Today he is remembered as a central figure in Irish traditional music and as a bridge between the ancient Gaelic harp tradition and the musical styles of eighteenth-century Europe. Many of his melodies—including Sí Bheag, Sí Mhór, Eleanor Plunkett, and Carolan’s Dream—remain widely performed by harpists and traditional musicians around the world.
A few O’Carolan tunes are often noted for having a Scottish flavor in rhythm or melodic structure. These include:
Carolan’s Welcome
Carolan’s Draught
Madam Maxwell
Lord Inchiquin
Some scholars have pointed out that the lilting rhythms and phrase structures in certain pieces resemble Scottish strathspeys or airs, though they are still firmly within the Irish tradition.
For more history of the Celtic harp, click the harp!